Digital Design and Manufacturing

Manufacturing has changed and so have the tools. Modern product development begins with computer-aided-design (CAD) which allows early and accurate representation of a proposed idea in three dimensions with realistic photographic rendering. With rapid prototyping, designers and engineers can create new product prototypes directly from this CAD data faster than ever before and execute quick and frequent revisions of their designs based on real-world testing and feedback. 
 
Through this module, we empower you with comprehensive skills in 2D parametric sketching and 3D modelling in a computer-aided-design (CAD) environment. These skills will be applied in the design and rapid prototyping of bespoke physical artefacts using 3D printing technologies from accurate and detailed digital models.  
  
The development of your CAD skills will be augmented by a series of lectures and round-table discussions that are designed to align with current perspectives that define Industry 4.0.

Additive manufacturing permits design freedom and allows the creation of geometrically complex objects that cannot be made in any other way. Since the expiration of original patents, additive manufacturing has evolved rapidly and is now an integral business process in many industries and sectors, from engineering and product design, to medicine, construction, textiles, architecture, sports, and art.   
   
This module examines established and recent additive manufacturing technologies with an aim to leverage their capabilities in the creation of new and unique work using a wide range of materials, from plastics to concrete.   
   
Furthermore, you'll learn about circular economy and how to optimise designs to make objects that use less material and with consideration for the environment through evaluation of product life cycle. 

Industry 4.0 brings automation, operational intelligence and connectedness to manufacturing to create smart factories, with processes and workflows monitored in real time.   
  
Digital twins use accurate computer models of the physical characteristics of machinery and their connections, combined with information from sensors and other internal and external data sources, to provide real-time monitoring and predictive simulation models for manufacturing technical managers. 
 
Digitalisation enables additive and subtractive manufacturing in a wide range of materials from digital CAD files, using a growing number of technologies. This allows for rapid prototyping of new ideas and brings products and systems to market faster.  
 
The automation of manufacturing allows for consistent and reliable production processes whilst also permitting complexity in design and short production runs including ‘the production line of one’.   
  
You'll work with case studies and Siemens software to develop digital twin modelling and process-management skills. 

Digital 3D scanning allows the capture of the exterior surfaces of real-world objects or environments to record their shapes and textures. The collected information creates a virtual 3D distance model that can be reproduced or manipulated within CAD (Computer Aided Design) software.  
  
Digital 3D scanners vary in their capabilities and, in addition to distance information of recorded objects, may also capture colour information. The captured data is represented as a point-cloud or mesh.  
  
Scanners may be of two kinds - contact or non-contact - and this module concentrates on the latter, using dedicated hardware for structured-light and laser scanning. In addition, you will learn to use mobile phones to scan objects using a series of photographs (photogrammetry) and Lidar technology.  
  
You'll learn to work with these processes at PrintCity and how to post-process and manipulate the data to produce additively manufactured physical replicas or scale/sections of captured objects. 

A resilient and sustainable economic future depends on engineering products and processes that use resources and energy at a rate that does not compromise the natural environment, or the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.  
  
You’ll learn about the latest developments in harvesting energy from natural resources, such as wind, solar, bioenergy, hydrogen fuel cells, gaseous and liquid biofuels, etc. and about what informs business decision-making when evaluating sustainable plant performance and materials selection.

Generative design is a revolutionary exploration process that yields numerous design alternatives for a set of conditions defined at the outset. This powerful cloud-based tool is built into CAD software to drive the creation of objects that are optimised for their intended purpose, often saving on materials and production time. Generative design often returns iterations that are impossible to make using traditional methods, leveraging the ‘complexity is free’ benefits of additive manufacturing.   
  
Immersive realities (virtual, augmented and mixed) extend or create virtual or augmented viewing experiences using environments created within modern computing applications and projected via the use of a head-mounted display. The viewer’s field of vision may be completely replaced by virtual content or overlaid (augmented) with information to assist in a task or activity.   
  
In this module, you’ll learn to work within these two themes with a hands-on ‘do to learn’ approach that is intimately linked to the assessments for the module.  

Inspired by the learning from the other modules on the course, the research and enterprise activity of the teaching team, and possibly by relevant workplace experience, you'll use this module to develop a deep theoretical and practical understanding of a subject field within your engineering area of study. 
 
A supporting directed programme of study will introduce you to research methods and practical guidance for proposing, developing, implementing and reporting a research project. 
 
You'll work with a supervisory team to identify an area of study that is within the disciplinary scope of the award, and one that will have sufficient breadth and depth to meet the module and programme learning outcomes. A range of themed challenges will be offered, for example Industry 4.0, transport, energy and the environment, health and wellbeing, project management and water. 

The aim of this module is to develop your knowledge in the fundamentals of project management and the management of projects through the Body of Knowledge (APM) and Book of Knowledge (PMI). 

The aim of this module is to develop your knowledge in the management of projects in a professional practice setting via problem-based learning. You'll be expected to analyse, critique and recommend solutions for an existing project.  
  
Using a problem-based learning approach, with a case study provided by an industrial partner, you'll explore the management strategies, processes and stakeholders involved in the project, and develop communication and coordination plans to monitor and control the project information.  

Following completion of the academic credits for your MSc award, the industry placement allows you to gain additional practice credits by working for a minimum of 36 weeks and maximum 42 weeks (excluding paid and statutory holidays) in an industry setting, relevant to your studies. The placement provides the opportunity to develop a professional career development plan and to apply academic knowledge in the workplace, as well as acquiring specialist expertise and transferable skills through responsibilities and contributions to the employer’s business.