There is a fundamental mismatch between the mindset of the engineer and the framework of SR&ED. Perhaps it is something that is best illustrated with some humor from a popular engineer-scientist joke.
An engineer and a scientist both agreed to take part in an experiment, and were sat down at one end of a room. At the other end the room was a beautiful a beautiful woman, leaving nothing to the imagination. Think Lady Godiva. The person conducting the experiment advised them that every 30 seconds they would be allowed to travel half the distance between themselves and the woman. The objective was to see how long it would take each of them to reach the woman. The scientist immediately withdrew from the experiment and claimed it to be futile. The engineer on the other hand, anxiously said “Start the clock”. To which the scientist responded, “You don’t get it. The series in infinite. You can never actually reach her.” And the engineer happily says: “That’s ok. I will get close enough for all practical purposes.”
So what’s the big insight? Engineers are pragmatic. They are focused on getting to the end result. Getting the project completed. Getting it to work. In embarking on their projects, they need to figure out what is working, and what is not. To focus any energy on developing deep understandings of why something does or doesn’t work, is just a sideline distraction. On the other hand, scientists and the SR&ED mindset, are consumed by the need to understand why.
Engineers just don’t believe in failed experiments. They have a “can do”, “will do” attitude. They take enormous pride in being in the field that truly advances technology. Given enough time and money, any problem can be solved. There is no uncertainty. And they gloat over projects that they have completed, where others said it just couldn’t be done. Just don’t ask them too much about why things turned out the way they did. They are never too concerned about the “why”, just that they did.
Unfortunately this winning mindset that is prevalent amongst our beloved corps of engineers is something that undermines the ability to fit their work into an SR&ED claim. It really is no different than trying to mix oil and water. It comes down to the fundamental fact that there is a force of attraction between the molecules of the same liquid, that is greater than the force of attraction between the two different liquids. Hence the engineer’s thinking has a tough time to mix with the SR&ED framework.
If you are an engineering type, the challenge in creating SR&ED claims is to be able to step out of your skin. Follow your regular way of doing things, yes – but still being able to look at your work like a scientist would. It’s not easy. It’s not natural. But you must recognize your innate way of doing things must also be parlayed in a way that can yield the rewards that are there; i.e. the SR&ED funding.