Engineers are people who design and make cool things. There are many types of engineers. There are industrial engineers, civil engineers, and more.

    In this book, we will be talking about mechanical engineers. Like all engineers, mechanical engineers design and make things, but mechanical engineers make things like cars, trains, and more.

    Mechanical engineers make things like motors for cars. A motor is the thing that makes the car move.

    Motors are very complicated. A motor has over one thousand parts. Engineers need to be very smart to make things like engines.

    Mechanical engineers don't just make vehicles. They make many different things Mechanical engineers also design things like elevators and escalators. 

    Elevators and escalators may seem simple, but they are hard to make. It can sometimes take over a year for a mechanical engineer to make a design and build it. This means engineers have to work hard to make good designs.

    When a mechanical engineer builds something, they sometimes will use special tools. They might need to use a screwdriver to screw something in. They might have to use a wrench to tighten a nut.

    Sometimes, if an engineer cannot do a task with tools like a screwdriver or wrench, they will have to use power tools. An example of a power tool would be a drill. When using power tools, a mechanical engineer must be careful, because power tools are more dangerous than normal tools.

    Nowadays, engineers do not even have to build what they are making if they want to test it. They can get a program on their computer, and build what they are making there. This is called computer-aided engineering, or CAE for short. 

    There are many benefits of using CAE. Using it, engineers do not need to get all the materials needed to make the thing. They also do not need to build the thing, which can save a lot of time.

    You are now an expert on mechanical engineering! You know all about what mechanical engineers do, and what things they make. You know how mechanical engineers build the things they design.

    Do you want to be a mechanical engineer when you grow up? With all of the many things that they make, it is a great job.