-
Recent Posts
Recent Comments
- R.P. Churchill on TWSL Series 07: Discovery and Data Collection
- R.P. Churchill on A Simulationist’s Framework for Business Analysis: Round Two
- LN on A Simulationist’s Framework for Business Analysis: Round Two
- R.P. Churchill on Starting to Learn About the Java Memory Model
- R.P. Churchill on Multidimensional Arrays in Javascript
Categories
Meta
September 2024 M T W T F S S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Category Archives: Engineering
Using Data In My Framework and In Simulations
I recently wrote about how data is collected and used in the different phases of my business analysis framework. After giving the most recent version of my presentation on the subject I was asked for clarification about how the data … Continue reading
Buggy, Design Contradictions, and TRIZ (now ARIZ)
A Tuesday session of the Project Summit / Business Analyst World conference (June 20th), featured an interesting talk by the New Jersey Department of Health’s Victoria Roza. She described methods of design and creativity coming out of a practice called … Continue reading
Posted in Engineering
Tagged ARIZ, business analysis, creativity, problem-solving, TRIZ
Leave a comment
The Confederation Bridge
This weekend I finally made it to my twelfth Canadian province (only Nunavut remains) when I drove across the Confederation Bridge into Prince Edward Island (see also here). The bridge is seven miles long, 40-60 meters (about 131 to 196 … Continue reading
Order Of The Engineer
I grew up reading a bunch of popular technical magazines and always wanted to do something in that vein. Excelling in a seventh grade mechanical drawing class gave me an idea that I might become an architect but over time … Continue reading
Solving the Right Problem
The cover of the June 2010 issue of Mechanical Engineering magazine asked the question, “Can Visionary Engineers Revive Industry in America?” Here’s the question I would ask: Did engineers break industry in America? To ask the question is to answer … Continue reading
Artists and Technicians
A lot has been written about learning styles but there are questions about how meaningful it is and I’m not an expert anyway. I have, however, always felt that there are two opposing approaches to learning that each end where … Continue reading
The Greatest Field Improvisation Ever
When I was working on a furnace control system in Thailand I witnessed one of the coolest feats of engineering ever. The field service guy needed to measure the flow of gasses and a manometer was nowhere to be found. … Continue reading
How Not to Miss Things in a Discovery Process
I’ve been part of a lot of discovery efforts and have found a few ways to increase the chances of identifying all the relevant factors. I plan to discuss these only informally. Volumes of ink and electrons have been spilled … Continue reading
Be Honest When Things Go Wrong
One of the important lessons I learned at my first engineering job was to be honest and open at all times. This was never illustrated more clearly than when a refiner disc flew apart, tore through the pressurized refiner casing, … Continue reading
When I Knew I Was “Home”
When I was very young my family sometimes took the train from DC to New York to visit my grandparents. I still remember the swaying and rumbling of the cars and the smell of oil and a certain kind of … Continue reading