This set of notes contains information that engineers need to know in order to manage engineering data. The concepts of Database Management Systems are presented with focus on the relational technology. This is not intended to be a comprehensive set of notes on relational theory. The reader is referred to texts that deal with relational theory extensively. The material covered here deals more with how to use information management concepts to make engineering functions more productive. Not all sections are complete, and many will grow in time. Hopefully this will evolve into a comprehensive set of notes which will be highly beneficial to the class.

 

We have tried to illustrate the concepts using engineering examples and case studies which have been carried out as part of the research activity in the area of engineering information management at Georgia Tech. The case studies have also been described in detail to illustrate how to design and implement information systems for engineering applications.

 

We believe user input is critical for the success of any project, hence suggestions and comments are welcome and will be appreciated.

 

These notes have been developed as part of the Woodruff Doctoral Fellowship grant from the School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology. A lot of people have helped in the development of these course notes. We would like to acknowledge Dr. Jim Craig, Dr. Ravi Rangan, Chao-Pin Yeh, Gintas Jazbutis, Ching-Yang Wang, and M. C. Ramesh for contributing material and time. Acknowledgments are due to Mao for information on IGES, Koushik Banerjee for material on NIAM, and several graduate students in the class for providing examples through their term projects