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The Structural Engineer, Volume 72, Issue 22, 1994
Electronic products are becoming more sophisticated in their functionality. In parallel, the customer is rightly demanding reliability performance far in excess of anything seen previously. This makes the role of the design assurance team an increasingly important one. This fact is illustrated by reference to the activities of the design assurance group at GEC-Marconi Research Centre. Highlighted are the extremes of design configuration for which structural and thermal performance need to be predicted -from a satellite ground station to a solder joint. A.T. Humphrey and D.J. Burrows
In my recent article ‘Problems of working without a contract’ (16 August ,1994) I outlined some of the ways in which an engineer might get paid even where he has no contract with whoever has instructed him. I considered two situations: -Where a client asks for a preliminary appraisal ‘to be provided within 7 days’ and the engineer says he may or may not be able to comply with this timetable (although in fact does), no fees are discussed and the client then refuses to pay. Generally the engineer can recover a reasonable sum for work done (on a quantum meruit valued on an objective basis). - Where an engineer is invited to tender, and does so, but for some reason the client fails to consider his tender, although he considers others. Traditionally the engineer here has no remedy, but it was noted that recent case law suggests otherwise, particularly where the client is a public body and has failed to consider the tender at all (as opposed to considering it inadequately). Ian R. Yule
The engineering challenge Engineering brings together people, ideas and things to create something new and useful for society. The challenge is to manage these three facets dynamically to achieve a satisfying synergy. This is particularly true for the construction industry, where the products often have a major impact on the landscape (urban or rural) and are around for a long time. M.R. Starr