Page 8 - Mechanical Engineers Reference Book

Preface

I was delighted when Butterworth-Heinemann asked me to To see this book in print is a considerable personal achieve-
edit a new edition of Mechanical Engineer’s Reference Book. ment, but I could not have done this without the help of
Upon looking at its predecessor, it was clear that it had served others. First, I would like to thank all the authors for their
the community well, but a major update was required. The tremendous hard work. It is a major task to prepare informa-
book clearly needed to take account of modern methods and tion for a hook of this type, and they have all done a magnificent
systems. job. At Butterworth-Heinemam, Duncan Enright and Deena
The philosophy behind the book is that it will provide a Burgess have been a great help, and Dal Koshal of the
qualified engineer with sufficient information so that he or she University of Brighton provided considerable support. At the
can identify the basic principles of a subject and be directed to University of Central Lancashire, Gill Cooke and Sue Wright
further reading if required. There is a blurred line between ensured that the administration ran smoothly.
this set of information and a more detailed set from which I hope you find the book useful.
design decisions are made. One of my most important tasks
has been to define this distinction, so that the aims of the book
are met and its weight is minimized! I hope I have been able to
do this, so that the information is neither cursory nor complex.
Any book of this size will inevitably contain errors, but I Ted Smith
hope these will be minimal. I will he pleased to receive any University of Central Lancashire, Preston.
information from readers SO that the book can be improved. Christmas Eve, 1993