NAE holds workshop on offshoring

Late last month, the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) held a workshop, "The Offshoring of Engineering: Facts, Myths, Unknowns, and Implications," which is an integral part of a larger NAE study on offshoring and its implications on the engineering profession currently underway. The National Science Foundation and the United Engineering Fund are funding the study.

The workshop, held in Washington, D.C., began with keynote addresses on the globalization of engineering by both Charles Vest, president emeritus of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Robert Galvin, chairman emeritus of Motorola Inc.

Vest warned attendees that the United States should not be complacent in this new reality of globalization, and while the country is currently the most innovative nation on the planet, "prospering in the Knowledge Age requires People with Knowledge."

Galvin echoed Vest's sentiments, and encouraged attendees to come up with grand challenges to inspire America's youth to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields and keep America competitive.

The remainder of the day-and-a-half workshop was divided into plenary sessions that were focused on the effects of offshoring on seven particular industries, including automotive, personal computer manufacturing, and pharmaceuticals; and two panel sessions: one on the implications of offshoring for the engineering workforce and the profession, and the other on its effects on engineering management and education.

More information about this workshop or the NAE study on offshoring in general can be found at www.nae.edu/nae/engecocom.nsf/weblinks/
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