Process Engineering Decision Making
The beauty of chemical engineering is that it is very open-ended. No problem has a single right solution. Sure, optimization algorithms exist to find the sweet spot that would satisfy all constraints but sometimes even these throw up equally viable options. Which path, then, should an engineer choose ?
Working at a startup, I don't have access to proprietary optimization software. This, however, doesn't preclude me from facing the tough decisions that come along with having one. Last month, I was given the task to design an ancillary equipment for our system. Trouble was that there was simply too much information in the public domain about which procedure to follow. Most such literature ended with "the best option for a given system can only be chosen based on past experience". That's exactly what I didn't have at the moment.
After about 2 weeks of intense literature survey and brainstorming sessions with my boss, I realized that every day that we are not making a decision is time and money being wasted. I had narrowed down the field to two options : A and B. I made the call and decided to stick with option A, taking an educated guess that it would work.
Two days ago, when our system was put in place, the component I had designed worked smoothly. I took a picture to remind me of the lesson that this process has taught me. Confidentiality concerns expressed by my boss prevents me from sharing the picture or revealing more details about the equipment I worked on.
Nonetheless, I hope this incident also triggered some thoughts in your mind about similar choices you had to make in your career. I would love to hear more about them and how you made your choice.
More lessons to follow as I keep learning.