Mechanically sound

 

As the University of Bath’s industry ties include Airbus, Rolls Royce and Motorola, a mechanical engineering student at the school is at the forefront of transport change.

Here, Michelle Manning-Wareham speaks to Dr Michael Carley, a University of Bath Mechanical Engineering degree lecturer, to find out more.

What can an undergraduate expect if they choose to study for a mechanical engineering degree?

We give them the basic sciences that they need to work in engineering: so solid mechanics, fluid mechanics, thermodynamics and also the design and the applied skills that they would need to be able to use those sciences in real engineering. [We teach] a lot about the applications of the different principles used in engineering: the way you design something, the way you make something, and over the course you build up from doing quite small projects (often on your own) up to quite large, substantial group projects. You are working both on the technical design of things and also the business side of it, so you are not just coming up with smart ideas, you have to be able to sell what you’re doing. You must be able to say it is going to cost something: it is going to cost this much to run it, to last this long, it’s going to generate these emissions... so essentially this combination of the hard science, and the things you need to know to apply that science (to design and be able to communicate with all the people involved) in the whole process of making and producing and selling something…

Are undergraduate students involved in much ‘hands-on’ work? If so, what does the degree see them do?

The most hands-on element of it is laboratory work where you’re testing things, which is an important part of real engineering practice. After you’ve made something you have to ask yourself does this actually do what it’s supposed to: how does it perform? That is a substantial part of the final year of the degree where you’ll often be doing experiments.

What are the employment-prospects like for those who have attained a mechanical engineering degree?

They are very good in terms of percentages. The surveys are done six months after graduation and the typical figures will be around 70 per cent in employment and the rest of the 20 or so per cent are in further training – they have gone on to do a masters or specialise in something – the remaining 10 per cent or so are just not available for employment when the survey was done; they are travelling the world or something like that… The number of people who are genuinely unemployed after six months after graduation is something like two or three per cent - it is a very low figure… Also, engineering graduates tend to get graduate jobs - the jobs they tend to have really do use the degree.

How has the course changed in line with changes in the transport industry (for instance, has environmental concerns affected what students learn?)

We have elements of the course which is exactly about energy and the environment: how you use your energy, how you can reduce your use of energy and its effect on the environment. Because we have close links with industry for things like setting up design projects, the new environment regulations, where you have to reduce your emissions and make better use of your materials and so on, is all coming into the design projects, so it’s actually an important part of what we do. We’re always up to date with the current requirements of industry.

Does the University of Bath use any links to the industry (such as through their close proximity to Rolls Royce?)

We actually use those links quite a bit. Obviously, for aerospace [studies] we have Rolls Royce and Airbus in Bristol. We work very closely with them on our aerospace design project. Airbus would typically set a design project. They’d say “we would like you to design this see how that works out,” and the kinds of projects we’re getting from them includes designing aircraft for low cost airlines, which is an interesting problem for the industry. We also have good links with companies in Swindon as there are quite a few major industries around there. We have done some work for Motorola in the past and people like that.

We use our links with the industry quite well. We have people who come in from those industries to supervise projects, so we have a lot of real industrial experience available to help students and teach them how things are done in the actual industry that you can’t get from pure academics.

The University of Bath is noted for their world class testing facilities, can you describe what happens there and how students are involved?

The facilities are mainly research facilities so they’re used for our own research. They are made available to industry when they need things tested. Students would be involved in a final year research project where the kinds of projects set are connected to the work we’re doing. So it would be a small part of a bigger project we’re working on – they’re doing real testing because we want some results on the equipment that’s available. The usual way to have students involved on this equipment is to integrate them into the work we’re doing on it.

What is the programme’s ultimate aim for its graduates?

Ideally what we want are graduates coming out that are educated rather than trained because engineering changes so fast. You could be working as an engineer for 40 or 50 years after you graduate. You need to be adaptable and be able to learn new things as you go along, so you’re able to keep working in real industry. So really our aim is to have graduates who know what they’re doing rather than have a systemised and mechanistic way of doing things. They can adapt to new developments and continue to contribute all the way through their lives.

What sort of character traits are you looking for in prospective students?

We look for people who are academically good but particularly good at maths because it is a mathematical course. But in terms of character, rather than academic ability, I’d say you’d have to be fairly persistent because you have to put in time. It helps if you’ve learned to use your time well and be organised as that makes things easier in the long term. Inquisitiveness, curiosity and a certain amount of creativity, it is a creative field. You’re not a scientist trying to understand how the world works… you are seeing how the world works and using that to make something new.

What do you think of the travel industry today and what do your graduates have to be prepared for?

I think probably what graduates really need to keep an eye on is world politics, because at the moment so much is going to depend on the price of oil. Travel and transport industries are starting to take on partly the effects of oil prices as it has just hit [US] $100 a barrel for the first time…

And graduates will have to be prepared for the environmental problems that are related to aviation and other forms of transport. Graduates now have to be prepared for possible rapid change and there may well be new developments in the next few years that will force a fundamental rethink of the way that transport happens, the way goods are transported, the way people travel, so graduates now will have to be prepared for these issues…

Find out more at www.bath.ac.uk/mech-eng/.

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