Wield the Building Blocks of Advanced Manufacturing
Manufacturing competitiveness is at the hub of smart manufacturing, modeling, simulation, sustainability, additive manufacturing, and advanced materials.
This MS curriculum is inspired by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME)-developed Four Pillars of Manufacturing Knowledge, which define topics in the categories of:
- Materials and manufacturing processes
- Product, tooling, and assembly engineering
- Manufacturing systems and operations, and
- Manufacturing competitiveness.
All four pillars are tied together through professionalism, integrity, and leadership.
High Tech Industry with Engineering Skills
Engineering is a needed skill in manufacturing. New technologies are leading to high paying careers in manufacturing.
Upgrading operations to include smart technologies, such as additive manufacturing, is core to leadership in advanced manufacturing.
Career Flexibility
Manufacturing engineering is not just for those trained in mechanical or manufacturing engineering.
Students with biomedical, electrical, chemical, robotics, or materials science and engineering degrees may desire some basic knowledge and skills in print reading, CAD modeling software, and manufacturing processes. Graduates with the master’s in Manufacturing Engineering will be prepared to earn SME Certifications.
High Demand
Manufacturing Engineers and Engineering Managers
The need for manufacturing engineers and engineering managers is evident from recent studies regionally, from Wisconsin and Michigan, as well as nationwide. The NEWMA (Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Alliance) Needs, Skills, and Talent Survey was conducted in 2019 tallying responses from over 100 manufacturers. One primary outcome from this report is that curriculum and training programs that develop process engineers and data analysts are in high demand. The report also indicates that IT, Engineering, Production, and Research and Development functions/departments will be most heavily impacted by the integration of Industry 4.0.
Additive Manufacturing and Advanced Materials
Automation Alley is Michigan’s Industry 4.0 knowledge center. Their mission is to help manufacturers of all sizes understand the rapid technological changes associated with digitalization, so that Michigan and the nation remain globally competitive. In the Automation Alley 2019 Industry 4.0: From Vision to Implementation report, a positive rate of change in the areas of additive manufacturing and advanced materials is shown in the following four technology markets: 1) Automotive, 2) Medical 3) Retail, and 4) Energy. Additive manufacturing (3D printing) is a process that creates three dimensional objects by depositing layers of materials, which is an integral part of Industry 4.0 technologies.
Manufacturing Competitiveness is at the Core
The 30-credit degree has 16 required credits, with most courses in the manufacturing competitiveness category.
Additional credits in the emphasis areas align with the other categories described in the four pillars model. There is an option to conduct research in any emphasis area.
Delivery
All required MFGE courses available through remote instruction, whether synchronous or asynchronous.
Application Projects
Execute projects in your workplace or in our machine shop.
Options
- Traditional course-only
- Research with thesis
- Industry project report
