MSc - Mechanical Engineering with Advanced Project

University of Hertfordshire

This course module will familiarise participants with some of the latest developments in bio and nanomaterials, advanced machining, advanced carbon materials and smart materials. Integration of advanced materials with enhanced properties into applications alongside new products and processes that are evaluated thoroughly as the manufacturing costs are essential to the competitiveness of the manufacturing sector.

This module will introduce both conventional and advance thermal power producing and refrigeration cycles/systems. It will cover the analysis of these cycles and the assessment of their performance parameters. The course will also examine new developments in power and refrigeration cycles and assess their impact on the environment. The developments of power-power and power-heat cycles/systems will be introduced and their performances will be investigated.

Module introduces various implementations of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and its theoretical foundation. It covers how to tackle complex engineering challenges with CFD; to evaluate and to analyse efficiently the resulting data.

This module will extend students' understanding of dynamic motion in mechanical systems using advanced mathematical modelling techniques to predict mechanical system behaviour. Condition monitoring methodologies will be used to evaluate mechanical system performance with respect to machinery fault diagnostics.

The module introduces development of simulation models replicating engineering problems. It will examine the effect of mesh density, domain size, boundary conditions, material properties on the optimisation of systems performance. Analytical approximation techniques and numerical schemes will be explored to validate and correlate the results against benchmark solutions.

The module will introduce students to advanced data analytics and its application in engineering. The module will typically cover preparing and working with raw and structured data, statistical analysis of data, processing and mining data to understand patterns and support making estimations/predictions and decision making, representation and search, problem solving and elements relevant to data visualisation. The module will also discuss decision-making with data, emerging topics in data analytics, and ethical issues.

To achieve and maintain market position, manufacturing industry must develop profitable and competitive products in time, to quality and within budget. This requires all operational functions of the company to be well organized to achieve common objectives. Hence, this module will examine the organizational aspects of product development from corporate aims and product strategy through design, manufacturing engineering and into production. The module will comprise product portfolios management, development strategy, development planning and the process of product development. Aspects of management practice and the application of tools and techniques will be included.

The Masters Project serves as a pivotal integrating component of the programme, aimed at challenging and enhancing critical thinking skills. It offers students the opportunity to synthesise and apply the knowledge and skills gained throughout their postgraduate studies under the mentorship of an academic supervisor. The project typically requires 600 hours of self-driven scholarly work. This effort predominantly involves self-directed independent study, which may encompass a variety of activities such as scheduled sessions, supervisory meetings, literature review, software analysis, and preparation for assessments.

This module will enable students to evaluate different forms of renewable energy. This will include solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, fuel cell, nuclear and bioenergy. The student will learn how to develop and assess energy conversion system, how it can be optimised and flaws in the technology.

This module uses group project work to provide students with the opportunity to apply their project management skills and develop their professional and employability skills. The module will provide a mix of careers support, enterprise and business insight and challenging thinking about future skills needs of graduates and employers. Students will gain an appreciation of a range of engineering careers and sectors to enable them to better understand future opportunities.

Students successfully completing this module will be equipped to work within, and lead, high-performing multidisciplinary project teams. Students will develop a critical awareness of their skills, attributes, impact and contributions to project teams, and team roles, as well as an awareness of leadership, including differing leadership styles and cultural issues in projects. The module will support students in the application of other critical components of project management including risk management, cost management, project quality management, human resources management, communications management, and procurement management. The module will make use of experiential learning, case study examples, reflective practice, and guest speakers blended with traditional learning methods.