Despite the enormous contribution of Brazilian engineering to modernization of Brazil, it needs to be strengthened further to meet the challenges of the contemporary era to contribute to the country's progress, highlighting, among them the following: 1) the participation of Brazil in race for technological innovation at the global level; 2) improving the overall quality of education in the country and, in particular, the current engineering courses in Brazil; 3) the elimination of the deficit of engineers in Brazil; 4) the dismantling of consulting engineering in the country; and, 5) the strengthening of CONFEA System / CREA whose weaknesses need to be overcome. These are the conditions for the strengthening of the Brazilian engineering. There is no doubt that to develop, Brazil must necessarily rely on its Engineering and with the best use of this, leveraging their economic and social progress and avoid eternal technological dependence on the outside.

1. THE BRAZILIAN ENGINEERING CHALLENGES IN CONTEMPORARY
ERA
Fernando Alcoforado *
In the Engineer's Day in Brazil celebrated on December 11, it is important to reflect on
the contribution of engineering to human progress and point out its challenges in the
contemporary era in Brazil. Since the dawn of humanity, many people engaged in
various tasks that today are functions of the engineer, and are there to prove the
countless and magnificent works of Engineering of Antiquity, such as the Lighthouse of
Alexandria, the Egyptian Pyramids, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Acropolis and
the Parthenon in Athens, the ancient Roman aqueducts, the Appian Way, the Colosseum
in Rome, the Teotihuacan in Mexico, the Pyramids of the Mayas, Incas and Aztecs and
the Great Wall of China, among many other works. From Antiquity to the fifteenth
century, the engineering works were much fruit of empiricism and intuition than
calculation and real engineering. Scientific research, including the physical and
mathematical sciences, was almost pure speculation, usually without to target practical
applications. There was, at best, some application to military purposes.
Leonardo da Vinci and Galileo Galileo, in the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries, for
example, can be considered the precursors of the scientific basis of Engineering because
what they did was governed by physical and mathematical laws. The Engineering,
understood as the art of making, is to apply scientific and empirical knowledge to the
creation of structures, processes and devices, which are used to convert natural
resources in appropriate ways to meet human needs. The engineering has been used
throughout the history of mankind as a means for achieving better living conditions for
society in all countries of the world and also for military purposes. Engineering is the
means by which people can acquire conditions to live better, to move faster, get comfort
and safety, have access to more nutritious and healthy foods, etc. The smooth
functioning of Engineering, therefore, is not only of interest of professionals and
entrepreneurs in the sector. It is of interest of the whole society, also being synonymous
with development. Engineering is, in short, synonymous of technical progress.
It is known that Engineering is present throughout the productive sector, namely: in
factories, construction sites works of housing and infrastructure, in universities,
scientific laboratories, centers of technological research, transport, power generation, in
communications, food production, among other ventures. The great changes taking
place in people's lives in the modern world, were generated by the technology that is
powered by the accumulated knowledge and the large investments in research and
innovation. Humanity needs of engineering because it is what transforms the knowledge
gained in universities and research centers, public and private, in products and services
provided to society.
The transformation of knowledge produced in laboratories by professionals from
different fields, including engineers, it is for engineers to design and perform. No
wonder that in all engineering definitions, and there are many, we find the words
"practical application of scientific principles aiming at the transformation of nature with
economy of resource". The Engineering should be understood, therefore, as a culture,
open to society, active in promoting its development looking for the purpose the best
quality of life. As technology development depends crucially on the ability of
Engineering, it can be stated that education, science, engineering and technology are
closely related. Engineering is strategic for the progress of humanity.
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2. Nowadays, there are many projects in Brazil and the world that had and have the
decisive support of Engineering such as the gigantic hydroelectric Three Gorges in
China and Itaipu in Brazil / Paraguay, buildings like the Empire State Building in New
York, Capital Gate in the city of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates and the
Kingdom Tower, still in the design phase, which will be built in the city of Jeddah,
Saudi Arabia, which will have 275 floors, reaching a staggering 1.6 of thousand feet,
bridges as the world's longest sea of 36.48 kilometers built in the coastal city of
Qingdao in China and the Rio-Niterói in Brazil, soccer stadiums, shopping centers,
airports, railways, highways and viaducts, cruise ships, supertankers and large grain
transport ships, jet planes, space rockets, among others.
Throughout Brazilian history Engineering has been large the number of engineers and
companies from various fields of activities, which have been highlighted by the
creativity and pioneering solutions adopted in projects and works performed. From the
time of installation of large steel from industrialization in the 1930s during the Getúlio
Vargas government, which changed the model and the growth potential of the country,
the stage of opening the roads of penetration, the construction of Brasília, in action
developmentalist of Juscelino Kubitschek and the construction of large dams from the
1950s until the complete domain of oil exploration technology "off shore" in the 1990s,
many domestic enterprises and many engineers helped to modernize and develop Brazil.
Brazil is fully developed in different sectors of Engineering. From road construction to
the energy sector all things are possible to be designed and built in Brazil. In some
sectors, including, Brazil is a world reference, as in the case of programs related to
Proálcool and biodiesel, oil exploration in deep sea water, construction of large hydro,
as Itaipu, the largest hydroelectric in operation until recently, designed, constructed and
arranged by Brazilian companies. Engineers and engineering companies cooperated
decisively to trigger the country's modernization process. It is also important to
highlight public administrators engineers who have wide vision and contributed to
materialize bold energy infrastructure projects, transport and communications
implemented in Brazil in the last 60 years. It ranked high, too, the pioneers in
manufacturing of machinery and equipment, and capital goods and input suppliers that
helped to provide extraordinary impulse to Engineering and Construction Brazilian. The
Engineering was therefore responsible for the construction of modern Brazil.
Despite the enormous contribution of Brazilian engineering to modernization of Brazil,
it needs to be strengthened further to meet the challenges of the contemporary era to
contribute to the country's progress, highlighting, among them the following: 1) the
participation of Brazil in race for technological innovation at the global level; 2)
improving the overall quality of education in the country and, in particular, the current
engineering courses in Brazil; 3) the elimination of the deficit of engineers in Brazil; 4)
the dismantling of consulting engineering in the country; and, 5) the strengthening of
CONFEA System / CREA whose weaknesses need to be overcome. These are the
conditions for the strengthening of the Brazilian engineering. There is no doubt that to
develop, Brazil must necessarily rely on its Engineering and with the best use of this,
leveraging their economic and social progress and avoid eternal technological
dependence on the outside.
For the Brazilian Engineering raise their level of contribution to the development of
Brazil, it´s necessary to face the challenge of increasing the country's participation in
the race for innovation at the global level. The Brazilian situation is disadvantageous to
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3. the technological innovation because, while the United States, for example, have
800,000 scientists working in research and development, Brazil has only 137 thousand
scientists. Another aspect to consider is that it is ridiculous to talk of technological
innovation in Brazil with the denationalized industry and their centers of decisions on
production and markets, located abroad, such as the Brazilian industry. All this explains
why Brazil remains one of the least innovative countries in the world. The
denationalized industry is determinant of Brazil to invest little in research, less than 1%
of its GDP (Gross Domestic Product), while most industrialized countries the average
level is of 3%. Brazil invests little in education, something like 4.5% of GDP, while in
developed countries this figure may reach 7% or more.
For the Brazilian Engineering raise their level of contribution to the development of
Brazil, it´s necessary also to face the challenge of improving the quality of education of
current engineering courses in Brazil that have too many specializations in graduation.
To overcome this problem, the engineering graduation courses should be restructured in
order to form the basic engineer, as the doctor and the lawyer, with specializing
contemplated in post graduated courses whose role would be redefined by the Federal
Council of Engineering and Agronomy (CONFEA) and Federal Council of Engineering
and Agronomy (CREA). To contribute to the progress of Brazil, it would be desirable
that the formation of the future engineer was directed to them to have an overall view of
engineering establishing the relations between parties and all in a whole unlike what
occurs today that impose the fragmented knowledge according to the specialties.
For the Brazilian Engineering raise their level of contribution to the development of
Brazil, it´s necessary also to face the challenge of engineers deficits in Brazil which,
according to a study by the National Industry Confederation (CNI), it would be
necessary to train 60,000 engineers per year in Brazil to meet the demand for engineers.
But what happens in Brazil is that only 48,000 get this diploma every year. One cause
of engineer deficit in Brazil is, among other factors, the withdrawal or evasion of
students during the course which is very large reaching 60%. The evasion happens in
the first and second year of course mainly by poor training in mathematics and physics
of student in high school that, in many cases, have difficulty to follow the course.
Striving for the improvement of secondary education in Brazil is essential to address the
problem of evasion in engineering courses. The Applied Economic Research Institute
(IPEA) of the federal government estimates that in 2022, there will need to 1.565
million engineers in typical occupations which means doubling the population of
engineers in relation to the current situation.
For the Brazilian Engineering raise their level of contribution to the development of
Brazil, it´s necessary also to face the challenge of preventing the dismantling of
consulting engineering in the country that is due to the low level of investments to
increase the country's productive capacity, deindustrialization and financial problems
affecting Petrobras, prime contractor for consulting services. All this is leading to the
scrapping of the Brazilian engineering and its consequent inability to cooperate with the
execution of the works necessary for the development of Brazil, especially in the field
of infrastructure. It is essential to consider that the consulting engineering is the basis
for the country's growth because without well-made projects Brazil has not as grow.
Good projects and engineering consulting services primarily rely on teams of
experienced professionals in development work in several areas covered by the
transportation, energy, telecommunications, buildings, sanitation, among many others
which are being disrupted. The current situation contributes to the lack of basic and
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4. executives projects competently prepared and the overpricing of works acting as an
obstacle to the country's infrastructure. Overcoming these problems affecting the
Brazilian engineering needs to be carried forward without which compromise the future
of Brazil.
For the Brazilian Engineering raise their level of contribution to the development of
Brazil, it´s necessary also to face the challenge of strengthening the CONFEA / CREA
System whose weaknesses need to be overcome. These weaknesses are: 1) the
CONFEA / CREA System is a autarchy of the federal government and therefore is not
independent; 2) the CONFEA / CREA System meets a purely bureaucratic function of
professional inspection; and, 3) the CONFEA / CREA System is silent in the search for
solution to the great national problems, especially in the field of education,
infrastructure and science, technology and innovation.
Why not make the CONFEA / CREA System pass to operate as the OAB (Order of
Brazil Advocates) that is, in fact, an autonomous body, for autonomy and independence
are characteristics of it? To act firmly in defense of national engineering, CONFEA
System / CREA should engage in the struggle for improvement of engineering
education structure and education in general that contribute to the lack of engineers in
the country and to exercise strict oversight of implementation public works in Brazil to
raise its level of quality and combat corruption. To contribute in solving major national
problems, especially in the field of infrastructure and science, technology and
innovation, CONFEA / CREA system should be independent of the federal government
along the lines of OAB and be strengthened to fulfill this mission.
These are the conditions for uplift engineering in Brazil.
*Fernando Alcoforado , member of the Bahia Academy of Education, engineer and doctor of Territorial
Planning and Regional Development from the University of Barcelona, a university professor and
consultant in strategic planning, business planning, regional planning and planning of energy systems, is
the author of Globalização (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 1997), De Collor a FHC- O Brasil e a Nova
(Des)ordem Mundial (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 1998), Um Projeto para o Brasil (Editora Nobel, São
Paulo, 2000), Os condicionantes do desenvolvimento do Estado da Bahia (Tese de doutorado.
Universidade de Barcelona, http://www.tesisenred.net/handle/10803/1944, 2003), Globalização e
Desenvolvimento (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 2006), Bahia- Desenvolvimento do Século XVI ao Século XX
e Objetivos Estratégicos na Era Contemporânea (EGBA, Salvador, 2008), The Necessary Conditions of
the Economic and Social Development-The Case of the State of Bahia (VDM Verlag Dr. Muller
Aktiengesellschaft & Co. KG, Saarbrücken, Germany, 2010), Aquecimento Global e Catástrofe
Planetária (P&A Gráfica e Editora, Salvador, 2010), Amazônia Sustentável- Para o progresso do Brasil e
combate ao aquecimento global (Viena- Editora e Gráfica, Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo, São Paulo, 2011)
and Os Fatores Condicionantes do Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2012),
among others.
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