Reinventing Manufacturing Engineering: Refocusing And Exploring Future Opportunities For Students

Abstract

Open any newspaper today, search current news service websites, or turn on the television and one finds negative images of outsourcing, the closure of factories, and the loss of manufacturing jobs in our country. Many corporations find it profitable to move operations overseas seeking less expensive labor. There is outrage in our nation as we see manufacturing and product design careers and opportunities disappear. In addition, many Manufacturing Engineering and Technology programs in this country are seeing an alarming decline in enrollments. In most cases (if not all), the remaining twenty five ABET accredited manufacturing engineering programs in the U.S are shrinking as the numbers of incoming students dwindle.If our students are indeed basing their academic choices on negative information and images promoted by mass media, it is up to educators to appeal to students and revitalize the image by promoting the positive future of manufacturing education and prepare for the opportunities of outsourcing. Educators must be prepared for this phenomenon and prepare students adequately for the new world that faces them. Moreover, we must revise our programs to reflect the new reality of manufacturing as a global enterprise where our graduates are likely to design products locally to be produced in another part of the world.

Plotting A Bright Future For Manufacturing Education: Results Of A Brainstorming Session

“…As the global economy shifts traditional skill-based manufacturing jobs overseas 1 , manufacturing enterprises are deciding whether and how much engineering activity can also be offshored. As enrollment in U.S. engineering schools declines 2,3,4 , however, many manufacturers are scrambling to ensure that a capable stream of highly-educated and talented manufacturing engineers is available in the U.S. to develop new opportunities in global markets. While offshore outsourcing of manufacturing jobs is occurring for many engineering tasks 5,6,7 , a continuing U.S.…”

“…presence for significant manufacturing is expected 8 . New skills may be needed in engineers as they deal with the development of a global production enterprise -particularly manufacturing engineers 2 . According to Hira 5 , "substantive changes in engineering education [are needed] to provide different skills than those of foreign engineers."…”

“…Meanwhile, American engineering schools are having a difficult time convincing prospective students (and their parents and advisors) that they should study engineering, much less the specific fields of manufacturing engineering or manufacturing engineering technology. Enrollment in engineering schools is down all across the country as students have changed directions toward other fields 2,3,4 . As a large fraction of the high-wage blue-collar jobs that have for decades formed the basis of our economy are lost, countless media headlines have convinced many prospective students that an education in manufacturing is a waste of time.…”

“…Of course the American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE) hosts an annual conference and publishes the Journal of Engineering Education that include discussion on manufacturing engineering curricula. Several papers on the general subject of curriculum changes have been made recently 2,6,15,16,17 . In addition, the professional societies such as the Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME), the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE), and the international production research institute CIRP (College International pour la Recherche en Productique) have various groups and publications [18][19][20][21][22][23], that focus on education trends and relations with universities.…”