Solutions…anyone?

John Gyorki
June 18th, 2008.

I have been a design engineer for many more years than my wife would like to admit. And during those years, I had fun designing new control systems, instruments, consumer products, and even a chemical process. At no time did I consider my job as being a problem that needed a solution, nor did I have a problem that needed a solution. When I created things, I used ordinary engineering tools, which consisted of pliers, screwdrivers, wrenches, soldering guns, oscilloscopes, digital signal analyzers, voltmeters, algebra, trigonometry, physics, and chemistry. You get the idea. I went to school and college to learn how to use these tools to design and make things. So where did the idea come from that I always had a problem that needed a solution? I think it started when my mother said, “Do your homework. Do your math problems.” There it is. Until then, I didn’t know math was a problem. I liked manipulating numbers, fitting them to equations, charts and graphs, and later, schematic diagrams. I liked designing circuits that eventually became radios, power controllers, vehicle computers, and more instruments. Where is the problem here that needs a solution?

Unfortunately, we are seeing a wave of advertising directed at engineers that invariably say, “We have solutions for sale. Buy our solution to solve your engineering problem.” One advertisement I read a while ago touted “solution” so much that they forgot to mention what it actually was that they were selling. I didn’t know if it was a wrench or a wench. I called the marketing manager and asked him to read the magazine ad and tell me where the product was named. There was a very long silence, then a “gulp,” and finally he said, “We sell a metal-finishing process.” Wow! That was a surprise. I would never have guessed it from the advertisement — dripping with “solutions.” They were so focused on convincing me that they could solve my problem that they forgot what I really needed as an engineer.

The real problem that needs a solution is for companies to stop mimicking one another when one comes up with what they think is a “cute and catchy” phrase. Everyone jumps on the bandwagon and uses it, not really understanding what they are talking about. I believe this phenomenon starts in the dark bowels of marketing and sales departments. Marketing managers are under severe pressure every day (bless them) to get the attention of engineers and their bosses, to get their products in front of them, to show them how great they are, and why they should buy one or more. Believe me, I do get it. My answer to this is, find out what tools engineers really need to make their jobs more pleasant and rewarding, and most of all, tools that help them get their new product out the door — fast. Make tools that don’t cause problems, are easy to use, accurate, strong and robust, reliable and repeatable, and then sell them at an affordable, reasonable price. This is better and easier than trying to solve their problems, which in reality amount to dealing with unruly kids and wandering spouses.

jgyorki@designworldonline.com