Economics 101 typically introduces engineers to the basic governing principle of economics - - supply and demand. Another principle or law that is probably just as important for engineers to understand is the law of innovation - - needs and solutions. These two laws - - the law of supply and demand and the law of needs and solutions are on a collision course relating to several of our large unsettled global problems. The world of supply and demand slams into energy efficiency, sustainable energy alternatives, and transportation systems - - at the spot where the needs and their solutions have not yet meet.
Engineers in the future need to be good at mapping and synthesizing both needs and solutions. The future world of needs and solutions meets the world of supply and demand - - in the field of tight constraints. Engineering should and must embrace the world of needs, solutions, and tight constraints. These constraints will run from the economic to the technical to the political. Engineer designers are inspired by constraints: what they aren't afforded actually gives then something to work with. Part of this starts with a holistic approach to problem solving. In an environment riddled with complexity, uncertainty, and unparalleled constraints - - organizations with engineers that engage in developing rigorous problem-solving skills that capture the ideas of needs and solutions will become the foundation upon which long-term performance is built.
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