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If you were me what would you do? (EE's and ME's look)

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Old 09-21-2006, 04:09 PM
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Originally Posted by 4x4dually
Yes. I work 7 to 4. You are correct.
Are you hiring?
Old 09-21-2006, 04:12 PM
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Originally Posted by rbuchana
Are you hiring?
Not at the moment, but if you will email me a resume, I'll dang sure put it to the right folks. We have over 100 folks here and do mainly military contracts. Well, here. www.fescorp.com You can also email a resume online.

I'll do what I can for you. It is 4:11 now. I'm on overtime.
Old 09-21-2006, 04:16 PM
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Originally Posted by 4x4dually
Hey watch it, bub. Notice it is 4:05! I'm staying late today......At least 'til 4:10!
It's 4:16 now. In another hour or so maybe I'll start THINKING about going home.
Old 09-21-2006, 05:55 PM
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It was a long day today. I sat at my computer and made a solid model of a new diverter valve I'm designing most of the morning, surfed the web for a bunch of parts that I'll never use for a couple hours, sat in a useless meeting and drank 4 cups of coffee for a couple hours never said a word, spent a half hour filling out my time sheet, then I realized I was on my own time at 4:30 and high tailed home.

As long as you are in school get the EE and the ME . You will have twice the job oportunities to make less money than your friends who sue people, fix people or spend other people's money for them.

Maybe you can switch schools and learn to be a real engineer and drive a real train. I hear they are in demand. Plus they make good $$$

engineers are like dogs chasing a ball.....they don't know why they do it but they just have to go for it.
Old 09-21-2006, 07:47 PM
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I'm in my second year of persuing an ME degree. Here at Minnesota State, all the EE people I know of are gearing towards strict electronic companies like Motorola and Ibm, etc. I've been noticing in my ME classes that electrical knowledge is almost as important as mechanics. Think about everything being designed today, most of it is electronic. I think if you enjoy working with electronics as well as mechanical things I would swing towards ME. I don't know if you folks can minor in something like EE, but if you can get both it'd be worth it. I know a lot of MEs (myself included) who wished they knew more about electronics and circuits, but they just don't find the electronic part very fun.
Old 09-21-2006, 08:16 PM
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Originally Posted by Crimedog
I've been noticing in my ME classes that electrical knowledge is almost as important as mechanics. ... I don't know if you folks can minor in something like EE, but if you can get both it'd be worth it.
Yep, I work for a defense contractor. No matter what the product is (missiles, radars etc), there is a team behind it composed of mostly EE's (hardware, software, RF, power supply, systems, the list goes on) and ME's (thermal, packaging, structural analysis, hardware design, tooling, radomes, again, the list goes on). Then you have the "ilities" folks (a mix of IE's, ME's and EE's): producibility, testability, reliability. If we didn't work together and understand a little of the other disciplines, things would never get done. I can design the best power supply in the world, but if it won't fit in the space given or dissipate the heat correctly, it is nothing but an expensive brick.

~Rob
Old 09-22-2006, 07:16 AM
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Originally Posted by 4x4dually
Yes. I work 7 to 4. You are correct.
That's funny, I have the same schedule now...

If you like the EE, why do the ME? I mean, I am no engineer, just a plain ol' mechanic, been that since I was 9 and started fixin my bikes. Now, I know how to weld, have tested out in Mig welding, built more stuff than I can think of and am not scared to do so. In my way of thinking, engineers will probably hate me for this.....but it's like this. If I build something at the house it's usually over built, engineers have there calculations and such to figure out what is good for the application, am I wrong? Please correct me if I am. So if your just gonna build engines and things like that, not fabbing up full race car frames, rail cars etc why get the ME? You can learn engine building, which in my opinion is a skill in itself, learning what carb to put on with the cam you have, valves, timing all that stuff is best learned hands on in my opinion. They can teach you the basics at school, but some of the best engine builders I have known never went to a tech/college type school, just been doing it for the last 20-30 years. Just my .02 Good luck in whatever you do, sounds like you have a good plan! Keep after it!
You are right, however, I DO want to build tube chassis for rock crawling and baja and whatever else I can dream up. Of the ME's I talk to it would be kinda overkill to get both, but you can never know TOO much. I also want to come up with new suspensions and such...I think both is the way to go for me. I just need to get a more flexible job so I can go to school full time again.

Thanks for all the input guys, you've all been a big help. Hopefully I'll be moving to your area soon Hoss.
Old 09-22-2006, 09:09 AM
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I'm guessing from your posts that your in your first couple years of school. I hope your not thinking that an ME degree will help you in the Hot Rod or Automotive fab business. If you goal is to get an engineering degree just so you can open a shop then quit school now. You'll get into your junior year and realize that the ME degree won't help you one bit with building cars. ME classes are almost purely theory and very, very little hands on. I worked at a race shop while I was going to school and I can tell you, that you won't get near any engineering doing that type of job. It's a skill trade that takes time to learn. I put myself through college working at a chassis/engine shop.

I'm not suggesting that you drop out of school at all. I'm suggesting you find different motivation for getting your degree. You can get into hot rods after school, but don't expect a degree to get you anywhere. But it does give something fall back on.

As far as hours. I worked 90+ a week for 4 months straight as a manufacturing engineer for Bosch. I told them to stick it and got a design job for a small conveyor manufacturer and I average 45/week now and the pay is better. I also do a lot of race car fabrication on the side as a hobby. I enjoy it much more now than I did when it was a job, and I'm not broke anymore.

As far as ME vs. EE. Get an ME degree. It's a very well rounded discipline, you get some of everything.
Old 09-22-2006, 09:49 AM
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Stay EE for now, since you're already started. Get a good job with benefits that will pay for you to take ME and entrepreneurship classes to get your shop started later. JMHO.

Chris
Old 09-22-2006, 10:00 AM
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Originally Posted by GO 4LO
Stay EE for now, since you're already started. Get a good job with benefits that will pay for you to take ME and entrepreneurship classes to get your shop started later. JMHO.

Chris

That's a great idea. Most companies will pay for you to go to school. It may take longer to get both degrees, but at least you'll be making money and somebody will be paying for your ME degree.
Old 09-22-2006, 10:17 AM
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Originally Posted by rbuchana
That's a great idea. Most companies will pay for you to go to school. It may take longer to get both degrees, but at least you'll be making money and somebody will be paying for your ME degree.
My thoughts exactly. I'm just unsure how to start a business with a full time job and then somehow make that business my full time job.. I guess I'll cross that road when I come to it.
Old 09-22-2006, 10:20 AM
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Originally Posted by mtedwards
I'm guessing from your posts that your in your first couple years of school. I hope your not thinking that an ME degree will help you in the Hot Rod or Automotive fab business. If you goal is to get an engineering degree just so you can open a shop then quit school now. You'll get into your junior year and realize that the ME degree won't help you one bit with building cars. ME classes are almost purely theory and very, very little hands on. I worked at a race shop while I was going to school and I can tell you, that you won't get near any engineering doing that type of job. It's a skill trade that takes time to learn. I put myself through college working at a chassis/engine shop.

I'm not suggesting that you drop out of school at all. I'm suggesting you find different motivation for getting your degree. You can get into hot rods after school, but don't expect a degree to get you anywhere. But it does give something fall back on.

As far as hours. I worked 90+ a week for 4 months straight as a manufacturing engineer for Bosch. I told them to stick it and got a design job for a small conveyor manufacturer and I average 45/week now and the pay is better. I also do a lot of race car fabrication on the side as a hobby. I enjoy it much more now than I did when it was a job, and I'm not broke anymore.

As far as ME vs. EE. Get an ME degree. It's a very well rounded discipline, you get some of everything.
I would like to get into building engines and trannies now, but I have no work experience doing so, also in order to work on diesels I would have to be certified. If it is like any other certifications it is useless though... How would I get into it without work experience?
Old 09-22-2006, 10:34 AM
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You guys that are reccomending both degrees are absolutely crazy. After finishing an ME degree, I can't imagine going back for another. 5 years of homework, tests, wacko professors, and being utterly broke was all I could stand.

Are there any good shops around you. Go hang out, lend a hand, work for free for a little while. Hands on experience is always more valuable than a bunch of book crap. Most performance shops will laugh at you if you come expecting a job because you have an ME degree, because for what you will do it's useless.

Join any SAE sponsored groups at your school, Forula SAE, Mini Baja, etc. That's good experience that will teach you some fab skills and help you land a job. I was a member of Mini Baja the whole time I was in school and absolutley loved it.
Old 09-22-2006, 11:17 AM
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Originally Posted by mtedwards
You guys that are reccomending both degrees are absolutely crazy. After finishing an ME degree, I can't imagine going back for another. 5 years of homework, tests, wacko professors, and being utterly broke was all I could stand.

Are there any good shops around you. Go hang out, lend a hand, work for free for a little while. Hands on experience is always more valuable than a bunch of book crap. Most performance shops will laugh at you if you come expecting a job because you have an ME degree, because for what you will do it's useless.

Join any SAE sponsored groups at your school, Forula SAE, Mini Baja, etc. That's good experience that will teach you some fab skills and help you land a job. I was a member of Mini Baja the whole time I was in school and absolutley loved it.
Dude, it would only be an extra semester and a summer or so. All the math and other stuff are the same except the specific engineering stuff. I'm gonna stick with EE and see if I want ME after I graduate. Mini baja? Interesting. I guess I'm gonna try and do what you said. Just tell a local shop I want to learn and am willing to work for nothing for a while. The only catch is I work 7-4 already and I have way too expensive bills to not have a job. I make good money now, but am not getting any experience that I'd like to have. I agree that ME might be overkill, but if it can be easily obtained I'm going for it.
Old 09-22-2006, 11:25 AM
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Read these:

Newton's 3 Laws:
I. Every object in a state of uniform motion tends to remain in that state of motion unless an external force is applied to it.
II. The relationship between an object's mass m, its acceleration a, and the applied force F is F = ma. Acceleration and force are vectors (as indicated by their symbols being displayed in slant bold font); in this law the direction of the force vector is the same as the direction of the acceleration vector.
III. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Thermodynamics:
Energy can be changed from one form to another, but it cannot be created or destroyed. The total amount of energy and matter in the Universe remains constant, merely changing from one form to another. The First Law of Thermodynamics (Conservation) states that energy is always conserved, it cannot be created or destroyed. In essence, energy can be converted from one form into another.
In all energy exchanges, if no energy enters or leaves the system, the potential energy of the state will always be less than that of the initial state.
Mark's Standard Handbook for ME's

Make the sign of the cross and say "Ommini Dommini"
-You are now an ME

~Rob


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