Issues of Design
by John G. Falcioni, Editor-in-Chief

So you've thought long and hard about it. Saved your money, and you finally decide to replace the old car with a new one. Now you’re excited. You do research, choose a few makes you like, and visit a few dealerships. You reach a decision on a model. You hassle with the salesperson and ultimately strike a deal. Then, finally, the day arrives when you drive your shiny new car out of the showroom. You feel like a million bucks—maybe you feel like you’ve spent that much, too.

Two months later, you see an ad in the newspaper saying that the next year’s model of the same car you just bought will be redesigned, and what’s worse is that it’s being released early. Your heart sinks to the floor.

With major redesigns expected every three to four years, according to auto industry pundits, and cosmetic and engine upgrades every year in between, automobile styles are as fickle as the fashion trends in a teenager’s closet.

From a manufacturer’s perspective, style and design changes are understandable in the context of profitability. For manufactured goods to be successful and make money, they must be exclusive, says William A. Bonk, III, in his article, “Developed to Be Unique,” on page 45. And it makes sense. Ask cola aficionados and they’ll tell you there’s a difference between Coke and Pepsi. Bonk argues that without exclusivity, simply marketing a product differently than a competitor isn’t enough to stake a claim in a competitive marketplace.

Besides being idiosyncratic, design is also “ubiquitous,” say the authors of another article, “Interdisciplinary by Design,” on page 30. They deftly note that in order to improve the creativity and innovativeness among engineering school graduates—so that they can create those unique designs—schools must teach interdisciplinary skills. Formal programs pairing engineering design study with marketing, psychology, and other subject areas, however, have emerged only recently. The good news is that a push is underway, including support from the National Science Foundation, to review curriculum enhancements and ensure that undergraduate and graduate engineering students leave school with skills to be productive on the first day they start a job.

These articles, plus others this month, comprise our yearly Focus on Design. We thought it fitting also to use this issue to introduce our own new look—or design, if you will.

For months, graphic designer Jessica Mission, in collaboration with our editors, designed a relatively subtle but important facelift to Mechanical Engineering. The last time we nipped and tucked ME magazine was more than four years ago. The new tweaks are intended to make the magazine even more readable, and include some contemporary touches we think will enhance the experience.

At the same time, we’re making some changes to our online presence, www.memagazine.org. Besides its evolving new look, we’re adding new and Web-exclusive content to the site monthly. And in addition to our popular Breaking News section, we’re now offering visitors access to an Engineering Web, a search engine for engineering-related content and services.

I invite you to flip through the pages of this issue and go online—“kick the tires” a bit, and see how you like it.