Turkish Industry Needs Real Engineers, Not Diplomas

Suppose you are an industrialist, you have machines, you are manufacturing with them. Your machines are not very complex, they are actually production lines formed by the integration of different components. You procure them either from abroad or domestically, but these procurements require high investment costs. As a business owner, you think, why don't we manufacture our machines ourselves? Let's set up a team, let's manufacture our machines ourselves from now on instead of buying from outside, so that we can both save a lot of money and continue to manufacture these machines and sell them to others.

So who do you need to realise this idea? Some specialists and equipment are required to install these machines, who will decide who these specialists are, what are the necessary equipment, who will create this production system? You will call someone to see if you can do this job, who will you call?

If it is a set of machines and machines in question; who do you expect to establish the system required for the design and manufacture of these machines? Yes, your answer is a mechanical engineer and you should employ a mechanical engineer for this job. Sincerely speaking, you will not find this mechanical engineer easily in Turkey.

You will have job interviews with countless mechanical engineers, the vast majority of them will want to know if there is a system ready to do this job, and if there is a ready system, they will want that system to work when they are hired, and they will want to be treated as a newcomer to the system and the company, and at the same time, they will want their diploma to be respected. So, what will be the contribution of this mechanical engineer to your business model regarding your machine design and manufacturing? Answer; "We have no idea!"

In fact, in Turkey, not the engineer, but the diploma is hired, but unfortunately the diploma cannot do business...

The engineer who applies for a job is spoken to with memorised question-answer patterns on some template subjects, the engineer who makes the application responds to the question patterns with ready-made answer patterns, then the diplomas of the applicant engineer candidates are examined and it is generally decided which engineer will be hired according to the diploma. 

If there are not enough engineers in that workplace; there may not even be a preliminary preparation of what work will be given to the hired engineer. The boss usually entrusts the work and wherever there is a problematic process, those processes are asked to be corrected.

If the aim is no longer to give money to the machine, but to make the machines used by the workplace; this task is given to the engineer.

A period of time is given, the engineer is expected to start some preparations involved in the process, the waste company has an engineer. However, after you are hired, most engineers will advise you as follows; "designing and manufacturing machines requires expertise, these machines are made by companies that are experts in this field, it is unreasonable to intend to manufacture every machine you use, for example, you also ride in cars and planes, will you say that I will not buy from now on and I will make my own cars and planes myself?" Logical and reasonable questions, right? 

Ask this engineer the following question and see what his answer will be. "Well, Mr Engineer, why did you enter this company and what do you plan to do here, my friend?" I already know the answer you will get!

The employer actually aims to do the following when hiring an engineer; there are machines in my workplace, I manufacture with these machines, there are operators who operate these machines (the market calls operators masters), both these machines, these operators and our manufacturing processes have problems, there are problems waiting for solutions, the professional discipline that can overcome all these is engineering, let me employ the appropriate engineer for my workplace, let our work run more smoothly, safely and efficiently, and let's make every machine we can do ourselves. In other words, whether the workplace is small, medium-sized or large, these are generally what all employers who employ engineers expect from engineers. In short; workplaces expect creative solutions from engineers.

However, if the enterprise is small and medium-sized and you are the only engineer in the enterprise, or if you are very few, you usually find yourself doing jobs that can be done by those with a certain level of education on office floors, not in production, you either continue to do these jobs for bread and butter or try to move to another workplace. 

Unfortunately, you will not find a company in Turkey that really needs engineer knowledge, skills and effort, and it will be very difficult for you to find a vacant and suitable position to apply for.

Diploma? Engineer?

So what is an engineer in the real sense? More precisely, who is a real engineer?

A real engineer is a person who has the knowledge and skills required to design, build, maintain and maintain various types of systems. 

Yes, this is one of the most common definitions of engineer. In this case, it is quite natural for a company that wants to manufacture the machines it has purchased to know that engineering is the profession that can fulfil this purpose and to look for engineers.

Another definition of engineering even emphasises this;

A true engineer has an analytical mind and a natural passion for using maths, physics and technology to solve practical problems. A real engineer would prefer to give up a management position and higher salary because he/she gets more satisfaction from the challenge of solving real-life engineering problems.

However, in Turkey, engineers aim and aspire to be managers rather than engineers.

An engineer is not a manager, he/she does not study to become a manager, he/she is only the "manager of the Engineering Group".

For some reason, engineers in Turkey are very keen on management; instead of designing, building and maintaining a system, they are eager to be the manager of unrelated departments or processes. In fact, in many organisations, engineers are managers and managers are engineers. This is a tragicomic situation. 

Many employers are able to build the machines they use with the craftsmen working in the workplace and even make design changes, but for some reason they cannot carry out these processes with engineers.

If existing machines can be built with craftsmen using simple reverse engineering or "knock-off" methods, why can't they be built with engineers?

What is the Problem? What are the root causes of the problem? What are the solutions to the problem?

The problem is that, with the exception of mega, large and well-established companies, companies do not know what the engineer, not even the engineer in which area of expertise, but even the engineer does not know what they do and what they can do. 

The root causes of the problem are many. The main ones are

 The vast majority (90%) of the companies in our country are SMEs (Small and Medium Size Enterprises). SMEs have difficulty in employing engineers, cannot prepare job descriptions for engineers, and cannot satisfy engineers in material and moral terms.

 The fact that there are very few enterprises in Turkish Industry that design and manufacture systems and assets (machinery, equipment, buildings, vehicles, etc.) and that the majority of the industry in our country produces outsourced goods.

 The tradition of employing managers with engineering education in the state, especially in the Turkish Armed Forces, is very deep-rooted. This tendency is also reflected in the private sector. If there is a problematic process, function or department in any company in the industrial environment, you will hear the following saying a lot: "Let's hire a mechanical engineer for this position, he will fix it!" Yes, such a statement will flatter the pride of mechanical engineers, but wouldn't it be better and more valuable for both them and the Turkish industry if these engineers concentrated on machine design and manufacturing processes?

 We train, or rather graduate, more engineers than necessary. This situation causes engineers who cannot find a job in their original position to turn to the positions they can find, which unfortunately "reduces the marginal value" of engineers.

Practical Suggestions for Engineers to become a "Real Engineer":

 Try to get into big companies where many engineers work, especially in your branch. By starting your business life as an assistant to experienced engineers, you will increase both your education and your professional experience.

 In your undergraduate education, you mainly receive theoretical academic education on the design of systems related to the engineering discipline you are studying. You were able to do practical applications during internship periods, but it is debatable how much of them were "fit for purpose". Moreover, with a 4-year academic education, it is not very possible to put into practice this theoretical knowledge that serves very wide areas. In other words, when you graduate, you should actually see yourself as a "trainee engineer", you will realise your profession by gaining experience in the work environment. In this case; I recommend you to specialise in a few subjects belonging to your engineering branch for very wide areas. For example; as far as I have personally observed in our own industrial environments, it is possible for a person studying mechanical engineering to be oriented towards at least 45 professional disciplines (e.g. machinery, mechanical systems, hydraulic & pneumatic systems design, manufacturing, maintenance, modification, machining process engineering, casting systems, cold-hot forming, ventilation systems, etc.). It is not possible for one person to specialise in all these occupational groups, therefore; specialising in a few areas will allow you to become a sought-after and preferred engineer in these fields.

 Get along well with the labourers, assistant masters, craftsmen, technicians, technicians, technicians and technologists, which the market calls "blue collar", in fact as an engineer you are a blue collar, when you become an engineering manager you will be a "white collar". You are an important member of the "Engineering Group". The engineering group consists of Engineering Manager, Engineer, Technologist (4-year undergraduate technical education), Technician (2-year associate degree technical education), Technician (Vocational or Technical High School graduate), Master, Assistant Master and labourer in hierarchical order. All individuals in this group are valuable and have very important, critical and valuable contributions to the system being designed, manufactured or operated. I recommend you to empathise with each role holder in this group, to teach them something they do not know while learning from them. This will first make you a good engineer with leadership qualities, and over the years, as your experience increases, it will make you a good engineering manager.

 Be familiar with Technical Drawing (CAD/CAM) at a real engineer level. Especially in the design, manufacturing, maintenance and modification of machinery/mechanical systems, machining of parts, etc. processes, you will need CAD (Computer-Aided Design), CAM (Computer-Aided Manufacturing) knowledge and the software you will use in these areas.

 Have a good command of the Technical Manuals (Technical Handbooks) and Technical Documentation of the machines and other systems you are responsible for, "Check Out Procedures, Troubleshooting (Determining the Root Cause(s) of the Problem), Assembling/Installation-De Assembling (Assembling, De-Assembling), Maintenance, Illustrated Parts Breakdown (Illustrated Parts Catalogue), Schematics (Schematics; Electrical, Electronic, Hydraulic, Pneumatic, Mechanical Circuit Diagrams) etc. It is essentially the duty of the engineer to master these, to understand them, to interpret them, and to correct them when necessary. The engineer who is familiar with the technical documentation of the systems he is responsible for is very advantageous in advancing in his career.

It is very important for engineers to have a foundation in technical documentation.

 Be sure to master technical English. You will need technical English extremely to be able to do "Data Mining/Data Mining" related to your profession.

 Be an engineer who is constantly researching, have an investigative reflex and constantly improve that reflex.

 Never forget; "The employer is not your mum or dad". The employer will firstly "look at what you bring to him/her". It is only your parents who offer you many things without expecting anything in return from you. In other words, if you make a serious contribution to the employer, he/she will feel that he/she has to offer you the material and moral contribution you deserve in order to keep you in his/her company. In this way, you will not be treated as a "general engineer with a diploma", but as a "real engineer" with a diploma.

Conclusion:

You have worked very hard, but at last you have a profession, an engineering profession, which is "internationally recognised" and respected in every society. You have become an engineer, but not only on paper, that is, not only a diploma holder, but you should be aware and responsible that you should strive to be a "real engineer", that is, a real engineer. Do not worry at all; as long as you are a "Real Engineer", not only the industry in Turkey but also all the industries in the world will need you very, very much.