--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Thousands of engineers can design…" description: "\"Thousands of engineers can design bridges, calculate strains and stresses, and draw up specifications for machines, but the great engineer is the man w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b57/eugene-grace-84586_bridges_thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridge_2968085.jpg" --- # Thousands of engineers can design bridges, calculate… ![“Thousands of engineers can design bridges, calculate strains and stresses, and draw up specifications for machines, but the great engineer is the man who can tell whether the bridge or the machine should be built at all, where it should be built, and when.” quote by Eugene Grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b57/eugene-grace-84586_bridges_thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridge_2968085.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b57/eugene-grace-84586_bridges_thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridge_2968085.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b57/eugene-grace-84586_bridges_thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridge_2968085.jpg) > “Thousands of engineers can design bridges, calculate strains and stresses, and draw up specifications for machines, but the great engineer is the man who can tell whether the bridge or the machine should be built at all, where it should be built, and when.” [Eugene Grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-grace/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Great engineers decide not just how, but if and when to build, integrating purpose with design. **In simple terms:** Engineers must judge necessity. Key Takeaway Question the need before creating. Themes engineering purpose decision‑making Mood analytical thoughtful pragmatic Type professional inspirational When to use this quote - construction projects - technology adoption - policy making Key Concepts systems thinking ethical design strategic planning Questions to Reflect On - When should a project be halted? - How to balance ambition with feasibility? A Different Perspective Practical constraints may limit ideal decisions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bridges/) [Built](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/built/) [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) [Draws](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/draws/) [Engineer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineer/) [Engineer Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineer-man-1988762/) [Engineering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineering/) [Engineers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineers/) [Engineers Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineers-design-4555706/) [Great Engineer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-engineer-472285/) [He man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/he-man/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Planning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/planning/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Specifications](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/specifications/) [Strain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strain/) [Stress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stress/) ## Related quotes > [It has been said that an engineer is a man who can do for ten shillings what any fool can do for a pound;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nevil-shute/it-has-been-said-that-an-engineer-is-a-man-who-can-do-for-ten/) [Nevil Shute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nevil-shute/) > [“Doha wasn’t a very good friend. But he was a good person. And he was a great engineer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-collier/doha-wasn-t-a-very-good-friend-but-he-was-a-good-person-and-he-was-a/) [Molly Collier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-collier/) > [It would be great to have every engineer have at least some amount of knowledge of machine learning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-dean/it-would-be-great-to-have-every-engineer-have-at-least-some-amount-of/) [Jeff Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-dean/) > [We worked with the engineers in the design and construction and testing phases in those various areas, then we would get back together at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-shepard/we-worked-with-the-engineers-in-the-design-and-construction-and/) [Alan Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-shepard/) > [Man is not a farmer, or a professor, or an engineer, but he is all. Man is priest, and scholar, and statesman, and producer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/man-is-not-a-farmer-or-a-professor-or-an-engineer-but-he-is-all-man/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [God is the Great Engineer, creating circumstances to bring about moments in our lives of divine importance, leading us to divine appointments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/god-is-the-great-engineer-creating-circumstances-to-bring-about/) [Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/) > [To Monsieur Eiffel the Engineer, the brave builder of so gigantic and original a specimen of modern Engineering from one who has the greatest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/to-monsieur-eiffel-the-engineer-the-brave-builder-of-so-gigantic-and/) [Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/) > [I know firsthand that the characteristics of a great engineer - problem-solving skills, a deep understanding of technology, and a results-driven mindset - are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinesh-paliwal/i-know-firsthand-that-the-characteristics-of-a-great-engineer-problem/) [Dinesh Paliwal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinesh-paliwal/) > [“I have been branded with folly and madness for attempting what the world calls impossibilities, and even from the great engineer, the late James…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-trevithick/i-have-been-branded-with-folly-and-madness-for-attempting-what-the/) [Richard Trevithick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-trevithick/) > [“His argument was that a great engineer would be remembered only if he teamed with a great marketer, and this required him to commit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-isaacson/his-argument-was-that-a-great-engineer-would-be-remembered-only-if-he/) [Walter Isaacson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-isaacson/) > [I've learned about the inflation range situation. Obviously with our footballs being inflated to the 12.5-pound range, any deflation would then take us under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-belichick/i-ve-learned-about-the-inflation-range-situation-obviously-with-our/) [Bill Belichick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-belichick/) > [We must define quality as conformance to specifications if we are to manage it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/we-must-define-quality-as-conformance-to-specifications-if-we-are-to/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [You can't exactly bake a man to your specifications. Most of all, one shouldn't alienate a candidate. A hybrid of Einstein, Tarzan and Inge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peer-steinbruck/you-can-t-exactly-bake-a-man-to-your-specifications-most-of-all-one/) [Peer Steinbruck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peer-steinbruck/) > [To try to be happy is to try to build a machine with no other specification than that it shall run noiselessly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-robert-oppenheimer/to-try-to-be-happy-is-to-try-to-build-a-machine-with-no-other/) [J. Robert Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-robert-oppenheimer/) > [Kantian ethical theory distinguishes three levels: First, that of a fundamental principle (the categorical imperative, formulated in three main ways in Kant's Groundwork); second,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-w-wood/kantian-ethical-theory-distinguishes-three-levels-first-that-of-a/) [Allen W. Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-w-wood/) ## More by Eugene Grace > [If I were to prescribe one process in the training of men which is fundamental to success in any direction, it would be thoroughgoing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-grace/if-i-were-to-prescribe-one-process-in-the-training-of-men-which-is/) [Eugene Grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-grace/) > [Do one thing at a time and do that one thing as if your life depended upon it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-grace/do-one-thing-at-a-time-and-do-that-one-thing-as-if-your-life-depended/) [Eugene Grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-grace/) [Explore all 3 Eugene Grace quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-grace/) ## More Bridges quotes > [Poetry has, in a way, been my bridge to my acting career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omari-hardwick/poetry-has-in-a-way-been-my-bridge-to-my-acting-career/) [Omari Hardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omari-hardwick/) > [Nothing teaches great writing like the very best books do. Yet, good teachers often help students cross that bridge, and I have to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-glass/nothing-teaches-great-writing-like-the-very-best-books-do-yet-good/) [Julia Glass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-glass/) > [In my rear view mirror the sun is going down sinking behind bridges in the road and I think of all the good things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/in-my-rear-view-mirror-the-sun-is-going-down-sinking-behind-bridges/) [Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/) > [My first big mistake was made when, in a moment of weakness, I consented to learn the game; for a man who can frankly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-benchley/my-first-big-mistake-was-made-when-in-a-moment-of-weakness-i/) [Robert Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-benchley/) > [The WPA was one of the most productive elements of FDR's alphabet soup of agencies because it put people to work building roads, bridges,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/the-wpa-was-one-of-the-most-productive-elements-of-fdr-s-alphabet/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The sense that in this universe we are treated as strangers, the longing to be acknowledged, to meet with some response, to bridge some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-sense-that-in-this-universe-we-are-treated-as-strangers-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you walk, try to think nothing! You can then obtain the silence of a streetlight or a bridge; stop thinking; after that, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/when-you-walk-try-to-think-nothing-you-can-then-obtain-the-silence-of/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [By the time they were pulling into the parking lot of the A&P, the mood was fading, the moment gone. Amy could feel it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/by-the-time-they-were-pulling-into-the-parking-lot-of-the-a-p-the/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) > [Al Pacino and Jeff Bridges do it for me in a big way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-scanlon/al-pacino-and-jeff-bridges-do-it-for-me-in-a-big-way/) [Angela Scanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-scanlon/) > [Instead of building castles against your enemies, build bridges for them to come to you!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/instead-of-building-castles-against-your-enemies-build-bridges-for/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [Instead of finding himself in nerd heaven—where every nerd gets fifty-eight virgins to role-play with—he woke up in Robert Wood Johnson with two broken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/instead-of-finding-himself-in-nerd-heaven-where-every-nerd-gets-fifty/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [Each person is an island unto himself, in a very real sense; and he can only build bridges to other islands if he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rogers/each-person-is-an-island-unto-himself-in-a-very-real-sense-and-he-can/) [Carl Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rogers/) > [The real test of a bridge player isn’t in keeping out of trouble, but in escaping once he’s in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-sheinwold/the-real-test-of-a-bridge-player-isn-t-in-keeping-out-of-trouble-but/) [Alfred Sheinwold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-sheinwold/) > [The law ... allows rich as well as poor to sleep under bridges.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/the-law-allows-rich-as-well-as-poor-to-sleep-under-bridges/) [Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/) > [Guys like Todd Bridges never overcame being a child star. You can't have any big failures. I've always felt regular. I played organized ball…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bow-wow/guys-like-todd-bridges-never-overcame-being-a-child-star-you-can-t/) [Bow Wow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bow-wow/) [Browse all 1,521 Bridges quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bridges/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Thousands of engineers can design bridges, calculate strains and stresses, and draw up specifications for machines, but the great engineer is the man who can tell whether the bridge or the machine should be built at all, where it should be built, and when.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eugene Grace" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-grace/thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridges-calculate-strains-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bridges" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-grace/thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridges-calculate-strains-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b57/eugene-grace-84586_bridges_thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridge_2968085.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b57/eugene-grace-84586_bridges_thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridge_2968085.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b57/eugene-grace-84586_bridges_thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridge_2968085.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Thousands of engineers can design bridges, calculate strains and stresses, and draw up specifications for…” — Eugene Grace", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Eugene Grace", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-grace/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Thousands of engineers can design bridges,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-grace/thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridges-calculate-strains-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-grace/thousands-of-engineers-can-design-bridges-calculate-strains-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```