(311c) Disruptions: What the Future May Hold

Disruptive forces are all around us. They change the way we communicate and work. They change the way we develop goods and services. They also change the types of products that are manufactured. Examples such as the way in which we produce and consume energy or the feedstocks we use to produce product have seen many changes over the course of the last few decades, and these disruptions are expected to continue. The chemical engineering discipline and the expectations for a chemical engineer’s skills has also changed and adapted as a result of these disruptive forces. A discussion of the broad themes associated with these forces and the implications that they may have to chemical engineers in the future will be discussed.