GVSU Product Design & Manufacturing
Global business trends have placed increasing pressure on Michigan's companies to rapidly develop new products at lower costs. In response these companies have been exploring new methods to decrease costs, increase productivity, and create innovative products. In keeping with the needs of local industry the School of Engineering is replacing the Manufacturing Engineering emphasis with the Product Design and Manufacturing emphasis. The new curriculum emphasizes the importance of product design based upon a strong understanding of manufacturing fundamentals. Students in the program will study topics such as materials engineering, manufacturing processes, assembly, tolerances, product design methods, design analysis, plant/process modeling and design, robotics, electrical systems, mechanical systems, controls, intellectual property, and management skills. Graduates of the program will be prepared to be leaders in global manufacturing environment.
Students who elect to study product design and manufacturing engineering may prepare themselves for a variety of engineering careers and fulfill the educational requirements for taking the Fundamentals of Engineering professional examination before graduation.
The junior and senior years of the product design and manufacturing engineering program build upon the foundation courses to provide greater depth in engineering science, engineering design, and the major areas of manufacturing engineering. Students complete eight required courses and two product design and manufacturing elective courses distributed in materials and manufacturing processes; process, assembly, and product engineering; manufacturing competitiveness and manufacturing systems design.
Integral to all four years of the program is a “design and build” educational philosophy incorporated through extensive laboratory and project activities as preparation for professional practice. Students engage in design at all levels of the curriculum. At each level they must realize their designs and proceed with testing, validation, and redesign. This approach allows students to experience many real world constraints such as project economics, project planning and scheduling, environmental considerations, manufacturability / producibility of the designs, laboratory and product safety, and product reliability.