What is Engineering Research?

• Engineering research is concerned with creating information, concepts, principles and programs on which the design and production of engineering products and systems can be based.

• Engineering research utilizes and extends the knowledge base of mathematics and of the various disciplines of the physical sciences, particularly physics, chemistry, metallurgy and geology.

• The knowledge base of the physical sciences and mathematics serves engineering by enabling the establishment of bounds for those operational principles which can be realized in both hardware and software.

• The extension of this knowledge base in engineering research occurs through studies of materials, processes and mathematical formulations that deepen understanding of what can be practically achieved. This aspect of engineering research is commonly called engineering science.

• Much of the continuing research and development in what is known as classical science is done by engineers in the context of engineering science. This research develops the understanding and insight needed for effective design.

• Engineering is not, therefore, simply applied science. It develops and utilizes a distinctive body of operational principles to be realized with materials, devices, products, processes and systems. It also draws on a range of other disciplines including economics, psychology, human relations, the life sciences and management. In its application, engineering is inherently multidisciplinary.

• In contrast, the basic objective of pure science is the discovery of fundamental knowledge and the creation of a deeper understanding of the physical world. Fundamental knowledge is distinctive in that it establishes general principles applicable over diverse circumstances. The quality of basic science is judged by its generality and verifiability. The competent judges of scientific accomplishment are other pure scientists of stature, i.e. a peer group.

• There is a continuum of research and development from basic science through applied science to engineering. Across this spectrum, the focus shifts from pure contributions to knowledge towards satisfying the immediate needs of society. The time scale for the usefulness of results becomes shorter as the production of a particular product or system is approached.

• Most pure research is carried out in universities and government research establishments. Engineering research is often performed in universities when it is pre-competitive in an industrial context and when it is of a medium-term to long-term nature. As the objectives become more competitive, more immediate, and more specifically dependent on the circumstances of end use, engineering research and development is normally carried out in industry.