I personally feel that HI-TECH employers need to reevaluate the role of a CAD designer versus a mechanical engineer. I've worked as a CAD Designer for many years. I'm originally from the Silicon Valley -SF Bay Area considered to be the center of HI-TECH innovation. It's a fast paced environment in terms of HI-TECH development. The function of a CAD designer is that of an engineering graphic communicator-expert. The function of an Engineer is more of a problem solver-specialist. Both are creative innovators in their respective roles. Their responsibilities are different and overlap as a team within an engineering Research and Development (R&D) environment.
I feel that education and experience go hand in hand. Education to learn and understand what has worked in the past and through experience gain the knowledge of why something works by experiencing it firsthand. I will go one step further and say the foundation of education and experience is not enough to achieve creative innovation. One must be able to develop a sense of imagination and push it into motion. That additional ingredient is DESIGN. Without DESIGN, engineering has no meaning, no substance.
