Module overview
Engineers design physical products, systems and processes. They think big with vision, research, analyse, create, refine and deliver solutions.
Engineering is a design discipline that is broad and holistic, while also focused and extremely precise. It utilises experimentation, creativity, analysis and the application of scientific principles to deliver sustainable solutions for people, our societies, cultures and environments. It requires engineers who have refined their skills through experience and demonstrate they can apply learning within a highly communicative, process-driven, teamworking environment.
This module introduces the theories and practical skills required for you to become a successful engineer. It includes a series of design projects, ranging in focus and scope, supported by lectures, practical workshops, design tutorials and presentations. You are encouraged to identify and build on your existing skills, competencies and interests, and shape and enhance your own learning – helping you to start to define your own career within the exciting world of engineering.
Linked modules
This module is to replace FEEG1201 for Mechanical, Maritime, Acoustical, Medical and Chemical Engineering.
Aims and Objectives
Learning Outcomes
Cognitive Skills
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- Understand the role of communication skills within an engineering design process.
- Demonstrate the use of drawing by hand to develop and communicate ideas.
- Demonstrate verbal, visual and written communication skills to communicate design information effectively to different audiences using a range of delivery methods.
- Demonstrate the ability to produce basic engineering drawings.
Subject Specific Practical Skills
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- Demonstrate basic skills in applying computer aided design in developing and defining engineering design solutions.
- Understand how to make safe and effective use of manufacturing facilities within the School of Engineering to produce rigs or prototypes with available resources.
- Demonstrate skills in basic workshop practice.
- Understand the role of computer aided design within an engineering design process.
Design and Innovation
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- Demonstrate the ability to apply design process methodology to develop design solutions.
- Demonstrate the ability to apply creativity, design thinking and design principles to develop innovative engineering design solutions.
- Understand the influence of human, social, cultural, and environmental factors in developing sustainable design solutions.
Transferable and Generic Skills
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- Understand the roles, responsibilities and characteristics required to be an effective team member of a high performing team.
Syllabus
A summary of syllabus content for this module is:
Design process
- Design process methodology.
- Ideation techniques and concept development.
- Design review and critical thinking.
- Historical and contemporary case studies in design thinking and engineering design.
Human and environmental design parameters
- Human factors - needs, wants, interaction and comfort.
- Sustainable design – economic, social and environmental consequences.
- Ethical design thinking and responsible design values.
- Designing for equality, diversity and inclusion.
Communication
- Verbal, visual, and written communication.
- Audience and delivery contexts.
- Hand drawing, sketch modelling and generative AI as part of design communication.
- Basic engineering drawing skills.
Computer Aided Design
- Basic CAD modelling processes for building, analysis and visualisation.
- Parametric modelling.
Teamworking
- Strategies for effective teamworking.
- Practical experience in leadership and followership roles and peer-to-peer learning.
Manufacturing
- Introduction to the School of Engineering manufacturing facilities and safety considerations.
- Skills in basic workshop practice, including sheet metalwork, metrology, laser cutting, 3D printing, turning and milling, electronic soldering.
- Understanding of the use of practical models and prototypes for demonstration and analysis.
Learning and Teaching
Teaching and learning methods
This module focuses on a series of practical design activities set throughout the academic year, supported by lectures, workshops, self-paced activities and design tutorials to introduce supporting skills and theory. These activities involve a mix of individual, and group-based tasks.
You learn by doing with a particular focus on identifying your own educational needs to direct your own learning. Personal reflection, self-paced and peer-to-peer learning play an important role in this.
| Type | Hours |
|---|---|
| Supervised time in studio/workshop | 5 |
| Lecture | 10 |
| Practical classes and workshops | 40 |
| Independent Study | 95 |
| Total study time | 150 |
Resources & Reading list
Textbooks
Nelson, Harold G., and Erik Stolterman (2012). The Design Way: Intentional Change in an Unpredictable World. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.
Phelps, Neil, Colin Simmons and British Standards Institution (2007). Engineering Drawing Practice: A Guide for Further and Higher Education to BS 8888:2006, Technical Product Specification (TPS). London: British Standards Institution.
Penty, Jane (2020). Product Design and Sustainability: Strategies, Tools and Practice . Abingdon, Oxon.: Routledge.
Garner, Steven W., and Chris Evans, eds (2012). Design and Designing: A Critical Introduction. New York: Berg.
May, Bruce (2020). Mau MC24: Bruce Mau’s 24 Principles for Designing Massive Change in Your Life and Work. London: Phaidon Press.
Boradkar, Prasad (2010). Designing Things: A Critical Introduction to the Culture of Objects. Oxford: Berg.
Norman, Donald A. (2004). Emotional Design: Why We Love (or Hate) Everyday Things . New York: Basic Books.
Technische Hogeschool Delft. Faculteit Industrieel Ontwerpen (2020). Delft Design Guide: Perspectives, Models, Approaches, Methods. Amsterdam: BIS Publishers.
Parsons, Glenn (2016). The Philosophy of Design . Cambridge: Polity Press.
Tosi, Francesca (2020). Design for Ergonomics . Cham: Springer.
Sudjic, Deyan (2009). The Language of Things . London: Penguin Books.
Simmons, C. H., D. E. Maguire, and Neil Phelps (2020). Manual of Engineering Drawing: British and International Standards. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Baumeister, Dayna, Rose Tocke, Jamie Dwyer, Sherry Ritter, and Janine M. Benyus (2014). Biomimicry: Resource Handbook: A Seed Bank of Best Practices. Missoula, Mont.: Biomimicry 3.8.
Assessment
Assessment strategy
Feedback will be provided through module communications, during lectures, workshops, design tutorials and associated with formative activities. Feedback will be provided generally to the module cohort and specifically to groups and individuals.
Summative
This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.
| Method | Percentage contribution |
|---|---|
| Online tasks | 20% |
| Coursework portfolio | 60% |
| Group presentation | 20% |