Machining Experience in a Mechanical Engineering Curriculum

Can a student become a good mechanical engineer without ever walking into a machine shop? The answer to this question may be that it is possible. However, this paper makes the argument that a good design engineer needs to have understanding and experience that can best be obtained in a machine shop. Better mechanical designs will be created by a designer with the complete understanding of how machine components are communicated through mechanical drawings, dimensioned and toleranced, and finally created in a machine shop. Furthermore, this paper explores how project builds should be included throughout the curriculum so that every student gets the appropriate exposure to the proper machining experiences to hone their mechanical design skills. Most mechanical engineering programs have three logical places where machining experiences can be very effective. First, many schools have a freshman design experience that focuses on outcomes such as the important aspects of teamwork, communication skills, and lifelong learning. Unquestionably these are very important skills and they fit well in the freshman year. However, these skills can easily be incorporated into projects that focus on the machining experience giving students the basic understanding of manufacturing that will make them better mechanical designers in the future. The basic machining and drawing documentation skills learned in the freshman year can then be applied to a junior level mechanical design course that incorporates a design, build, and test project. Students will then be ready to apply design analysis to create simple devices that they can manufacture in the machine shop. Finally, a capstone course will naturally make use of manufacturing skills. Assessing the importance of including machining and design documentation experiences in the mechanical engineering curriculum for all students was substantiated with student and alumni feedback and with data from local industries. Specific examples are given of student project work, industry feedback, and course outcomes.