Introduction: Corey Park

Hi my name is Corey Park and I am a junior in Mechanical Engineering. After college I hope to go into either the automotive industry or work for a smaller company that specializes in a field I find interesting. I was born in Arkansas but I've lived in Las Vegas, Charleston, Sumter, and best of all, Clemson. I enjoy doing anything competitive and often risky or in hindsight borderline dumb. Therefore I am often called out on many occasions when injuries are discussed due to the fact that I have broken 9 bones, 4 of which I have broken twice, and torn my Achilles. Despite all this the most painful moment in my life was when Mufasa died in the Lion King.

Communication is very important within all types of engineering. This past semester I completed my first Co-op rotation at GE in Greenville and of all that I learned it was that those who get what they want and are the most successful are the ones that communicate well. Working in an area that is tied to all other areas in both manufacturing and engineering at a facility employing over 3000 people taught me that keeping everybody up to date as well as clearly delivering thoughts and ideas is often more important than the engineering aspects. Communication within many parts of engineering is also a large factor in terms of being able to simplify an idea for an individual who is not as knowledgeable in that particular area such as an intern while at the same time being able to clearly explain higher level material to those who have the experience and knowledge to comprehend it.

Media in terms of communication is very diverse and still developing within engineering. The most important part of communication in very large plants such as GE Greenville, BMW, and Bosch is choosing which available form is best for each situation when often no two are the same. In terms of immediate communication cell phones and landlines as well are often the choice but if it is only a quick question that may not be answered soon enough in an email then instant messaging systems are highly helpful as well. Emails are still the predominant form of communication which leads to many engineers checking their email accounts countless times throughout the day. In terms of group communication sometimes it is urgent enough that a quick conference call be made to exchange ideas or get necessary information. If two groups of engineers are too far apart to meet in person then teleconferences are a useful and relatively simple way to communicate and often include PowerPoint presentations that both parties can view.

As mentioned above effective communication within engineering often requires more than simply being able to talk to an individual. Knowing which form of communication is vital not only in efficiency and effectiveness in terms of delivering a message or receiving feedback, but also because the choice an engineer makes in more important situations will potentially be a bad fit for the individual or individuals part of the communication which hinders the objective at times. Engineers often need to be able to at any moment quickly be able to communicate whether it be to a fellow engineer or to an operator in a factor. In both situations the most effective engineer is the one who can clearly communicate based off of the audience, the situation, and timing.

Furthermore engineers communicating with each other must adapt to situations where the preferred choice of communicating is not an option. At times engineers must be able to communicate an idea on the phone that would almost always require a visual aid of some sort and do so well enough to successfully complete whatever work is being performed. For example if a mechanical engineer is part of creating a test stand for a prototype machine, there will likely come a time when one of the engineers who designed a part of the prototype that he needs assistance with will not be able to meet in person so instead both engineers must know the technical aspects well enough to communicate them verbally.