What is Mechanical Engineering?

Mechanical engineering is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science to design, analyze, manufacture, and maintain mechanical systems. It is one of the oldest and broadest of the engineering branches.

Activity Sectors
Applied mechanics, Dynamics, Thermodynamics, Fluid mechanics, Heat transfer, Production technology, and others

Related fields
Manufacturing engineering, aerospace engineering and automotive engineering are grouped with mechanical engineering at times. A bachelor's degree in these areas will typically have a difference of a few specialized classes.

The mechanical engineering field requires an understanding of core areas including mechanics, dynamics, thermodynamics, materials science, structural analysis, and electricity. In addition to these core principles, mechanical engineers use tools such as computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), and product lifecycle management to design and analyze manufacturing plants, industrial equipment and machinery, heating and cooling systems, transport systems, aircraft, watercraft, robotics, medical devices, weapons, and others. It is the branch of engineering that involves the design, production, and operation of machinery.