Recent Innovations

Career benefits

A mechanical engineering degree places graduates ahead in the race for quality employment. Statistics show that mechanical engineers earn lots of money! In a recent study by the Engineering Council, engineering graduates were found to be earning a median of £24,000 per annum - that's 19% more than the average for all graduates three and a half years after graduation.

The mechanical engineering professional can, and should, aim high in their career aspirations. There is an underlying myth around the profession that the realm of engineers is in 'middle management'. This myth has always been disputed, and has been disproved in the same ETB report. The report identifies that engineers and scientists hold more than quarter of leading executive positions in FTSE 100 companies (as at 3 December 2001). And, due to the declining number of mechanical engineering graduates entering the profession, there is an abundance of job opportunities in a variety of industries.

The percentage of women joining the engineering profession is rising each year, yet still only account for 15% of the entire professional engineering workforce. For those that do, there is more good news. Recent statistics have proven that women in engineering are actually ahead of their male counterparts where salary is concerned! A recent survey by EMTA (the National Training Organisation for Engineering Manufacture) reports that senior female engineers earns 8.5% more than male colleagues, rising to 11.9% by the time she reaches her early 40s.

Incentives from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE)

It is a goal of the IMechE to actively seek, educate and inform society of the benefits of mechanical engineering. For IMechE members registered on an accredited mechanical engineering course in the UK, there are a number of financial incentives (very important to students!) to make life at university financially easier. These range from undergraduate development funds, overseas study awards, hardship awards, Third World project awards, postgraduate development funds and research awards. For more information about the awards, please contact Karen Frost, IMechE Awards Officer, on tel: + 44 1284 718 617.

Thousands of years ago 'mechanical engineers' invented the wheel. Today's mechanical engineers have created the London Eye - the most modern and advanced wheel of the 21st century. Anyone who lives in, has visited or has read about, London, will be aware of the major new attraction in the heart of the capital. The London Eye is a massive mechanical marvel that lives by the River Thames. Mechanical Engineering played a vital part in the design, manufacture and installation of the Eye, something that was originally believed to be impossible. Now it is both an extremely popular tourist attraction and an inspiration to future engineers.

In the past year there has been a lot of media attention surrounding the new Virgin Pendolino train (derived from the word pendulum) which swings in and out of bends, smoothing the journey for passengers at high speeds. The Pendolinos will be able to travel at up to 140 miles an hour, compared with current speeds of around 110mph. Residents in the UK are due to benefit from this mechanical engineering advancement later in 2002.

There are a multitude of mechanical engineering advancements that don't make the headlines but are crucial to our everyday lives, making them easier, faster and more efficient. For example, medical engineering companies are now developing surgical robotic systems for orthopaedic, spinal and dental surgery. Environmental engineers in the UK are producing world-leading technology in emission control. UK based mechanical engineers in the defence industry are creating an innovative protection system for the International Space Station, among other things. This describes just a few of the exciting, innovative and challenging projects that mechanical engineers are involved in.

Дата добавления: 2014-12-27