To Engineer Is Human: The Role of Failure in Successful Design

To Engineer is Human is a masterfully written book by Henry Petroski in which he describes a wide variety of engineering failures. Petroski’s wordsmithing talent brings to life stories of structural disasters that captured headlines and created angst. While the stories of failures date back to the 1880s, the book should occupy the library shelves of present-day engineers because of its valuable reinforcement of the importance of good peer review and the benefits of meeting a reasonable standard of care throughout the design process.I appreciated Chapter 8, in which Petroski described the July 17, 1981 failure of the Kansas City Hyatt Regency’s sky walk as people danced and the band played “Satin Doll.” Petroski informs us that the collapse was due to a construction-phase design change; he provides original detail and as-built sketches of the structural beam supports that failed, showing the minor yet critical design change that led to the deaths of over 100 people.Other chapters by Petroski tell of the challenges put forth by suspension bridges such as the Tacoma Narrows Bridge (aka the Galloping Gertie), which was twisted apart in a moderate wind. Petroski diversifies the narrative with a few engineering success stories, such as the English Crystal Palace built in 1951 in London’s Hyde Park.While the book’s topic of engineering failures may seem a bit grim, the book strikes a journalistic tone. Because engineers are charged with the protection of public safety, health, and welfare, I believe that every engineer should read To Engineer is Human.

Engineering uses science but is not science. All sorts of considerations go into actual engineering design. And sometimes the decisions lead to failure, which, for all its human and economic cost, is a key factor in ongoing improvement.This book provides one of the best introductions to how failures (the Hyatt Regency walkways, the Galloping Gertie bridge, etc.) led to improved engineering methods and analysis. I highly recommend this, especially to young engineers for the lessons it provides on how engineering actually is practiced.

“To Engineer is Human: The Role of Failure in Successful Design,” by Henry Petroski, Vintage Books, NY, 1992. This 251-page paperback describes the engineering design process for civil engineers especially for structures like bridges and skyscrapers.Petroski uses historical examples and recent failures to make his points. A major one is the 1981 failure of the skybridges at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Kansas City. The result was 115 killed and 200 injured–at the time the largest loss of life in an engineering failure. The very high atrium was bridged on the second, third and fourth floors to connect hotel rooms on one side to meeting rooms on the other. The second and fourth floor bridges ran on top of each other and were supported by steel rods from the ceiling. The original design had called for long rods supporting both bridges, but difficulty with a threaded nut for the upper bridge caused a design modification using two rods. The rod for the lower bridge was suspended from the upper bridge rather than from the ceiling beam. This overloaded the upper bridge resulting in a failure while people danced on the bridges.Similarly the book uses the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883 and the failure of the Tacoma Narrows bridge in 1940 to emphasize the need to consider other forces such as the effect of winds on the structure. Early railroad bridges were wood, but soon switched to iron bridges. Many failed until engineers learned to accommodate heavier loads and the reciprocating nature of steam engines. Safety factors and planning for partial failures make for successful designs. Stress cracking is described in detail. Corrosion and poor maintenance have contributed to recent bridge failures. The DC-10 crash in Chicago in 1979 was due to a stress failure of the pylon holding the engine. An unauthorized maintenance procedure had damaged the pylon causing stress cracks.Stress cracking is a factor in the service life of nuclear power plants. Flaws are difficult to detect. Radiation increases the temperature below which the steel becomes brittle. Inspection can be difficult. The design service life is based on best estimates, but catastrophic failure is possible if the cracks are undetected. A Liberty ship sank unexpectedly in World War II due to stress cracks from welding. Cracks in a set of stainless steel knives introduces the description of metal processing steps and their possible effects on cracking.Petroski notes that traditionally engineers did their design calculations with slide rules. That meant optimization of designs was a laborious process requiring repeated calculations to arrive at safe but cost effective designs. As the calculations are estimates, safety factors are commonly added. Modern computers make more precise optimization practical. That has resulted in lighter, more economical structures, but with less margin for error.The constant pressures to reduce costs force engineers to explore new materials. Engineers usually base their work on proven designs, but new materials and cost constraints drive innovation in a competitive world. Crystal Palace in Hyde Park London for the 1851 World Exposition is cited as an innovative modular design using glass walls.The book is thorough, informative and well written. The examples from the ‘80s makes it a bit dated. An update might include building failures such as the collapse of the World Trade Center towers on 911 and bridge failures such as the Minneapolis I-35 bridge in 2007 or the Miami bridge collapse in 2018. Those considering careers in engineering will want to read it. Photos. Bibliography. Index.

Thanks for the book!

"To Engineer is Human: The Role of Failure in Successful Design" is an amazing, fascinating book for those who have curious minds about famous engineers, famous disasters and what has been learned to prevent the next one. It's a great read even for non-engineer types.

One of my least favorite books. If it weren't assigned reading, I would have put it down without completing it. The author seems to be trying to impress himself with his use of "heretofore" and "thus" and "for" as a replacement for "because." Instead of using plain, clear, everyday English, the author obscures his point by using an outdated prose-like writing style. The use of run-on sentences separated by too many commas has ideas nested to the point that... the point is lost. There is some good information in the book. There was some good research done. The writing style ruins it.

As engineers we must deal with calculations, formulas, security factors, materials resistance, etc.If something were missing or get wrong designed, we will face the failure of our design.Henry Petroski shows and explain us different well-known cases of (great) failures which have terrible consequences, losing human lives included.

This book gives some examples of engineering disasters (e.g. the Kansas City Sky-way collapse, The Tacoma Narrows bridge failure, some of the first riveted wrought iron bridges catastrophic collapses). Humans are fallible. Human designs can be fallible. Mistakes are made, even when the best intentions are at play. Failures teach us the limits of our designs. We can learn from failures. Sometimes there are latent failures that may not reveal themselves for years to come. This is a must read for people involved with design work.

Un Libro indispensable en esta era de la Inteligencia Artificial...

Excellent book, highly recommend!

Libro che va oltre l'aspetto puramente ingegneristico, è una lezione di vita dopo l'altra. Consigliato a TUTTI dai 16/17 anni in su (più che altro per la difficoltà legata al fatto che sia in lingua inglese)

A must have for the design engineers. There is almost no other book, which can explain so many important aspects of engineering design, with clear yet casual and simple style. Absolutely 5 Star material.

My son (16) is very happy with it, and I read some excerpts myself which pleased me. Instructive enough without getting into any theory, calculation or demonstration.