Engineering Essential to Change, Progress, Tom Conarty Tells Lehigh Valley Engineers
Bethlehem Steel Corporation
For Immediate Release
ALLENTOWN, Pa., February 23, 2001 - As mankind and technology continue to evolve, closing the gap created by the development and acceptance of technology will be the work of the engineering profession, Thomas J. Conarty, senior vice president, Bethlehem Steel Corporation, said this evening.
In the keynote address to about 250 people attending the Lehigh Valley Engineering Council's 50th anniversary dinner at the Sheraton Jetport, Mr. Conarty reviewed key engineering milestones of the past few centuries leading to the engineering challenges in the new millennium.
In key developments and opportunities where engineering milestones dramatically altered and improved the quality of life, "change was catalyzed by technology with engineers acting as transfer agents," he explained. Further, "progress," not just change, "is made through the proper leverage of people, processes, organization and technology."
The Bethlehem executive related key technological and societal advancements throughout the ages -- from agrarian, industrial, information, communications to the future-state of encapsulation. In today's communications age, Mr. Conarty said that "the base of competition must change from products to business alliances, and control is shifting from producer to customer. Likewise, logistics are becoming more highly networked, and organizations are being designed to employ teams of specialists.
"Engineers have a big role to play in all of this, especially as we deploy facilities to meet our customers' needs," he said.
Mr. Conarty characterized the future state as being focused on smart engineering and communications that will "challenge the status quo, collaborate globally, improvise solutions along the way and synthesize the new."
The Lehigh Valley Engineering Council sponsored the annual dinner in recognition of National Engineers Week. The council advances the profession of engineering through professional development opportunities and the recognition of area engineers. The organization's membership lives in nine counties in eastern Pennsylvania and northwestern New Jersey.