The professional engineering associations that organize NEW are located in Ottawa. Inaugurated in 1992 by the Canadian Council of Professional Engineers, the Association of Consulting Engineers, the Engineering Institute of Canada and the Canadian Academy of Engineering, NEW's three main goals are to celebrate Canada's rich engineering heritage, promote engineering as a career choice and remind Canadians of the role engineering plays in their daily lives. In recent years, the National Council of Deans of Engineering and Applied Science and the Canadian Federation of Engineering Students have participated in the annual planning of NEW.

NEW is celebrated annually during the first week of March and traditionally encompasses a wide range of activities and events - from pasta bridge building contests, to mall displays on engineering, school visits and provincial newspaper inserts - organized at the provincial and local levels. (Check out the Events section on this site.)

The National Engineering Week Executive Committee establishes the annual theme and dates for NEW, develops collateral materials for distribution to young Canadians, and updates and maintains this Web site.