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We discuss the case of an Oregon man fined for “practicing engineering without a license” in this episode of The Engineering Commons.
- Both Jeff and Adam have attended a few plays authored by William Shakespeare.
- A line from Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet is often used to assert that names do not change what something actually is: “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”
- In this episode, we discuss the case of Mats Järlström, who was fined $500 by the Oregon Oregon Board of Examiners for Engineering and Land Surveying.
- Licensed engineers are known as “Professional Engineers” or “Registered Engineers” in the United States.
- Most engineers are able to work without a license due to an “industrial exemption.”
- In the course of his career, Brian has never interacted with a professional engineer.
- A large fraction of all applicants taking the PE exam in the U.S. are civil engineers.
- Many licensed mechanical engineers work in the field of Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC).
- One requirement for licensure is that a candidate document a substantive period of supervised engineering experience.
- Brian investigated the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam, and found the questions to be non-trivial.
- An interesting summary of how Mats Järlström came to be fined by the Oregon Oregon Board of Examiners for Engineering and Land Surveying can be found in the article “Engineering and yellow lights,” from the “And now it’s all this” blog.
- Adam suggests interested listeners read the Law Enforcement Committee meeting minutes issued by the Oregon Board.
- Mats Järlström has sued the State of Oregon on grounds that his 1st Amendment rights have been violated.
- Jeff cites a forum discussion about the case from the ENG-TIPS website.
Thanks to Rick Ligthelm for use of the photo titled “light pink rose.” Opening music by John Trimble, and concluding theme by Paul Stevenson.
Hi Guys
I must say today’s show was frustrating to listen to. Being an Engineer in Canada is very different than being an Engineer in US. When someone says they are an Engineer in Canada, it means they have graduated from a 4 to 5 year accredited University program. They have also written Law and Ethics Exams and are considered a true Professional in every way. Our professional association is responsible for the accreditation process of the Universities in Canada, the checking of backgrounds of applicants, and the discipline and standards of what is required to be a professional engineer.
If you don’t have an Association than who decides if a two year Engineering degree isn’t enough, or if Bob’s Engineering school and café isn’t teaching at high enough level? Wow, I am floored to hear you say only Civil Engineers need be professionals. Can you not see that defending and title “Engineer” is important and would help the true Engineers? What exactly is a Software Engineer or my favorite a Microsoft Certified Engineer?
To get back to the point, Mats Järlström was guilty of holding himself out as a qualified professional and if he truly was an Engineer in Norway or Sweden or wherever, he should know that he must apply in the country to where he holding himself as an Engineer before doing what he did. The Association is the one that will decide who is and who isn’t a Professional. Europe is a strange place where two year graduates of the college consider themselves Engineers like the four and five year students do. An electrical engineer in much of the world we call an Electrician. Our Association filters these one’s out and makes my Professional Engineer designation worth something.
If we are going to make names up, than I want to be a Dr2. That’s a Doctor squared, there beat that.
Signed,
Dr2 Kevin