The Inevitable Inconspicuousness of Engineers
Ever since I was a kid, I always wanted to create, build stuff, fix things, figure out how things work. I broke a few things in the process, but generally, I like to think that I built and fixed more than I broke. After completing each little project, I liked to sit back and admire my “creation”. I also wanted to show it to someone and explain to them how I did it. I liked this process so much, that I decided to become an engineer. I figured, this is the closest I can get to doing what I liked most, professionally.
So I did.
For the most part it worked. I built stuff, I fixed stuff, and I was generally proud of my “creations”. The only problem was, that the better my engineering was, the less conspicuous it became. To make my point, I once again, have to compare engineers to architects.
Good architecture involves form, light, aesthetics, combined harmoniously with function and use. This is difficult and admirable stuff, but if it works, architects don’t even have to show their creations. They stand out. People ask “who designed this?” and, of course, they are referring to the architect.
Good engineering (and this includes almost all engineering disciplines) has to be inconspicuous. In most cases, the structure has to be invisible, the mechanical equipment has to be out of sight and noiseless, the temperature has to be just right so that no one thinks about it, the air has to be odorless and so on.
In 1999 there was a major earthquake in Athens with several buildings collapsing, 143 casualties and a few thousand injured. It was the most catastrophic event in Greece in 50 years. Between 1983, when our office went operational, and the time of the earthquake, we had already designed several hundred structures. We did not receive a single phone call after the event. That was terrific! No one thought of us, which meant that all our buildings functioned perfectly. I am sure that a single hairline crack would have been enough for the clients to remember us.
I could write a book with examples of the things people take for granted and never wonder who was responsible for them. The time people start asking “who designed this?” and they refer to the engineer, is when something isn’t right: A crack in the building, a differential settlement, a noisy A/C unit, stuffy air, too hot or too cold, a drainage problem, a noise from the room above, insufficient electrical power, a missing power outlet, a slow computer network and so on.
In other words, if you are a good engineer, no one should know you exist. Our professional life goal is to reach and maintain inconspicuousness.
This is a depressing thought.
