Many years ago, when I was a young-ish engineer with a meager five years of experience, the RMIT Aerospace Engineering Students Association interviewed me to get a taste of what life was like as a recently graduated engineer. Hopefully this interview will be of use to someone approaching a similar phase in their career. A decade on, I'd say most of the advice given is still applicable! :)
Interview with an Engineer
Do you ever wonder what it is really like to work as an aerospace engineer? What do you do in such a job? Do you really have to use those Bending Moment diagrams? Luke Webb seeks out the answers with this interview with James Garth of GKN Aerospace Engineering Services, in Melbourne.
What projects are you currently working on in your job?
Design Engineer on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program.
When & from where did you graduate?
Graduated in 1999 with a Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering (First Class Honours) from RMIT University.
Career History: Worked at BAE SYSTEMS for two years and GKN Aerospace Engineering Services for three years.
What project do you work on for your thesis?
Conceptual Design of a Next-Generation Multi-role Australian Fighter.
What specifically do you do in your job?
My role is a design engineer. CATIA V5 is my primary tool which I use to model structural airframe components, including composite panels, metallic frames, straps, and brackets. I also perform basic stress analysis; mostly preliminary sizing calculations and classical static stressing.
I also utilize the customer's in-house analysis software programs and templates to check various aspects of my designs, i.e. check them for buckling, bearing failure, etc.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
The flexible nature of the work, and the fact that it's rarely boring, things are always on the move and changing from day to day.
Do you use Bending Moment Diagrams at all in your job?
Yes. You certainly need to understand BMDs and SFDs and remember how to generate them from scratch if required. However, in many instances an appropriate template or in-house analysis program will already exist, you can use these to perform common calculations.
This is an important point; within industry, you will rarely have the time to be able to generate everything from scratch. Things like design guides, stress analysis methods, material strengths, bolt allowables, etc. will generally be provided for you (or can be quickly obtained with a little searching). The important thing is to understand and adhere to them, and use common engineering sense.
When presented with complicated problems, take the time to understand the fundamental assumptions and rules of thumb that drive your design. Break down complicated tasks into basic building blocks, and focus on solving these one at a time. Conservatively approximate your structure, and use your basic BMDs and SFDs to check the strength of each area. Pay attention to detail, and get your units right!
To summarise, I have never, ever had to solve a triple integral in industry, and I have all but forgotten how to solve differential equations, but rule-of-thumb design formula, moments of inertia for common sections, and basic trigonometry, I use all the time.
Describe a 'typical' day.
The day generally starts with reviewing e-mail correspondence and communicating with our overseas customer, providing status briefings and obtaining answers for queries that were raised during the previous day on my current design.
The bulk of the day involves design modelling tasks, which include constructing 3D solid and surface models in CATIA V5, defining joints and interfaces with adjacent parts, generating drawings, resolving clashes and problem areas, etc. Other design engineering tasks may also be performed, including specifying materials, selecting fasteners, connectors, bushings, etc. that will be used within the design, and consulting with stress, manufacturing or systems engineers to sort out various technical issues as required. Important decisions and actions are logged and documented, either on paper, or electronically if tables or screen grabs are required.
Punctuating the day are the usual string of meetings, reviews and briefings, and from time to time I will get the opportunity to attend a training session or short course.
What advice do you have for current (aerospace) engineering students?
Have a good think and decide what aspect of the field interests you the most. Focus on developing useful, practical skills in that area. For example, if you are interested in design, look for opportunities to learn a CAD package such as CATIA. Study and learn the 'aerospace vocabulary', get to know what longerons, stiffeners, joggles and splices are, and where they are used. Most importantly, read the magazines (ie. Aviation Week, Flight International, Australian Aviation) and stay up to speed with what's going on in the industry.
If you're interested in stress analysis, first of all, try to get a 'feel' for structures by understanding them practically, not just mathematically. For example get hold of some real-life airframe cutaway drawings, and read a hands-on textbook like "Structures, Or Why Things Don't Fall Down" by Gordon. Next, learn how to do basic hand calcs, eg., bearing calculations, column buckling, etc. After this, you will be in a position to begin to develop your FEM skills and understand things like fundamental meshing techniques, what the different types of boundary conditions are and when is it appropriate to use them, etc. Keep your third and fourth year stressing notes, they get more and more valuable with time.
If you're interested in aerodynamics, consolidate your skills in the fundamental atmospheric and performance calcs, and begin to investigate CFD.
If you are contemplating a more academic career, think about what type of research interests you the most, and seek out a mentor or supervisor who can direct you towards appropriate research opportunities as they arise.
As general advice, I recommend becoming familiar with Excel and Mathcad; these two programs are commonly used within industry and can be powerful tools if you know how to use them properly. Knowing a programming language, eg. Visual Basic, is also a valuable skill to have.
Solid and concise presentation skills are also highly desirable. Get in the habit of reporting technical information in a clear, honest and succinct manner. As a professional engineer, you will be responsible for the structural integrity of your parts and will frequently be asked to prepare clear presentations in order to substantiate and defend your design.
Also, it is useful to have some familiarity with the 'classic' aerospaced textbooks, eg. Bruhn, Roark, Peterson, and Flabel. You don't need to memorize their contents, but knowing where to find information when you need it can be invaluable.
Having said that, when you first start a job don't expect to know everything straight away! Understand your strengths and weaknesses and learn to recognise when you need to improve. Talk your colleagues; they will be happy to help you and show you how things are done. Be friendly and sociable and you'll go a long way. And always seek to learn from the 'greybeards' - they have lots of valuable experience.
Finally, your career development doesn't stop with your first job; always be on the lookout for opportunities to grow as an engineer. Keep in touch with your mates from uni and colleagues in the industry, you will probably end up working with them again. Professional organisations like RAeS and AIAA can also provide good opportunities for networking. For more useful advice to the new aero graduate, I would recommend reading the AIAA textbook "Advice to Rocket Scientists" by Longuski, and "Raymer's Rules for Young Engineers".
What is the highlight of your job?
Working for GKN, I have had a number of opportunities to travel overseas for several months at time and work alongside aerospace engineers in the US and the UK. These have been great experiences, both professionally and personally.
Getting paid a decent salary is nice, too - certainly makes a change from the student days!
Thanks to James Garth of GKN Aerospace! James is also the events manager for the Melbourne Branch of the Royal Aeronautical Society (www.raes.org.au/melbourne).
Interview with an Engineer
Do you ever wonder what it is really like to work as an aerospace engineer? What do you do in such a job? Do you really have to use those Bending Moment diagrams? Luke Webb seeks out the answers with this interview with James Garth of GKN Aerospace Engineering Services, in Melbourne.
What projects are you currently working on in your job?
Design Engineer on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program.
When & from where did you graduate?
Graduated in 1999 with a Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering (First Class Honours) from RMIT University.
Career History: Worked at BAE SYSTEMS for two years and GKN Aerospace Engineering Services for three years.
What project do you work on for your thesis?
Conceptual Design of a Next-Generation Multi-role Australian Fighter.
What specifically do you do in your job?
My role is a design engineer. CATIA V5 is my primary tool which I use to model structural airframe components, including composite panels, metallic frames, straps, and brackets. I also perform basic stress analysis; mostly preliminary sizing calculations and classical static stressing.
I also utilize the customer's in-house analysis software programs and templates to check various aspects of my designs, i.e. check them for buckling, bearing failure, etc.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
The flexible nature of the work, and the fact that it's rarely boring, things are always on the move and changing from day to day.
Do you use Bending Moment Diagrams at all in your job?
Yes. You certainly need to understand BMDs and SFDs and remember how to generate them from scratch if required. However, in many instances an appropriate template or in-house analysis program will already exist, you can use these to perform common calculations.
This is an important point; within industry, you will rarely have the time to be able to generate everything from scratch. Things like design guides, stress analysis methods, material strengths, bolt allowables, etc. will generally be provided for you (or can be quickly obtained with a little searching). The important thing is to understand and adhere to them, and use common engineering sense.
When presented with complicated problems, take the time to understand the fundamental assumptions and rules of thumb that drive your design. Break down complicated tasks into basic building blocks, and focus on solving these one at a time. Conservatively approximate your structure, and use your basic BMDs and SFDs to check the strength of each area. Pay attention to detail, and get your units right!
To summarise, I have never, ever had to solve a triple integral in industry, and I have all but forgotten how to solve differential equations, but rule-of-thumb design formula, moments of inertia for common sections, and basic trigonometry, I use all the time.
Describe a 'typical' day.
The day generally starts with reviewing e-mail correspondence and communicating with our overseas customer, providing status briefings and obtaining answers for queries that were raised during the previous day on my current design.
The bulk of the day involves design modelling tasks, which include constructing 3D solid and surface models in CATIA V5, defining joints and interfaces with adjacent parts, generating drawings, resolving clashes and problem areas, etc. Other design engineering tasks may also be performed, including specifying materials, selecting fasteners, connectors, bushings, etc. that will be used within the design, and consulting with stress, manufacturing or systems engineers to sort out various technical issues as required. Important decisions and actions are logged and documented, either on paper, or electronically if tables or screen grabs are required.
Punctuating the day are the usual string of meetings, reviews and briefings, and from time to time I will get the opportunity to attend a training session or short course.
What advice do you have for current (aerospace) engineering students?
Have a good think and decide what aspect of the field interests you the most. Focus on developing useful, practical skills in that area. For example, if you are interested in design, look for opportunities to learn a CAD package such as CATIA. Study and learn the 'aerospace vocabulary', get to know what longerons, stiffeners, joggles and splices are, and where they are used. Most importantly, read the magazines (ie. Aviation Week, Flight International, Australian Aviation) and stay up to speed with what's going on in the industry.
If you're interested in stress analysis, first of all, try to get a 'feel' for structures by understanding them practically, not just mathematically. For example get hold of some real-life airframe cutaway drawings, and read a hands-on textbook like "Structures, Or Why Things Don't Fall Down" by Gordon. Next, learn how to do basic hand calcs, eg., bearing calculations, column buckling, etc. After this, you will be in a position to begin to develop your FEM skills and understand things like fundamental meshing techniques, what the different types of boundary conditions are and when is it appropriate to use them, etc. Keep your third and fourth year stressing notes, they get more and more valuable with time.
If you're interested in aerodynamics, consolidate your skills in the fundamental atmospheric and performance calcs, and begin to investigate CFD.
If you are contemplating a more academic career, think about what type of research interests you the most, and seek out a mentor or supervisor who can direct you towards appropriate research opportunities as they arise.
As general advice, I recommend becoming familiar with Excel and Mathcad; these two programs are commonly used within industry and can be powerful tools if you know how to use them properly. Knowing a programming language, eg. Visual Basic, is also a valuable skill to have.
Solid and concise presentation skills are also highly desirable. Get in the habit of reporting technical information in a clear, honest and succinct manner. As a professional engineer, you will be responsible for the structural integrity of your parts and will frequently be asked to prepare clear presentations in order to substantiate and defend your design.
Also, it is useful to have some familiarity with the 'classic' aerospaced textbooks, eg. Bruhn, Roark, Peterson, and Flabel. You don't need to memorize their contents, but knowing where to find information when you need it can be invaluable.
Having said that, when you first start a job don't expect to know everything straight away! Understand your strengths and weaknesses and learn to recognise when you need to improve. Talk your colleagues; they will be happy to help you and show you how things are done. Be friendly and sociable and you'll go a long way. And always seek to learn from the 'greybeards' - they have lots of valuable experience.
Finally, your career development doesn't stop with your first job; always be on the lookout for opportunities to grow as an engineer. Keep in touch with your mates from uni and colleagues in the industry, you will probably end up working with them again. Professional organisations like RAeS and AIAA can also provide good opportunities for networking. For more useful advice to the new aero graduate, I would recommend reading the AIAA textbook "Advice to Rocket Scientists" by Longuski, and "Raymer's Rules for Young Engineers".
What is the highlight of your job?
Working for GKN, I have had a number of opportunities to travel overseas for several months at time and work alongside aerospace engineers in the US and the UK. These have been great experiences, both professionally and personally.
Getting paid a decent salary is nice, too - certainly makes a change from the student days!
Thanks to James Garth of GKN Aerospace! James is also the events manager for the Melbourne Branch of the Royal Aeronautical Society (www.raes.org.au/melbourne).