WHEN YOU think about it, mechanical engineering plays a role in everything, whether making a sandwich, coding a computer, or flying to Mars. Your sandwich is production engineering, mixed with a little structural engineering; your computer a marvel of clicking keys and wiring fans; and, as for a spaceship – need I say more?

Four Industrial Revolutions have spanned the last one-hundred years: 1. Steam power – mechanised labour 2. Fordism and Taylorism – advent of mass production and time and motion 3. Silicon chip – dawn of information age 4. The Internet of Things – interconnectivity of sensors. And the next two are already being postulated: 5. Human-technology Partnership – working in tandem 6. Cyber-physical Reality – seamless merger of virtual and tangible world. 

Industry 4.0

The revolution represented by Industry 4.0 will become manifest through driverless cars, autonomous aerial vehicles, artificial intelligence-driven clinicians, and much, much more. Reflecting this, the technical engineer of tomorrow must retain all of the knowledge and skills currently in use, whilst becoming a life-long learner, capable of retraining and reeducating in order to meet the ever-changing requirements that industry demands.

The T-shaped individual

Industry is awash with graduates. What sets the successful ones apart is their ability to exude additional qualities. Enter the T-shaped individual: someone capable of expressing their ideas in a compelling and concise manner; someone for whom communication, collaboration, and connectivity are watch words. In business, it is often not the person with the best argument, but the person who argues best who will be successful. The world is stories and relationships; a T-shaped individual is master of both. When combined with an excellent education, certification, and chartered status, the T-shaped individual cannot help but rise to the top of their chosen profession.

New technologies guide the evolution of mechanical engineering

Mechanical Engineering is being redefined by the advent of digital technologies. From the introduction of CNC machining in the 1980s to a burgeoning additive manufacturing industry, defined by 3D printing; digital advances have impacted almost every facet of mechanical engineering. With the advent of an Internet of Things (IoT), digitisation has reached a state of maturity, permeating every aspect of the digital landscape. The latest advancements in augmented, mixed, and virtual reality technologies have allowed users to visualise complex systems, hitherto only available as discrete entities. The interconnectedness of all digital assets allows tangible and intangible assets to interact as a single system, delivering end-to-end value.

Additive manufacture

Subtractive manufacture has been the de facto since humans first scratched marks in bone and rock. This tried-and-tested method for creating objects has served us well throughout the industrial revolutions. However, we find ourselves facing a new frontier – that of additive manufacture. To most, the term additive manufacture is expressed as 3D printing, the method by which objects are created through the continuous layering of viscous material that solidifies as it cools. This technology is maturing into a manufacturing process capable of creating artefacts in metal, carbon fibre, nylon, and the ubiquitous, plastic. Several industries now print in metal; utilising technologies that can produce a final product with 98% of the structural integrity of traditional manufacturing.

Apprenticeships and the role of industry in higher education

The UK network of universities offer world-class education that produces cadres of graduates that can add real value to business from day one. And business has the ability to create cadres of students ready to enter the workplace and drive-forward any given sector. To this end, apprenticeships offer both entities the chance to cooperate in an individual’s learning journey, whilst simultaneously giving them the tools and techniques to thrive in the work environment. 

It is vital that academia and industry work together in close collaboration to develop the skills of existing and future engineers. Degree Apprenticeship programmes offer arguably the best model for this. 

Coventry University offers a range of degree apprenticeship programmes that combine academic and practical learning and foster collaboration between academia and industry. Manufacturing Engineer Degree Apprenticeships along with Product Design are two apprenticeship programmes delivered within the School of Mechanical Engineering.   

Conclusion

Mechanical engineering represents the very life blood of innovation, providing the products and solutions that people engage with on a day to day basis. By defining and exploring new frontiers and designing and developing new products; mechanical engineers are shaping our future. Renewable energy, additive manufacture, future transport, and the built environment are all within the remit of a mechanical engineer. And the first step on this journey is education.

Alan Richards is associate head of school, Mechanical Engineering at the University of Coventry

For more information: 

www.coventry.ac.uk/apprenticeships/ 

Tel: +44 (0)24 7765 4960