BoilerEngineer10

I usually don't post here, but I found this an interesting subject of debate, so I figured I'd throw in my 10 cents. I'm a junior at Purdue in Mechanical Engineering(and also minoring in management and tech theatre, yeah I'm busy, and that's why I don't post in places often lol) which I applied to so that I could one day hope to have a shot at working in the industry. My point being, is that this is something we are constantly told, to avoid what's known as "over the wall" engineering, which basically results in each phase of the project being very seperated from the other, many times because designers feel their design was "flawless" and any errors in the final product must not have come from the design, but rather manufacturing or installation. Aaron brings up a very good point, engineering is an interesting science in that you create rather than discover, and as such your rule book is literally the known physical laws of the world, which of course if fun because roller coaster's often turn your concept of physics on its head! But this rule book is very strict, and as designers B&M certainly knows, and has proven that they know, what specific tolerances must be taken on their end to ensure a smooth and reliable final product. But one can never fully underestimate that their design may have shortcomings, and I would imagine they will also be paying close attention to the test results, if for nothing else than to monitor if they need to adjust the trims/MCBR speed beyond what was originally expected. If B&M just took the stance, "we're B&M, we're friggin perfect!" to anyone who tested a ride designed by their firm and encountered problems, they likely wouldn't have the track record they currently hold. Lesson of this, no design, no project, no building, no roller coaster, regardless how perfect the engineering, the drawings, the manufacturing, the installation, no part of the process is truly finished until the first train rolls out of the station with passengers. And even then, B&M knows they're just a phone call away from heading back to the drawing board on something if need be. If there's one thing I've learned from internships(priceless by the way for those of you in school/or intending on attending university), no design's perfect, no manufacture without its flaws, no installation without its mistakes. Not saying there's always something screwed up, but more often than not, expect something along the line will be, possibly even the design.