  Computational engineering generates knowledge through the analysis and
interpretation of research data, which is produced by computer simulation.
Supercomputers produce huge amounts of research data. To address a research
question, a lot of simulations are run over a large parameter space. Therefore,
handling this data and keeping an overview becomes a challenge. Data
documentation is mostly handled by file and folder names in inflexible file
systems, making it almost impossible for data to be findable, accessible,
interopable and hence reusable. To enable and improve a structured
documentation of research data from computational engineering, we developed
EngMeta as a metadata model. We built this model by incorporating existing
standards for general descriptive and technical information and adding metadata
fields for disciplinespecific information like the components and parameters of
the simulated target system and information about the research process like the
used methods, software and computational environment. EngMeta functions, in
practical use, as the descriptive core for an institutional repository. In
order to reduce the burden of description on scientists, we have developed an
approach for automatically extracting metadata information from the output and
log files of computer simulations. Through a qualitative analysis, we show that
EngMeta fulfills the criteria of a good metadata model. Through a quantitative
survey, we can show that it meets the needs of engineering scientists.
