The ME - 250 course gave me an inspiring glimpse into the significance of the manufacturing and design processes involved in mechanical engineering. The course provided me with a toolbox full of skills and additional methods to utilize during the design process. The processes I must utilize to make good decisions, discussions, ideas, planning, scheduling, and execution were valuable. I learned to utilize Pugh, FRDPARRC charts; it is now common practice for me to organize my goals in terms of strategies, concepts, and modules. I learned to use the CES EduPack for information to help with material selection. I learned how varieties of mechanical components work as well as how to utilize them properly in applications. I learned the importance of safety and in all aspects of engineering and design, but most importantly in respects to the end user. As the design process progressed in the course, emphasis was placed on manufacturing, and design for manufacturing. Creating BOMs, shop prints, solid models, process sheets, purchasing, scheduling, and meeting deadlines were all very important real world experiences that I have gained from the course, and I am better prepared to tackle other problems that I will encounter in the field of engineering.
When it comes to teamwork, I learned that the one of the most important parts of teamwork is organization. Organization is the key to success because the result of good organization is good execution. A good team must be organized and informed so that they can bring forth ideas on a unified front during planning. More important than that is the responsibility of an individual to be a good teammate. I learned that a good teammate will demonstrate unselfishness as a quality trait. A good teammate is proactive and goes above and beyond that which is required of them. A good teammate is optimistic, motivational, and sets an example for his team. I was reminded of how quickly deadlines can approach, and things can go wrong but if a team is prepared, and have planned their map to success appropriately then theses road bump will not deter them from their path. The best team is a made of leaders that use their strengths to empower their teammates. Those teams stand on the cutting edge and present sharp ideas at every turn.
The course was very thorough in the material that it presented. I have prior experience in the field of manufacturing engineering, machining and the lectures were good reinforcement for me. One improvement I would like to see in the course is a longer lead-time to present the finished part. Our team was reluctant to find all time we needed to machine and assembly our bot. When we returned from the break all of the machines slots were full, but some of us “camped out” in the shop until a machine was made available for us to use; however this came at the sacrifice of missing other classes. Another thing that would help improve the course is more real-time access to the grades and GSIs. Perhaps using the Gradebook and Schedule modules on CTools would help.
My performance in this course could have definitely been a lot better. My grades on HW-1 and 2 were not the greatest and I should have put more time into those assignments. In addition, I think that our machine performance could have improved significantly if we had gotten our parts shipped earlier. Our major breakdown came when it was time to control the bot, and getting those parts in earlier would have allowed us to finish early and get a better understand of how our bot responds to the controller.
Regards,
Fred
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