The Engineering Process
An engineering process is an order of operations that engineers commonly follow to solve issues. It is highly iterative, and certain aspects of the process can be repeated many times within the same project. The specific framing and articulation of the steps that get iterated will vary.
The first step is research. This includes identifying requirements in the first place, locating information, and understanding the constraints. It is a crucial element of the engineering process, allowing engineers to discover the most effective solution to an issue.
Once researchers have enough data, they can begin brainstorming ideas for solutions to the issue. This can be accomplished in a variety of ways and is the area where engineering imagination truly flourishes. This is also where ideas are analysed and compared. This could include simulation studies, generating decision matrixes, and even constructing prototypes for comparison.
In this step students choose one of their top ideas and create a plan to implement it. Then, they construct the prototype using the specified materials and test it against their performance standards. Students may need to test and tweak their prototypes to ensure that it works in the way they intended.
This is a good way to educate students about the importance of problem solving and iteration. It is quite common for engineers to find a solution, test it and then find a new problem that they need to tackle. The process continues until the engineer can come up with the solution that is in line with their expectations.