KNOWLEDGE BASE FOR MECHANICAL DESIGN ENGINEERS

Audio: Knowledge base for mechanical design engineers

I have been emphasizing the importance of organizational skills for mechanical design engineers. In addition to organizing your e-mail, taking notes, and tracking your tasks, the knowledge base is, in my opinion, the best way of capturing and organizing your company-related knowledge.

This could include writing down internal procedures, software usage steps, information about different products and suppliers, etc. In this article, we will talk about the importance of having a knowledge base and how to structure it.

Introduction to knowledge base

If you have been reading my articles, you probably noticed how much I have been talking about the tremendous amount of information you will receive daily and the importance of organizing that information. The reason that I am emphasizing that is simple. I do not want you to make the same mistakes I did when I started my career. I had seen firsthand what it means not to be organized, and once when I organized my work, the benefits that came with it.

The most efficient way I found to get organized, in addition to organizing your e-mail, is to create your own knowledge base. The knowledge base is the centralized place where you track all relevant information for your day-to-day work. I am using my knowledge base to track everything from company information to software usage guidelines. Furthermore, I am writing all my notes and tasks in it.

Why is a knowledge base important?

As I said, you will receive a tremendous amount of the information daily, and at times it could become overwhelming. Having a centralized place for sorting out this information, in the long run, could give you great benefits in terms of your career. Imagine that you are filling in your knowledge base daily or weekly for a few years. The history and information that are written there would be extremely valuable.

Furthermore, if you are writing everything down, you do not have to keep every detail in your head, so that will free up capacity in your brain for other more important things. As a result, you will feel less overwhelmed and more confident. Whatever you need, and that you have written it down in the knowledge base, is instantly available for you.

Also, I would say that having a knowledge base will improve your reputation in the company. You will always be able to “recall” all the information and details about a particular topic. In addition, your reputation would not suffer if you would go and ask the same basic questions over and over again.

For example, there are some functions inside of the software that I would use maybe two or three times a year. The number of repetitions is too small for me to get proficiency in using this function. But instead of going and asking people who are using these functions often to help me, I would ask once, write down the steps and archive them into my knowledge base. So, not only that, in the long run, I am saving my own time, but I am also saving time from those other people. And time is money. So basically, by investing time to write down the steps on how to use this function, I am saving the company some money in the long run.

Structure of the knowledge base

How and where you will create your knowledge base depends entirely on your preferences. We all have a way of processing information and connecting different dots. It is imperative that you build your knowledge base around your preferences.

However, I will give you some ideas about what you could include in your knowledge base. In the picture below, you can see the knowledge base structure that I am using. I created it specially for this article to be as generic as possible, but I am using the same principle in my work (because of the sensitive information, I can not show that one).

I created my knowledge base in Microsoft OneNote. You can use whatever you prefer. I am using OneNote because I am already paying for it (as part of the standard Microsoft package), and it has an excellent user interface that just makes it easy for me to move around my base without getting confused. Once I started using it and learned available functions, I decided to keep working with it.

Basically, I structured my knowledge base so that I have main topics that I want to keep track of. In the case of OneNote, it is called Notebooks, and I can see all the topics on the left side of my screen. Then you can see on the top that you have different sections, and each section has pages that you can see on the right. Furthermore, you can create section groups and subpages, which gives me enough room to take apart any topic into logical categories.

For example, in the picture above, you can see that on the left of my screen, I have main topics listed. I am looking into my suppliers, and I can see exactly where I am looking on the left. On the top side, you can see different sections, or in this case, the division of my suppliers based on the products and services they offer. When I open different sections, I can see on the right, which pages we have available. In this case, I opened CNC machining, and I can see that I have four suppliers there. You can see all the relevant information regarding that supplier on the page.

I did this for all these topics, separating them into the topics that I found helpful for me to quickly find what I need. So let us now look into some topics you could include in your knowledge base.

General information

There will be a lot of things that you need to learn about your company’s day-to-day operations. From finance, HR, hours tracking to travel expenses, training, etc. Writing all this down as you go will definitely take a lot of burden from you, and your onboarding process will go much smoother.

You could include information about the company, company’s structure, different internal procedures (like ordering), different important information about the company training, policies, etc. You can also include different contacts from the company and who is responsible for each project and different approvals. If you are a new person in the company, you could create a quick office layout and write the names of the people sitting there so that you can easily remember their names and roles.

Product information

When you start working, every product will be new to you. It is easy to get overwhelmed with the details of each one. I suggest you write all the information you can as soon as possible. Your colleagues will tell you a lot of useful information, and you will probably not be able to remember all of them.

You could include the information about the different products in your company. You can create exploded views, elaborate on different components and assemblies, write down the working principles, and write down the responsible people for that product (engineers, managers, marketing, sales, etc.). If your colleague would share some information regarding the product that happened before you arrived in the company, you could write it down and have the product’s history written down.

Use 3D models to see how different assemblies and components fit together, and it will also help you understand the most used manufacturing technologies and materials, assembly procedures, etc.

Supplier information

When you start working in a company that already has products, they will already have suppliers they are working with and prefer to work with. So you could write down those suppliers in your knowledge base and write down who is a responsible person from that company and how you can contact them. Furthermore, write down on which projects they are working and which components. That could give you some idea of how much work they are doing for your company and how complex things they have been trusted to do.

The list of the suppliers could get quite large, so I find it really important that I write all the important details, and that I can quickly find who I must contact for what and how can I contact them.

Manufacturing process

While this one is generic and it a lot of information you can find online or in the books, there is still a lot that you can learn about manufacturing processes from your suppliers and more experienced colleagues. The experience they have is rarely adequately written down.

You can benefit greatly from that experience, and you should capture it in the best possible way. Based on the products your company is making, there will also be classic manufacturing processes that are used in a way you have not heard before because they are tailored to your company’s needs.

I found this to be really beneficial to my company and me, that I, as a mechanical design engineer, have captured that knowledge and experience.

Testing

Depending on your responsibilities, you might perform different mechanical testing on your products. While you might encounter some of the tests before, some of them will be company-specific. At one moment, someone will show you how to do them and what is important.

Again, I suggest you write down all the relevant information regarding them. I would suggest you write things like test procedures and standards, where you can find templates for test reports, who is a go-to person for that test, etc.

Furthermore, you could write the details about outside testing laboratories that your company is using. In addition to the test details, I would also write down contact details like I would write for different suppliers. This makes it easier for me to find the right person to contact if I require their services.

Materials

Based on the products that your company is making, they could use special materials that you did have a chance to get in contact with before. I would write down the material detail, codes and alternative codes, and special use cases when these materials are used. Furthermore, I would attach the material datasheet and any specific details regarding the manufacturing process.

Aesthetics

For a mechanical design engineer, in addition to product functionality, aesthetics will also play a huge role in product development. Therefore, I would write down the branding guidelines, relevant links where I can find them, and a general overview of the main rules. I would also add the links to where I can find the logos, templates, etc. Furthermore, I would write down different surface finishings, colors, labels, artworks, needed files for suppliers, etc.

Company technology

Every company has some kind of technology that they are developing. This technology may or may not be directly mechanical engineering technology. You could be working with electrical engineers, programmers, and scientists developing different aspects of new technology.

However, those technologies will be somehow linked to your work. I would write all the information that I could regarding this technology: the principles, who is in what way involved in the development, what constraints this technology is putting on your design, etc.

Software usage guidelines

Every company has different software that is used for day-to-day operation. When you start working in your new position, you will probably undergo training on how to use them. Usually, your colleagues will show you how and why you are using different software and different functions in them. Therefore, I would suggest you write down step-by-step instructions on how to use specific software functions and why you are using them. Some functions you will not use every day, only every few months, and it makes you look good when you are not going back to the same person to show you something again that was already a few months before showed to you.

Tasks

Here you should write down all of the tasks that you should at a certain time complete. Rank them by priorities; you can ask your manager to help you prioritize them. I would suggest you write one task list as a general overview of your tasks and priorities and the second one only with the priorities (or subtasks) for the upcoming week. Keep the second one in a visible place.

When you have long-lasting tasks, write the progress down as you move forward. For example: DATE, drawing sent to supplier XYZ, waiting for a quote, or DATE, e-mail sent to AB for color clarification. That will later follow up with: DATE, quote received and reviewed, check project XYZ folder quotes, part KL, quote forwarded to finance department, waiting for an update, or DATE, color clarified, check Project XYZ color approval folder. This will give you a progress overview and the locations of all relevant files.

Closing words

From the moment you start working in your position, you will receive a tremendous flow of new information. From time to time, this could become overwhelming, and you might get to the point where you cannot keep up with everything that is happening. While you cannot completely avoid work-related stress, you can lower it by setting up your knowledge base and writing every important detail there. I have a simple rule for it: what is not written will be forgotten. The knowledge base should be created according to your personal preferences, and you can use this article as a guide.

You should make a conscious effort to keep your knowledge base up to date. Set up ten minutes in your calendar every day to update it. Spend time on it, and, in the long run, you will reap the fruits of your work.

This was my opinion on the importance and structure of the knowledge base for mechanical design engineers. What do you think? Do you have your own knowledge base? Share your experience and thoughts in the comments below!

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