This paper provides a discussion of the value of teaching the lean manufacturing topic of Value Stream Mapping to senior students in engineering. Value Stream Mapping is a technique that is used to view, on a broad level, a company's manufacturing of a part family. The technique is used to identify possible improvement areas within the manufacturing plant. Once identified, the appropriate Lean Manufacturing technique is used to meet specific improvement metrics. These techniques include visual systems, 5S, TPM, cellular layout, work balancing, JIT, etc. Engineering students in college typically do not have an extensive understanding, or the experience, in a manufacturing environment. Unless the topic of value stream mapping is presented correctly the student may not be able to properly use the technique in an actual applied situation. One method of re-enforcing the technique is to have the students working in teams to perform an actual analysis of a manufacturing system and present appropriate and realistic opportunities for improvement.In order to organize this paper, an overview of Value Stream Mapping (VSM) technique will be discussed first. The primary section of the paper will be on the method of incorporating active learning in the presentation of VSM to engineering students.
is currently a Lecturer in Engineering at The Pennsylvania State Erie, The Behrend College where he teaches Statics, Dynamics, and Fluid and Thermal Science courses. He earned a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from Rochester Institute of Technology and an MS degree in Mechanical Engineering from Gannon University.
Bob Edwards is a Lecturer of Engineering at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, teaching in the Mechanical Engineering Technology department. He has a Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering from Rochester Institute of Technology and a Masters in Engineering from Gannon University. His primary area of interest is in the thermal sciences. He teaches thermodynamics, heat transfer and a thermal sciences course for Electrical Engineering Technology students. He has also taught a wide array of other courses including statics, dynamics, economics and basic electrical engineering for Mechanical Engineering Technology students.
This paper presents a recently developed method of teaching Lean Manufacturing. The Lean Manufacturing course is structured as both a lecture and an open discussion class. The class is presented as a 400 level course, which qualifies as a technical elective for all undergraduate engineering major, and as an elective for the masters level. Normal teaching methods were altered to allow for an easy exchange of experience from class members who have industrial experiences. These arrangements increase the level of involvement and participation among the students. The early portion of the course is primarily lectures and simulations, designed to cover the basic components that make up Lean Manufacturing. The later portion of the course involves group participation and investigation of actual industrial applications of lean practices. Each group consists of a leader (called a Champion) and three to four members. Each leader of a group has had significant industrial experience and is currently working in an industrial setting locally. The groups, once formed, go to the Champion's industrial location for a tour to discuss opportunities for improvement through lean practices. The groups follow the guidelines of Value Stream Mapping 1 to "map" the processes with the plant. The team then chooses one lean practice within the plant to concentrate on, and analyzes the best methods for initiating changes. At the end of the course, each group presents their findings and turns in a written report covering the entire project. The "Champion" then has the opportunity to present the project paper to their management for review and possible implementation. Penn State Erie-The Behrend College is currently in the second year of teaching this course. Lean Manufacturing is offered only in the fall semester, in the evening. There were 18 students in the first year's class, which resulted in five teams being formed. The successful review by the first year's students resulted in the second year's class attendance of 30 students (originally limited to 25 students).
This paper provides an overview of the past, present, and future changes to a laboratorybased course providing hands-on experience in manufacturing. At the 2002 conference for the ASEE, Mukasa E. Ssemakula presented a paper (session 3649) 1 , describing successes for a course that helped students gain hands-on experience in a Mechanical Engineering Technology (MET) program. Using this presentation as a springboard, a pilot program at Penn State Erie, the Behrend College, was developed which incorporated those methods and enhanced them. Sophomore students in the (MET) program at Penn State Erie are required to take a hands-on lab, titled Production Design, intended to introduce the students to typical industrial processes. These processes include metal cutting (turning and milling), CNC machining, sheet metalworking, welding processes, and metal casting (aluminum). The lab meets twice each week for 3 hours per meeting over a 15-week semester. The total number of 30 lab meetings and a total lab time of approximately 90 hours is sufficient to complete the required tasks.
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