The Engineered Systems

Abstract

Engineered systems are those entities that are designed and constructed by human beings. They include a vast array of mechanical, electromechanical, electronic, and hydraulic devices, such as steam engines, automobiles, stereo-amplifiers, computers, and wind turbines. They also include much larger entities, for example, ships, airplanes, chemical manufacturing plants, and oil refineries, and even larger ones, such as telecommunication networks and power grids. An engineered system may include human beings, when they are closely associated with its working, for example, an automobile with its driver, an airplane with its pilots, or a chemical plant with its operating personnel. The early applications of systems science have mostly been in the domain of Engineered Systems, where James Watt was a forerunner. He developed feedback mechanism for controlling the speed of steam engines. This chapter provides an overview of engineered systems as an introduction to a broader systems thinking. The next chapter will discuss how the same concepts can be applied to nonengineered systems.