MECH ENG 4143A - Honours Project Part A

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2018

The Mechanical Engineering Honours Project is the capstone course for all programmes in the school. Students will undertake a year-long project in groups of one to five, with each group directly supervised by at least one Mechanical Engineering academic staff member. Projects are often run in collaboration with industry sponsors or in conjunction with ongoing research projects within the school. Strong emphasis is placed on engineering design processes; most projects incorporating some aspect of mechanical build into their project, with fabrication overseen by our in-house workshop staff. All projects are required to follow industry standard project management and risk assessment procedures, assessed continuously over the course of the project. Workshops are presented to introduce students to issues surrounding intellectual property and other legal aspects of engineering, business and human resource matters, ethics, and accounting. Students are assessed on the quality of their engineering work and engineering communication, via deliverables including written reports and oral presentations. The honours project runs as two consecutive courses, MECH ENG 4143A in semester 1 then 4143B in semester 2, and can only be undertaken in this order; mid-year entry students cannot be accommodated.

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Course Details

Course Code	MECH ENG 4143A
Course	Honours Project Part A
Coordinating Unit	School of Mechanical Engineering
Term	Semester 1
Level	Undergraduate
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Contact	Up to 48 hours lectures/tutorials, 20 hours individual supervision, 180 hours project
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	Y
Assessment	Preliminary report, exhibition, seminar, final report, assignments

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Dr William Robertson

EMPP coordinator: Assoc. Prof. Reza Ghomashchi

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

Workshops will be given in the allocated lecture timeslots relating to content required to complete the course requirements. Please refer to the complete schedule on MyUni for further details.

Course Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this course students will be able to:

1	Complete a research/development project with graduate-level engineering skills.
2	Demonstrate the abilty to manage a small group undertaking a project, including professional documentation activities and processes.
3	Complete market analysis and/or literature review to demonstrate gaps requiring project/research work.
4	Develop a project plan using best practise project management techniques, including project risk and personnel/equipment safety analyses.
5	Demonstrate the ability to orally present work in a seminar style to a large group with widely varying degrees of technical knowledge.
6	Present work at a large exposition, including poster and booth preparation and design.
7	Write a well-written technical report detailing the project.

The above course learning outcomes are aligned with the Engineers Australia Stage 1 Competency Standard for the Professional Engineer.
The course is designed to develop the following Elements of Competency: 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Deep discipline knowledge informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1 accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)	1-8
Critical thinking and problem solving steeped in research methods and rigor based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment	1-8
Teamwork and communication skills developed from, with, and via the SGDE honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning	1-8
Career and leadership readiness technology savvy professional and, where relevant, fully accredited forward thinking and well informed tested and validated by work based experiences	1-8
Intercultural and ethical competency adept at operating in other cultures comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges	1-8
Self-awareness and emotional intelligence a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate	1-8

Learning Resources
Required Resources

Students will be expected to conduct thorough literature reviews in their chosen areas of application to gain the knowledge they need to satisfactorily complete their project. Specific additional resources (software/hardware/guidance) will be supplied as necessary by each project supervisor.

Recommended Resources
- Document preparation and bibliography management software, such as LaTeX and BibTeX, or Microsoft Word and Endnote.
- Gantt Chart software such as Microsoft Project or an open source equivalent.
- Engineering drawing software such as Inventor, and the engineering drawing standards to produce professional-quality drawings for fabrication.
Online Learning

A large repetoire of information relating to technical drawing, document preparation, seminar presentations, and so on, will be made available through MyUni.
Learning & Teaching Activities
Learning & Teaching Modes

The primary interaction each student will have for their project is through their principle supervisor. Some projects will also have co-supervisors and/or external supervisors/sponsors/partners. In addition, workshops will be given throughout the year to assist in the management of the project and its deliverables.

The supervisor's role is to provide advice and guidance, and to ensure that the project proceeds in a fruitful direction. You should not expect your supervisor to do your thinking for you, or to tell you exactly what to do. You are expected to generate your own ideas, to seek out information for yourself, and to make your own decisions about what to do and how to do it. You should make arrangements with your supervisor for WEEKLY CONSULTATIONS at which progress may be reported, discussed and assessed.

Your supervisor is responsible for signing off on all engineering drawings, workshop (fabrication) requests, purchase requests, re-imbursements, and so on.

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

Honours projects are only successful with consistent application of time and effort over the entire year.

According to University policy 669, for a nine-unit course the minimum structured workload is 108 hours with a total expected student workload of 468 hours. This equates to twelve hours per week for thirty weeks (twelve weeks per semester, plus six weeks during breaks) for individual or group project work, not counting workshops and supervision meetings.

Students must manage this time as convenient for their own schedules; this might be three blocks of four hours spread throughout each week, for example. This time must be logged weekly and included in the final report.

The structured workload of 108 hours is broken down into: 1hr supervision meeting per week (30 hours); workshops (54 hours, one/two per week); seminar attendance (8 hours); expo attendance (16 hours).

Learning Activities Summary
Workshops will include:
1. Project Expectations & Organisation
2. Project Management and Risk Management
3. OH&S and laboratories
4. Protecting IP and Importance of a workbook
5. Journal Writing
6. Reference Search & Literature Review
7. Design and technical drawing for fabrication and machining
8. Report Writing 1
9. Report Writing 2
10. Report Writing 3
11. Report Writing 4
12. Creating graphs for reports and presentations
13. Documents using LaTeX
14. Risk Management Safety System-RMSS
15. Postgraduate Information Session
16. Seminar Instructions
17. Poster workshop
18. Seminar presentation
19. Organisation of exhibition
20. Financial Accounting
21. Business for Engineers
22. Marketing for Engineers
23. Human Resource Management
24. Ethics
25. Law for Engineers
More information will be made available on each of these topics through MyUni.
Small Group Discovery Experience

Each project group is expected to meet with their supervisor(s) for approximately one hour per week.

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

Assessment Task	Weighting (%)	Individual/ Group	Formative/ Summative	Due (week)*	Hurdle criteria	Learning outcomes
Meeting minutes	6	Group	Summative	Weeks 2-24		1. 2.
Project charter	7	Group	Summative	Week 4		1. 2. 3. 4.
Preliminary report	10	Group	Summative	Week 12		1. 2. 3. 4. 7.
Seminar presentation	10	Individual	Summative	Week 20		1. 2. 3.
Exposition	10	Group	Summative	Week 24		1. 2. 6.
Final report	50	Individual	Summative	Week 24		1. 2. 6.
Student performance	7	Individual	Summative	Week 24		1. 2.
Total	100

* The specific due date for each assessment task will be available on MyUni.

This assessment breakdown is registered as an exemption to the University's Assessment for Coursework Programs Policy. The exemption is related to the Procedures clause(s): 1. a. i 1. a. iii 1. b. 3.

Assessment Related Requirements

Strict deadlines must be enforced for equity purposes. A penalty of 5% per 12 hours or part thereof applies for late submission of written assessment.

Written assessment is subject to strict word limits; please see the Course Handbook for further information.

Assessment Detail

Please see the Course Handbook for more detailed information.

Submission

All written assessment is to be submitted through MyUni.

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

NOG (No Grade Associated)
Grade	Description
CN	Continuing

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

Student Feedback

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

Custom supervisor SELTs are provided at the Expo event for students to complete.

For supervision concerns during the year, students should approach the course coordinator and/or the head of school as soon as possible to resolve any possible conflicts or disputes.
Student Support
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator