Engineering is a massive discipline that covers a multitude of areas. Whether it’s building bridges or designing automotive and mechanical devices, engineering trends have to be kept up with. Engineers across the world have a constant battle with new technology and an ever-changing environment and most engineers now have to consider the environment when they’re designing any product. It’s not just about the chemicals and the emissions that are emitted; it is also about the way in which new devices impact our lives. Let’s now take a look at some of the areas where engineers have to now consider the environment and the ways in which they are changing their discipline to keep up with technology.
Power sources
It doesn’t matter what area of engineering we are talking about, power sources are always changing. Let’s take a look at the automotive industry as an example. For decades and decades, petrol and diesel powered vehicles have dominated our transport systems, but now for environmental reasons, we now have to look for different types of fuels other than the standard fossil fuels we have used to date. The impact of this can be felt in the engineering design stage. Vehicles are now thought to be and need to be 100% renewable and recyclable. Even the manufacturing plants that they are designed and produced in have to consider the local environment as part of their plan. The same can be said for generators. Emergency power generators can be used for a multitude of reasons, however gone are the days when noisy generators are acceptable. We now favour quiet diesel generators as our first choice as they do not affect the environment around us by creating large amounts of noise pollution.
Transport
Transport is another huge area of engineering. Whether it’s an aeroplane, train or bus, the engineering behind these modes of transport is huge. However, if we now look at modern transportation compared to transportation forty years ago, it’s clear to see that things have moved on. Aeroplanes are now more environmentally conscious, not only by the pollutants that they emit, but also by the noise that they produce. Engines are now quieter and more environmentally efficient which cuts down their environmental impact. Trains have now gone more towards electric usage, which means they now produce fewer pollutants during a journey. Even the way in which we use transport has changed so that more and more people are getting on public transport, which reduces other areas of transport pollution that we are trying to avoid. Engineers have tried to make access to public transport and its use to be very simple and straightforward. All aspects of the transport system that have benefited from the latest trends the engineers have adhered to.
Metal work
Metal fabricators also look at the ways that they can lessen their impact on the environment by using less metals and quieter laser metal cutting machines. All of the above has to be engineered in such a way that it can keep up with the governmental changes that take place so that it adheres to local government laws and regulations.
Building materials
The engineering of building materials are changing all the time. Materials have been developed so that they are more environmentally friendly and have a multitude of uses and can therefore be used in different areas of construction. Civil engineers that work on bridges and other civil engineering projects have also worked closely with material engineers to make sure that the two can be used, so that there is not a reduction in the quality of the products they design and build.
There has been a massive drive in environmentally safe materials that do not have an impact on the local environment. Even the way in which these materials are produced has changed so that environmental matters have been considered. Houses are often built in situations where they have been built into the natural environment so that minimum impact has taken place. Naturally occurring materials such as wood are still being used, but more trees are being planted to replenish those that have been cut down for our use. This has been going on for a number of years but it is now becoming common practice that companies that use wood as a raw material are helping to sustain new tree growth.
Product design
Products are now designed with the environment in mind. As we mentioned above, the drive is to make sure that the products that we use are environmentally friendly and recyclable. The issue with having items that just go straight to landfill mean that we are impacting our environment and the consumer products that we buy and use. Therefore designs are now created which give products a longer shelf life and the materials that are used are environmentally friendly. This means the majority of the product can be broken down and recycled and reused. We are now in an era whereby the world is fully aware that we must do something about the environmental impact we are having on it.
Waste reduction
As we mentioned above there are a number of ways in which we can reduce the waste that we produce. Our products are now more environmentally friendly so the waste has been reduced. The packaging that our products come in is now often fully recyclable, which means we are further reducing our environmental impact.
We have covered a number of areas of engineering that have to keep up with the latest in engineering trends. It is not the easiest discipline to change, as often research and development is required to make sure that any environmental constraints can be adhered to without any impact to the product itself.