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TSEC 20: 5 Tips for Structural Engineers: Become the Best Version of Yourself

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Tips for Structural Engineers

The photo features Stan Caldwell with one of his projects – The Ponte Avenue Bridge in Addison, Texas

In episode 20 of The Structural Engineering Channel podcast, we talk with Stan R. Caldwell, P.E., SECB, a structural engineering consultant who primarily consults on construction litigation. After almost 50 years of managing and mentoring dozens of young structural engineers, Stan has seen firsthand the various struggles that engineers face in building successful careers. This is the first of a two-episode series in which Stan provides 5 tips for structural engineers that will help them to succeed in this high-liability profession. The next episode with Stan will focus on five tips for structural engineering managers.

Engineering Quotes:

Here Are Some of the Questions We Ask Stan in This Episode:

  • What led to the development of your Five Tips for Young Engineers?
  • What do you mean by “Mind the Gap”?
  • Your second tip for young structural engineers is to “Ensure Stability.” What does that mean?
  • You mention that one should deliberately avoid their computer until after they have manually designed their structure. How can this be? 
  • What do you mean by “Be a Sponge”? Is that related to learning?
  • What do you mean by “Own Your Work”?

Here Are Your Top 5 Tips for Structural Engineers:

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Good Engineers Practice: Skills to Advance Your Career

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This is a guest post by Kyle K. Cheerangie, P.E.
Practice

As a younger engineer I occasionally spent time doing the wrong things. My eagerness caused me to accept tasks and work with unconfirmed assumptions. This lead to repeat work and disappointment from my mangers. My focus was on activity, not results.

Keeping a journal helped me learned that I was spending much of my time doing tasks that did not contribute to my team. The best engineers perform the necessary tasks and delegate or eliminate the unnecessary.

Practice

For example, spending weeks to create a report with multiple iterations for comments and changes, when a simple technical memorandum would suffice. Young engineers typically experience challenges like this one and most managers don’t have the heart to say, “No! This is not what I want.”

Learn and practice these skills to improve: 

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