Engineering Research In Universities Research Articles

IN ACHIEVING THE MOST OF LIMITED RESEARCH BUDGET FOR ENGINEERING RESEARCH PROJECTS: A CASE STUDY AT SULTAN QABOOS UNIVERSITY

Motivating engineering research in universities with limited or tight research budgets is a challenging task. There is always a conflict between researchers attempting to secure enough funds to ease their own research, and funding bodies and universities trying to achieve high quality research while lowering research expenses. This conflict leads to a situation where universities and researchers cannot achieve their goals altogether. This study attempts to partially resolve this issue by optimizing research expenditure for the benefit of both universities and researchers and suggests some policies regarding what type of research (modelling based or experimental based) universities should support. Other factors related to the components of research expenditure (effect of local and international collaboration, hiring research assistants (RAs), establishing research laboratories, and buying professional engineering software) are also considered.

Editorial

In Australia many university engineering research projects are funded by 3- to 5-year grants where the cost is split evenly between government and industry. Due to the small industrial manufacturing base in Australia, much power engineering research is funded by the utilities. In our project we set out to investigate new strategies for working with industry, in order to strengthen collaboration and enrich the education of our students. We took great care to set research aims in cooperation with our industrial partners so that, where appropriate, the outcomes could be implemented by the partner organizations. The planned research work was outlined in course materials for the students, who then had the opportunity to work on thesis projects co-supervised by industry.

Problematizing the Experts: The One-Dimensional Engineering Understanding of the Users and Its Contextual Frameworks

What is engineers' conception of their users and the public? And what makes it so difficult to be changed? Studies in public understanding and participation of science and technology have depicted the pre-commitment of criticism against the deficit model in scientists' conception of the public and enriched our understanding of the public's knowledgeability of science and technology. Literature of technoscientific practices also explores the framing of users in technoscientific practices. Following the insights and adopting the concept of framing, this paper examines engineering researchers' knowledgeability by illustrating their understanding of the users when they are developing new devices and by showing the contextual practices that frames their vision. This paper tackles the issue by examining the fieldwork in an university engineering research team in Taiwan. It is argued that engineering researchers have their own sociology concerned with the technical aspect of their users and society. This paper proposes an analytical framework; the engineering vision and agenda emerges and being practiced in the conjuncture of frames of publication-oriented regulation, delivery-assured practical work, and diversity reduction team networking to situate the engineering vision. The notion of frame also highlights the dynamic, relational, and conjunctive constitution of the experts' knowledgeability. It is suggested that with more understanding of the interlocking mechanism of these frames, then we can alleviate the one-dimensional engineering vision and only then is the ambition of interdisciplinary collaboration possible in Taiwan.

Problematizing the Experts: The One-Dimensional Engineering Understanding of the Users and its Contextual Frameworks

What is engineers’ conception of their users and the public? And what makes it so difficult to be changed? Studies in public understanding and participation of science and technology have depicted the pre-commitment of criticism against the deficit model in scientists’ conception of the public and enriched our understanding of the public’s knowledgeability of science and technology. Literature of technoscientific practices also explores the framing of users in technoscientific practices. Following the insights and adopting the concept of framing, this paper examines engineering researchers’ knowledgeability by illustrating their understanding of the users when they are developing new devices and by showing the contextual practices that frames their vision. This paper tackles the issue by examining the fieldwork in an university engineering research team in Taiwan. It is argued that engineering researchers have their own sociology concerned with the technical aspect of their users and society. This paper proposes an analytical framework; the engineering vision and agenda emerges and being practiced in the conjuncture of frames of publication-oriented regulation, delivery-assured practical work, and diversity reduction team networking to situate the engineering vision. The notion of frame also highlights the dynamic, relational, and conjunctive constitution of the experts’ knowledgeability. It is suggested that with more understanding of the interlocking mechanism of these frames, then we can alleviate the one-dimensional engineering vision and only then is the ambition of interdisciplinary collaboration possible in Taiwan.

Organizational learning, knowledge and technology transfer: a case study

Knowledge‐based competition has magnified the importance of learning alliances as a fast and effective mechanism of capability development. This case presents a technology transfer project from a university's engineering research center to a private firm to illuminate learning and knowledge‐based determinants of the outcomes of such projects. In this paper, project success and effective knowledge transfer are used interchangeably to indicate a relatively high level of achievement of intended as well as the unintended benefits to the recipient firm. The main focus of this paper is on the contribution of prior related knowledge and the learning processes and activities, performed by the recipient firm, to such benefits. Based on the results of the case study, this paper draws several implications that differ from those prevailing in the literature on organizational learning and technology transfer, proposes ideas for future research, and makes practical recommendations for managers.

How to get more out of universities

A UK utility recently commissioned a university engineering research department to help it draw up guidelines for seismic assessments with the aid of a conslting engineer. In addition to producing a useful new guidebook for the civil engineering profession as a whole, the utility has benefitted directly from practical new research, and both industrial partners have increased their visibility to undergraduate and post graduate students. It demonstrates that there are real benefits to be had from greater collaboration between industry and academia, even though this may not be immediately obvious from the outset. This paper describes the research project that started it all off—a critical investigation into the seismic vulnerability of the reservoir towers and dam gates—and how the relationship subsequently developed.

How to get more out of universities

A UK utility recently commissioned a university engineering research department to help it draw up guidelines for seismic assessments with the aid of a conslting engineer. In addition to producing a useful new guidebook for the civil engineering profession as a whole, the utility has benefitted directly from practical new research, and both industrial partners have increased their visibility to undergraduate and post graduate students. It demonstrates that there are real benefits to be had from greater collaboration between industry and academia, even though this may not be immediately obvious from the outset. This paper describes the research project that started it all off—a critical investigation into the seismic vulnerability of the reservoir towers and dam gates—and how the relationship subsequently developed.

Life‐Cycle Engineering of Bridges

Life‐cycle engineering, as being developed at Lehigh University's Engineering Research Center for Advanced Technology for Large Structural Systems (ATLSS), is a comprehensive, systematic methodology which treats each stage in the life of a structure as part of an integrated process. It considers both performance and cost throughout the life of a structure, thus supporting a more balanced view of investment based on construction, operation, renewal, replacement and decommission issues. Consideration of all phases of the life‐cycle supports intelligent and informed decision‐making. Lehigh has an on‐going program of research on methodologies and information systems embodying the life‐cycle engineering approach which is being incorporated into a decision support system for life‐cycle engineering of bridges. The authors describe a prototype model which provides bridge engineers and owners with analytical information to more effectively integrate life‐cycle considerations into engineering decisions concerning bridge decks.

Profiles af two new university engineering research centers

Profiles af two new university engineering research centers