Officers with Ring on Pinky Finger

[Animatronic Fireman]

I would just like to point out to everyone that the Iron Ring has nothing to do with the Quebec Bridge Disaster.  Please check out the already provided link ironring.ca for the actual truth. Another interesting link that highlights obligation which is much more important but less well known then the ring itself.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ritual_of_the_Calling_of_an_Engineer

Thanks
AF, Engineer-in-Training

 

[Oldgateboatdriver]

Not quite completely correct:

The iron rings issued to members of the Order of Engineers of Quebec are made with the iron recovered from the Quebec bridge disaster - but the other provinces of Canada only have iron rings without any special origin.

 

[Animatronic Fireman]

Unfortunately that is an urban legend.  Every camp except one in Toronto presents rings in stainless steel.

 

[Strike]

Not quite completely correct:

The iron rings issued to members of the Order of Engineers of Quebec are made with the iron recovered from the Quebec bridge disaster - but the other provinces of Canada only have iron rings without any special origin.

Myth, especially since there was more than one disaster.

However it's been said that the formation of the Order of Engineers and PEng society were the result of those disasters, which is why people associate the iron ring with the events.  So I would argue that the iron ring is a reminder of the responsibilities and engineer has to do their work properly and carefully to ensure that disasters such as the Quebec bridge are less likely to happen again.  As the original camp presidents said, something of a Hippocratic oath for engineers.


Edited for spelling because, well, engineers have issues with that...although we still know the difference between then and than!

 

[jeffb]

Not quite completely correct:

The iron rings issued to members of the Order of Engineers of Quebec are made with the iron recovered from the Quebec bridge disaster - but the other provinces of Canada only have iron rings without any special origin.

Also not correct. The ring is not made of the iron from the bridge. See http://www.eir.ca/engineers/ironring.php?link=4

The Myth of the Iron Ring

On August 29, 1907, as the Pont de Québec Bridge neared completion, it collapsed, killing 76 people. A Royal Commission set up to study the incident reported that this tragedy was the result of an error in judgment made by the bridge's principal engineers.

A second attempt to span the river resulted in another disaster. On September 11, 1916, the centre span of the bridge fell, killing ten more people. The bridge was finally completed in October 17, 1917. The story is that the early rings given to engineers during the Calling of an Engineer were made from the iron from the collapsed bridge. Today's iron rings are a reminder of the Québec Bridge that collapsed.

 

[Animatronic Fireman]

Trust me I am an engineer.

(Famous last words)

 

[Fishbone Jones]

The above six posts show why it takes 5 weeks and an offshore account to get an engineer to write a one page report on why a fridge door, with a magnetic strip, is able to stay closed under normal usage.

 

[Strike]

The above six posts show why it takes 5 weeks and an offshore account to get an engineer to write a one page report on why a fridge door, with a magnetic strip, is able to stay closed under normal usage.

Hey! 

 

[GAP]

The above six posts show why it takes 5 weeks and an offshore account to get an engineer to write a one page report on why a fridge door, with a magnetic strip, is able to stay closed under normal usage.

Nor does it tell us if the light stays on when the door is closed........

 

[PanaEng]

The above six posts show why it takes 5 weeks and an offshore account to get an engineer to write a one page report on why a fridge door, with a magnetic strip, is able to stay closed under normal usage.

Look, we have to make it seem like it is a complex thing - job security.

Nor does it tell us if the light stays on when the door is closed........

After it is complete I can tell with 100% confidence that...
it depends!
(unless it is my design)

chimo!

Frank

 

[Fishbone Jones]

Look, we have to make it seem like it is a complex thing - job security.
After it is complete I can tell with 100% confidence that...
it depends!
(unless it is my design)

chimo!

Frank

There, that's the kind of engineer I'm used to dealing with ;D

 

[AC 011]

Hiya,

This might be a weird question, but I seem to see a lot of officers with a plain sliver ring on their pinky finger, is there something to it or am I crazy?

It's not only officers. 

We're everywhere.  ;D

 

[Zoomie]

FWIW - some American engineer graduates wear pinky rings too.  It's not just a Canadian thing, as the wiki article would present.

 

[cupper]

FWIW - some American engineer graduates wear pinky rings too.  It's not just a Canadian thing, as the wiki article would present.

Some American schools developed their own ceremony based on the Canadian ceremony.

Not sure it they have permission to do so, since the Ritual of the Calling of an Engineer is copyright protected in both Canada and the US.

 

[Rheostatic]

The rings are manufactured locally (in at least one case, right in engineering labs by university techs). That may have something to do with the choices available at certain camps.