The Professional Engineers Registration Act 2019 (the Act) states:
professional engineering service means an engineering service that requires, or is based on, the application of engineering principles and data—
However, the Act does not define the term ‘engineering principles’.
The Guidelines on providing professional engineering services states:
Engineering principles are the ideas, judgements, rules, or concepts used to solve an engineering problem and that are required to design, develop and analyse systems, applications and equipment. As engineering is concerned with design, construction, production, operation and maintenance, the principles are based on applied science, such as physics and chemistry, and involve advanced scientifically based calculations.
Advanced scientifically based calculations include the science and mathematics calculations that are required for real world engineering applications and include:
- modelling – translating given physical or other information and data into mathematical form, into a mathematical model (a system of equations including differential equations or some other algebraic expression)
- solving – obtaining the solution by selecting and applying suitable mathematical methods and/or models (including computational), and in most cases doing computational analysis on a computer, and
- interpreting – understanding the meaning and the implications of the mathematical solution for the original problem in terms of physics – or wherever the problem comes from.
However, is this how a court will interpret the term ‘engineering principles’?
Elsewhere, I suggested that the International Engineering Alliance definition of ‘engineering’ should be used:
Engineering: (n) an activity that seeks to meet identified needs of people and societies by the purposeful application of engineering sciences, technology and techniques to achieve predicted solutions that use available resources efficiently, are economical, that manage risks; engineering is carried out by practitioners performing roles differentiated by the level of problem analysis and solution, the activity to be managed, risk and responsibility.
The meaning of ‘principles’ is not defined in the Act, so I will start with the literal rule of statutory interpretation, by using the Macquarie dictionary definition.
I suggest that the relevant meanings of ‘principle’ are:
an accepted or professed rule of action or conduct: a man of good principles.
And:
a fundamental, primary, or general truth, on which other truths depend: the principles of government.
And:
fixed rule or adopted method as to action.
And:
a rule or law exemplified in natural phenomena, in the construction or operation of a machine, the working of a system, or the like: the principle of capillary attraction.
However, ‘engineering principles’ might also be considered a technical term (refer here, here and here).
Intriguingly, Engineers Australia (as the principal engineering professional body within Australia), does not define the term ‘engineering principles’ (or, at least, not that I could find on their website).
However, the International Engineering Alliance (who is the secretariat of the Washington, Sydney and Dublin accords that Engineers Australia is the Australian signatory to) provides the following definition:
Principles (of engineering): general laws of the natural and engineering sciences and good practice
Where:
Engineering sciences: include engineering fundamentals that have roots in the mathematical and physical sciences, and where applicable, in other natural sciences, but extend knowledge and develop models and methods in order to lead to applications and solve problems, providing the knowledge base for engineering specializations.
Recommendation
The above is just my lay attempt at statutory interpretation. What is needed is for a legal professional to provide legal advice. Or, even better, for a court to provide a judgement.
Depending upon the outcome of that, then the Guidelines on providing professional engineering services could be updated to define ‘engineering principles’ as:
Principles (of engineering): general laws of the natural and engineering sciences and good practice
Where:
Engineering sciences: include engineering fundamentals that have roots in the mathematical and physical sciences, and where applicable, in other natural sciences, but extend knowledge and develop models and methods in order to lead to applications and solve problems, providing the knowledge base for engineering specializations.