UJ Prospectus2016

Engineering
and the
Built Environment
The University of Johannesburg’s Faculty of
Engineering and the Built Environment is now
one of the largest and best-equipped faculties
in Southern Africa. With the high demand for
engineers in our rapidly developing country, the
Faculty is a leading provider of well-qualified and
accredited engineers, technologists and technicians
for the industry. The faculty is well known for its
exceptional standard of education and research
offering programmes that are accredited by the
Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA).
The history of the concept of “engineering” stems
from the earliest times when humans began to invent
clever engines, such as the pulley, lever or wheel, etc.
The exact etymology of the word engineer, however,
is a person occupationally connected with the study,
design and implementation of engines. The word
“engine” derives from the Latin ingenium, meaning
“innate quality, especially mental power, hence a
clever invention”. Therefore an engineer is essentially
someone who makes useful or practical inventions.
Engineering is the discipline of acquiring and
applying scientific and technical knowledge to the
design, analysis and/or construction of works for
practical purposes. It can also be defined as the
creative application of scientific principles to design
and develop structures, machines, manufacturing
processes; or to construct or operate the same fully
optimizing their design. An engineer also ensures that
all he or she does not only serve an intended function
but does so economically and safely.
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2016 UNDERGRADUATE PROSPECTUS
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