ENME408-14W (C) Whole Year 2014

Honours Research and Development Project

30 points

Details:
Start Date: Monday, 24 February 2014
End Date: Sunday, 16 November 2014
Withdrawal Dates
Last Day to withdraw from this course:
  • Without financial penalty (full fee refund): Sunday, 9 March 2014
  • Without academic penalty (including no fee refund): Sunday, 7 September 2014

Description

Team-based capstone research and development project. The purpose of the course is to develop applied professional problem-solving skills. There are no pre-existing solutions paths, no standard recipes to follow. Students apply research and design, select their own tools and find their own solution.

This course is the capstone final year project ENME438 (Project) with some additional taught content in CAD integrated analysis tools, version change control, and research skills.
Students take what they have learned in their degree and apply it to solving a real problem with all its complexity.

Proposed teaching/delivery methods:
Each team (usually of 4 students) works on a different project. The purpose of the course is to develop applied professional problem-solving skills. There are no pre-existing solutions paths, no standard recipes to follow. Students apply research and design, select their own tools and find their own solution, and are assessed accordingly.

Typical activities in this course are:
• Engineering Skills:  Drawing preparation, Concept generation, Design process
• Utilisation of Research: Books, literature, patents and other information
• Numerical methods, Software utilization
• Experimental Ability: method development, practice, record-keeping
• Problem-solving and fault-finding  
• Analysis and interpretation of results  
• Ability to draw conclusions from experimental or other evidence
• Recognition of incomplete or inconclusive outcomes and suggesting ways around such situations
• Recognition and definition of project scope and goals  
• Planning and scheduling, keeping records in project folder or lab-book  
• Initiative and “self-starting” ability
• Project Management of time, scope, issues, resources, risks
• Team work, keeping promises, contribution
• Coping with unscheduled difficulties and set-backs
• Contact and communication with supervisor and sponsor
• Interpersonal skills (with supervisor, technicians, workshop, outside parties)
• Professional written and oral communication

Learning Outcomes

  • Learning Outcomes and National Qualifications Framework (NQF)
    Engineering Practice
  • Learn to apply engineering fundamentals to real problems
  • Learn to foster creativity and problem solving through applying multidisciplinary aspects of engineering
  • Exercise engineering knowledge and skills gained from prior coursework

    Research
  • Carry out applied research including experimental design
  • Investigate and summarise current  literature
  • Perform engineering analyses to guide and justify design decisions
  • Execute design and testing according to best engineering practice
  • Write proposals, reports, memos, make impromptu and formal oral presentations, and prepare poster presentations for a general audience

    Project Management
  • Develop organisational,  project management, research, and interpersonal (team) skills

    Communication
  • Learn to communicate effectively, clearly, and professionally in a variety of situations, e.g. with Supervisor and Client
  • Learn to understand client’s aims, analyse and critically evaluate ideas
  • Acquire skill in working with others as a member of a team
  • Develop skills in communicating technical information orally and in writing
  • Practice teamwork, project management, and personal time management

    Professional development
  • Be responsible for independent, individual accomplishment
  • Learn to organize your own work toward achieving professional engineering outcomes
  • Learn about professional practice and ethics

Prerequisites

60 points at 300-level in Mechanical Engineering

Restrictions

ENME438

Co-requisites

Contact Person

Dirk Pons

Assessment

Assessment Due Date Percentage  Description
Project Proposal (1) 21 Mar 2014 10%
Individual Performance Review 11 Apr 2014 5% End of Term 1
Individual Performance Review 09 May 2014 5% End of Term 2
Progress Report (1) 30 May 2014 10%
Individual Performance Review 22 Aug 2014 10% End of Term 3
Review of individual contribution 24 Oct 2014 30%
Final Report 24 Oct 2014 30%

Indicative Fees

Domestic fee $1,681.00

International fee $9,275.00

* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.

For further information see Mechanical Engineering .

All ENME408 Occurrences

  • ENME408-14W (C) Whole Year 2014