5 top resources that engineers should have in their toolboxes

5 Resources Engineers Should Have in Their Toolboxes

July 6, 2022

For the past several months, we’ve been asking hundreds of engineers at Auto/Steel Partnership’s AHSS Formability 101 and AHSS Metallurgy 101 webinars a question: If they could only have one resource to help them with their work, what would that be—what’s their go-to resource? In response we received a list of nearly 30 different books, websites and handbooks that cover everything from metallurgy to welding, current publications to trusty university textbooks that engineers are still using today. Here’s a list of the TOP 5:

 

#1

ASM Handbook. According to the ASM International website, the ASM Handbook is “a comprehensive and authoritative guide to the structure, properties, processing, performance, and evaluation of metals and nonmetallic engineering materials.” It currently includes 24 volumes on a host of topics, including Volume I: The Properties And Selection: Iron, Steel and High-Performance Alloys, information on welding, heat treating, as well as lubrication and fatigue and many others. The newest volume covers Additive Manufacturing. Publications are available digitally via membership with ASM International or subscription. A handy video at the top of the home page tells you the history of the handbooks, what it contains, and a little about how to access.

 

#2

AHSS Application Guidelines. This resource has a long history in book form, authored by the father of the Forming Limit Diagram (FLD), Dr. Stu Keeler, and updated every two or three years. In 2021, the information was significantly updated by Dr. Danny Schaeffler (metallurgy and forming information) and Menachem Kimchi (welding) and put into a searchable online database. It is completely free, thanks to the members of WorldAutoSteel, and it is continually updated. Start with the Tutorials page to get the most out of searching the Guidelines. If you subscribe to the site, you’ll get emailed on the monthly blogs and any new information.

 

#3

Auto/Steel Partnership website (You are there!). We were really excited to see our website make number three on this list. We’ve made hundreds of presentations, papers and other information available, all based on the results of our project work. Also free to access, thanks to A/SP’s OEM, steel company and supplier members, look on the Technology Roadmap, Project Teams pages and the Research pages for information on Stamping, Joining, Stamping Tooling Optimization, Modeling and Steel Testing and Harmonization. Membership to A/SP is open to OEMs, steel manufacturers and suppliers to the automotive industry. As a member, you get to work with some of the best people and organizations in the automotive industry to address common issues in forming and joining Advanced High-Strength Steels and be involved in the details of all projects.

 

#4

The Association for Iron & Steel Technology (AIST) Steel® Wheel. This is pretty cool. Otherwise known as the Making, Shaping and Treating of Steel (MSTS Steel Wheel), it is just what it says it is—a clickable wheel that is a graphical representation of the processes required to convert raw materials into finished steel products. The process starts in the center of the wheel with the three fundamental ingredients to produce elemental iron. Moving out from the center, you can look at details of steelmaking, secondary refining, casting, shaping and treating. To really understand the detail available, you have to go to the page and click around. It has an incredible amount of information in a fun to use interface that is free to access.

The online version of the MSTS Steel Wheel is the result of a collaboration between the AIST and Purdue University Calumet’s Center for Innovation Through Visualization and Simulation (CIVS) with contributions from the Colorado School of Mines’ Advanced Steel Processing and Products Research Center (CSM-ASPPRC).

 

#5

The Engineers Edge. The stated mission of this website is “to be the preferred online destination for designers, engineers and manufacturing professionals, where all can quickly find a variety of information to aid in the solution of typical and complex technical problems.” It is loaded with technical information on a variety of topics, products and training opportunities. You have to be a member to access, but membership is very affordable and offers a price range, starting with a free basic membership all the way up to premium that is just over US$100.

 

So there you have it, the TOP 5 engineering resources as identified by engineers. There was a big tie of four resources for 5th place, so have a look at the full list on the right side of the page.

These are all great resources, and we hope they become a useful part of your workday. But maybe you’d like some more in-depth training. If you’d never been to an Auto/Steel Partnership webinar or in-person training event and you’d like to get on the list, make sure you subscribe to the A/SP mailing list. We’ll let you know what’s coming up. A/SP training is free to all attendees.