October 2008 Mechanical Engineering Departments: Bookshelf

bookshelf

Marcus Goncalves and Brian E. Porter. ASME Press, Three Park Ave., New York, NY 10016-5990. 2008. Softcover. 120 pages. ASME members, $36; list, $45. ISBN 978-0-7918-0276-2.

GLOBAL MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES: FOR SALES, DESIGN, MANUFACTURING & OPERATIONS

This book is intended to be a practical tool, rather than purely a theoretical one, as one might find in some other current management books. Much of the book is based on practical experience, strategies, and techniques attempted with various experience levels, from students to managing-level engineers. According to the authors, one must recognize that every employee, department, company, and industry require different strategies to be successful. Also, over time, even if a team’s members remain the same, these individuals will change, improve, and grow, requiring adaptation on the part of the manager. Techniques that worked with the staff five years ago must also evolve. The book is divided into a dozen chapters. The early and late ones discuss management evolution and global strategies for all managers. In between are eight chapters that cover players and strategies in four key areas—manufacturing, operations, design, and sales.

James G. Bralla. Industrial Press Inc., 989 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10018. 2007. 864 pages. $115. ISBN 978-0-8311-3179-1.

HANDBOOK OF MANUFACTURING PROCESSES: HOW PRODUCTS, COMPONENTS AND MATERIALS ARE MADE

This ambitious reference work is an in-depth compilation of the workings of more than 1,500 manufacturing processes in the metalworking, chemicals, textiles, plastics, ceramics, electronics, wood, and food industries. It also discusses how more than 600 key products, components, and materials are made. Among them: aircraft, automobiles, computers, musical instruments, eyeglasses, firearms, jewelry, perfume, and shoes, to name but a few. It covers such components as lasers, integrated circuits, metal cans, cartons, gears, locks, electric motors, solar cells, and superconductors. Organized in two sections, one on process and one on products, the book describes the operations performed in factories around the world. Author James G. Bralla’s career has spanned more than a half-century in manufacturing as an engineer, consultant, and executive.

Jacques Heyman. Cambridge University Press, 32 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10013. 2008. 140 pages. $60. ISBN 978-0-521-89794-5.

BASIC STRUCTURAL THEORY

Written by the former head of the Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge, this book introduces the basic equations of the theory of structures. Conventional presentations of these equations follow the ideas of elastic analysis, introduced nearly 200 years ago. Here, author Jacques Heyman concentrates on advances made in structural theory over the past 50 years, notably the introduction of the so-called plastic theory. Strength is discussed in the first part of the book without reference to equations of elastic deformation. However, the designer is concerned also with stiffness, for which elastic analysis is needed, and the standard equations are presented. Finally, stability is analyzed, which again is essentially an elastic phenomenon. Emphasis in the book is on the derivation and application of the structural equations, rather than on details of their solution (nowadays usually done by computer).

Victor Zalizniak. Distributed by International Book Services Inc., 920 NE 58th Ave., Suite 300, Portland OR 97213-3786. Published by Horwood Publishing, Chichester, UK. 2008. Softcover. 230 pages. $100. ISBN 978-1-904275-32-9.

ESSENTIALS OF SCIENTIFIC COMPUTING: NUMERICAL METHODS FOR SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

Modern development of science and technology is based to a great extent on computer modeling. To understand the principles and techniques of computer modeling, it is necessary to first develop a strong background in classical numerical methods. This book covers the basic ideas of different numerical techniques and the interrelation between them, including iterative process, extrapolation, and matrix factorization. Practical implementations of the methods shown are explained through numerous examples, considering a variety of methods for each type of problem.

Editors: B. Sunden and C.A. Brebbia. WIT Press, 25 Bridge St., Billerica, MA 01821. 2008. 240 pages. $158. ISBN 978-1-84564-122-1.

ADVANCED COMPUTATIONAL METHODS AND EXPERIMENTS IN HEAT TRANSFER X

This book is based on papers presented at the Tenth International Conference on the subject matter in the title, an area that is of significance to many branches of technology, not least to energy technology. Developments include new, efficient heat exchangers, novel heat transfer equipment, and the introduction of systems of heat exchangers in industrial processes. Application areas include heat recovery in the chemical and process industries, and buildings where heat transfer plays a major role.

A. Keith Escoe. Butterworth-Heinemann, an imprint of Elsevier, 30 Corporate Drive, Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803. 2008. 208 pages. $99.95. ISBN 978-0-7506-8766-9.

PRESSURE VESSEL AND STACKS FIELD REPAIR MANUAL

Written from the practitioner’s perspective, this book is designed as a companion for engineers who are working in the field and are faced with various problems relating to pressure vessels and stacks. Among them are retrofitting existing pressure vessels or stacks to either enhance process capability, or to lift, move, or replace equipment. Because of their size, complexity, or hazardous contents, pressure vessels and stacks require the highest level of expertise in determining their fitness for service after these operations. This book is meant to provide engineers with tips to remediate problems that can occur daily. The examples are actual field applications based on 40-plus years of experience in various parts of the world.

Joe M. Bonem. John Wiley & Sons Inc., 111 River St., Hoboken, NJ 07030. 2008. 298 pages. $90. ISBN 978-0470-16928-5.

PROCESS ENGINEERING PROBLEM SOLVING

In many modern plants, a lot of time and money are spent addressing recurring problems. This guide seeks to provide a structured, practical way to solve real-world plant processing problems, focusing on those that tend to be chronic or that require an engineering analysis. Author Joe M. Bonem, who worked for more than 30 years in polymer manufacturing and process development, details a step-by-step method based on actual, in-plant experience rather than on abstract theory. If one has a good understanding of the equipment and the specific technology involved, this methodical reasoning approach should be helpful in analyzing and solving problems in a plant.