I recently had the pleasure of appearing on The Concrete Conversations Podcast with Hosts Arian & Forrest Sim on the recent episode titled “Engineering: A Successful Career in AEC with Nick Heim, Structural Engineer & VDC Engineer.”
Today, I would like to summarize the top lessons that I took away from the interview. For more detail, listen to the full episode!
The Resilience of Traditional Engineering Methods
- Enduring Importance: Even in the age of technology, skills like manual calculations and hand sketches are still very useful and are not going away.
- Real-World Applications: Examples from my career where traditional methods can simplify complex problems and are just as valuable as advanced software.
- Back to Basics: “You need to crawl before you can walk and walk before you run” — the same idea applies in engineering. Basics first.
Adapting to Technological Advancements
- Integration With Tradition: How modern tools like structural analysis software complement traditional methods, and why there will always be room for both.
- Personal Adaptation: My experiences with adopting new technologies and the balance needed between innovation and proven methods. Just because we have new technologies does not mean traditional methods become obsolete.
- Industry Perspective: The general trend in engineering toward embracing technological solutions while maintaining rigorous standards. Engineers must still retain control of the end deliverable even if we rely more heavily on computers and automation in our tasks.
The Importance of Mentorship in Engineering
- Career Impact: Reflecting on how mentorship has shaped my own professional journey and its value in developing one’s own expertise.
- Mentoring Others: How one goes about mentoring the next generation, sharing knowledge, and encouraging growth.
- Community Building: How mentorship strengthens the engineering community by passing on lessons and fostering connections.
Engineering Education
- Role of Formal Education: The necessity of formal education in engineering, and how it is changing in the face of new technologies. Fundamentals do not change, but how we apply them may.
- Lifelong Learning: We discussed continuing education in an engineer’s career, adapting to new challenges and technologies, and applying the same mindset here as you would to more traditional engineering problems.
The Future: We talked about the future of engineering education, pairing practical experience with theory. Learning the theory creates opportunities to gain practical experience, which supplements theory. It is a cycle.
About the Author Nick Heim, P.E.
Nick Heim, P.E., is a civil engineer with six years of experience in the repair and restoration of existing structures. Nick is also the host of the AEC Engineering and Technology Podcast (“AECTECH”) and brings valuable insights and expertise to listeners worldwide.
Nick’s interests lie at the intersection between the built world and technology, and he can be found looking for the ever-changing answer to the question, “How can we do this better?” He can be found on LinkedIn, producing content about use of technologies in his civil engineering career and small business.
We would love to hear any questions you might have or stories you might share about having a successful career in AEC.
Please leave your comments, feedback or questions in the section below.
