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Architectural Engineering, Career and Education
Architectural engineer or building engineer is the professional who can apply the engineering principles to building design and construction. However, across the world, the term architectural engineer may refer to different things such as an engineer in the structural, electrical or mechanical as well as other engineering fields in the building design and/or construction. In the United States however, an architectural engineer is a licensed engineering professional. Moreover, there is a clear distinction between structural engineering, mechanical engineering and electrical engineering as each of these fields have different educational requirements and involve completing rather different university programs.Structural engineering is a branch in architectural engineering that involves the analysis and then the design of physical objects. These may include anything from bridges, towers, walls or buildings in general. Individuals specialized in the latter are commonly referred to as building engineers and they are responsible for the structural performance of the built environment which means they require expertise in the strength of the materials used and in the seismic design. Mechanical and electrical engineers on the other hand specialize in the features that are integrated within the building design. This means overseeing the heating ventilation or air conditioning systems as well as rain gutter systems. Electrical engineers’ work involve designing the power distribution throughout the building, telecommunication systems, fire alarm or lightening systems as well as other features that have to do with electricity.
All in all, the architectural engineering field is a separate and integrated one, with a multi-discipline approach. Individuals who are interested in practicing this profession will need strong physics and mathematics abilities and they will be able to start a rather general program and then specialize in their own area of expertise. In the United States, for one to be qualified as an architectural engineer (building engineer) one needs to be qualified as an architect as well.