Where Engineering is a Form of Art

When you try to think about two polarized professions, nothing is more distinct than engineers and artists. Engineers are precise, they worry about specs, performance, and work on function and efficiency. Artists care about form, flow, design, and think about how people will experience their creations. In many cases, engineers and designers disagree and can get into heated debates that remain unresolved and slow things down.

For the consumer, the mechanics are usually hidden and what they see is design first, and the work of the engineers is behind the scenes. For example, when walking into a new house, a buyer can’t tell the quality of the plumbing or electrical work. They can only judge their function. Stock cars are the same way – you can feel the engine and suspension, but you don’t see them and unlikely to decide against buying a vehicle because you don’t like the way the cooling hoses connect to the radiator. 

One of the few places where the function is as visible and as distinct as the form is motorcycles. In a motorcycle, everything is exposed. The engine, wiring, exhaust pipe, cooling system, and suspension are largely all visible and collectively contribute to the looks and design. This is a place where engineers are designers and designers are engineers; buyers will walk away from a bike that does not look the part. Everything matters and function without form will not be tolerated. It’s one of the few products where art and precision are one of the same, placing a big challenge on manufacturers on one hand and a big smile on a rider’s face when they finally get it right.

The Steve Jobs obsession about experience, precision, function, and design didn’t start with Apple. It has deep roots well before computers became mainstream when the motorcycle industry took its first steps. We can only hope that this approach as challenging as it is will find its way into additional industrial products and services.