DECEMBER 2007

U.S. Faces Stiff Competition in
Mechanical Engineering, Report Says

The U.S. lead in mechanical engineering research may be slipping as competition increases from countries such as China and India, according to a new report from the National Academies.

At the request of the National Science Foundation Engineering Directorate, the Academies launched a study to benchmark U.S. research in mechanical engineering against international peers. Understanding the field's current health and international standing, the report says, will help address how it must shift to meet future needs.

A panel of 11 members with a broad cross-section of expertise assessed research through published literature, peer opinions, and other sources of easily accessible information.
Overall, the study found that the U.S. is still a leader in mechanical engineering basic research, but the country is facing stiff competition. For example, the percentage of mechanical engineering published articles from the U.S. has decreased from 48% in 1987–1991 to 24% in 2002–2006. The biggest competitor to the U.S. is China, which published 7,580 articles in 2006 compared with 5,660 U.S. articles.

However, in the leading research journals, U.S. authors still accounted for 40% of the articles overall and 40% of the most-cited articles. The U.S. remains the leader in research published on bioengineering, design and CAD, manufacturing/CAM, mechanics of materials, and thermal and heat transfer, with an average 50–70% contribution in those areas.

Factors that have contributed to U.S. leadership in mechanical engineering research, the report notes, include cutting-edge research facilities and a steady flow of mechanical engineers and research funding.

However, there is strong competition for science and engineering graduates. Between 1997 and 2005, the number of U.S. citizens who received mechanical engineering Ph.D.s decreased 35%. In order to maintain a steady supply of Ph.D. mechanical engineering graduates, the country has increasingly relied on foreign-born students.

The U.S. is particularly strong in areas of mechanical engineering that interface with other disciplines, the report says, such as bioengineering, design, and mechanics of materials. In those areas, the U.S. will maintain its leadership position despite the increasing competition, the researchers note. In core areas in which the U.S. is not particularly strong, such as acoustics and dynamics, dynamics and controls, computational mechanics, and tribology, the country may continue to slip.

Trends that will affect mechanical engineering research include

growing industrial opportunities in China and India, which will increase mechanical engineering research talent and leadership overseas;

continued offshoring of mechanical engineering R&D by U.S. companies,
more international research collaboration;

educational opportunities offered abroad and online by U.S. universities;

issues such as national security, energy, manufacturing competitiveness, and sustainability influencing research directions; and

continued emergence of fields such as nanotechnology, mechatronics, alternative energy, biomedical materials and devices, and green manufacturing.