Computers: Research Tools or Design Aids?

A certain amount of misuse must be expected when any new technology becomes available on a large scale. Computer-aided technology is no exception; in fact in many engineering fields, it may be the exemplary case. Misuse of computers in design and analysis has been common, resulting in unnecessarily large capital expenditures, wasted time, interior designs, delayed projects and cost over-runs. Many experienced design engineers, having encountered problems too often in the past, resist anything more sophisticated than computer drafting and simple structural analysis packages. This paper attempts to examine reasons for this situation and, considering recent developments in hardware, opportunities for useful applications of computers in design and analysis are identified. Advantages and disadvantages of computer use are investigated in order to evaluate possibilities of reducing negative aspects. Finally, an assessment of a design idea is used to illustrate the range of, and uncertainty associated with, important design parameters.