American Society of Mechanical Engineers. - The Unwritten Laws of Engineering

C ONTENTS

I NTRODUCTION

Prior to writing the first text of this book, the originating author admitted to having become very much aware, which can be observed in any engineering organization, that the chief obstacles to the success of individual engineers or of groups of engineers are of a personal and administrative rather than a technical nature. It was apparent that both he and his associates were getting into much more trouble by violating the undocumented laws of professional conduct than by committing technical sins against the well-documented laws of science. Since the former appeared to be unwritten at that time, "laws" were formulated and collected into a scrapbook as a professional code of sorts. Although they were, and in this latest edition still are fragmentary and incomplete, they are offered here for whatever they may be worth to younger engineers just starting their careers, and to older ones who know these things perfectly well but who all too often fail to apply them.

None of these laws is theoretical or imaginary, and however obvious they may appear, their repeated violation is responsible for much of the frustration and embarrassment to which engineers everywhere are liable. In fact, the first edition of this book was primarily a record derived from direct observation over 17 years of four engineering departments, three of them newly organized and struggling to establish themselves by trial-and-error. It has been supplemented, confirmed, and updated by the experience of others as gathered from numerous discussions, observations, and literature, so that it most emphatically does not reflect the unique experience or characteristics of any one organization.

Many of these laws are generalizations to which exceptions will occur in special circumstances. There is no thought of urging a servile adherence to rules and red tape, for there is no substitute for judgment; vigorous individual initiative is needed to cut through formalities in emergencies. But in many respects these laws are like the basic laws of society; they cannot be violated too often with impunity, notwithstanding striking exceptions in individual cases.