1. 4th Edition
Chapter 25
Design Step #5:
The Design Defense

2. What You Will Learn
Engineers spend a large fraction of their time communication results and to solicit funding
Oral defense of your design is essential to deliver your results
Periodic & clear written reports
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3. Why Do Engineers Have to Communicate?
Engineers have to communicate to supervisors and existing customers with periodic and detailed reports as well negotiate with potential clients such as contract negotiations with municipal and federal agencies
All engineers need polished, idiomatic speaking skills as well as grammatically correct English in written materials
Typically engineers can spend from no time at all to 100% of their time chasing contracts.
Communications with clients can be written, ed, or spoken but communicate they must
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4. How to Prepare an Oral Defense
In an engineering competition the customer becomes an appointed jury
Did the team adhere to the systematic approach?
How does the final concept work?
What level of risk is associated with this design?
Do the students appear to be teaming effectively?
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5. How to Organize Your Oral Defense
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6. Oral Defense Risk Management
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7. Tips For Your Oral Defense
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8. Design Milestone: Oral Design Defense
Assignment
1. Prepare the visual aids for the oral design defense. You must use PowerPoint or an equivalent software package. Relevant drawings should be scanned.
2. Practice the presentation.
3. Deliver the oral presentation to a jury of evaluators.
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9. Design Milestone: Oral Design Defense
Typical format
Eight minutes for the oral presentation; four minutes for questions.
All team members participate in the presentation and in responding to questions.
Grading Criteria
What level of risk is associated with the design?
What was the quality of the drawings and the other visual aids?
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10. Design Competition Tips
Grading tends to be proportional to the quality of the drawings.
Evidence of the use of calculations, experiments, and models do much to reduce the level of risk in the minds of the jurors.
Visual representations of your results are more effective than just saying you did them.
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11. Summary Engineers have to be able to speak and write effectively
Thorough planning & organization is the key to a successful oral defense of your design
Visuals are effective as a 1,000 words
Good drawings are essential
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