Monday, July 12, 2021

Engineering Management - The Definition, Scope and Content

Contents


What is Engineering Management? Definition,
Engineering Management Journal,
American Society for Engineering Management (ASEM) Handbook
Books, Articles and Papers

Definition of Engineering Management


by Narayana Rao K.V.S.S.


Engineering management is management applied to functions, departments, and organizations where engineering is the primary technical skill. (Narayana Rao)  31st January 2010

Management - Definition

Management of an organization is the process of establishing objectives and goals of the organization periodically, designing the work system and the organization structure, and maintaining an environment in which individuals, working together in groups, accomplish their aims and objectives and goals of the organization effectively and efficiently (Narayana Rao). (3rd December 2008) ( Management - Definition and Process )
The above definition was a modification of the definition given by Koontz and O'Donnell.

The definition implies the following.

(i) Management is a process.
(ii) Management applies to every kind of organization, government, profit making, or nonprofit making.
(iii) It applies to managers at all levels in the organization.
(iv) Management is concerned with effectiveness and efficiency.  Effectiveness is producing the product or service the customer wants in business context with the required functional benefits and product attributes at the price he is willing to pay. Efficiency is minimization of resources to produce the saleable output.

The following functions or departments are natural choices for engineering management

Research and Development
Design department
Process Planning department
Tool Design department
Production departments
Maintenance departments
Utilities departments
Vendor development department
Industrial Engineering department
Information systems departments
Safety Engineering department
Environmental Engineering department
After Sales Service Department in case of manufactured products
Project Construction
Operation of Power Plants
Operation of Telecommunications Facilities

At organizational levels the following are natural choices for Engineering Management

Engineering companies
Manufacturing companies
Power Plants
Civil Construction Organizations
Telecommunications services
Software companies
Transport companies


 Other Explanations and Definitions of Engineering Management

__________________________________________________________________________



“Engineering Management is the discipline that addresses making and implementing decisions for strategic and operational leadership in current and emerging technologies and their impact on interrelated systems.”

IEEE, “Editorial: Research and Education Characteristics of the Engineering Management Discipline,” IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, vol. 37, no. 2, 1990, p. 1.


Based on the above definition, and other literature Hongyi Sun et al. concluded that Engineering Management can be expected to cover the following topics:

• Management of engineering projects
• Management of the design process
• Personnel and communication skills for engineers
• Management of scientific methods for engineering
• Human resources for engineering
• Variation, quality, and reliability

( http://www.jee.org/1999/april/726.pdf  )

The ABET  Engineering Criteria 2000 requires that: “the Engineering Management curriculum must emphasize the application of the management function in the technological setting while recognizing the basic and applied sciences in engineering systems. Emphasis shall be placed on the engineering relationships between management tasks of organizing, staffing and the human element in production, research and service organizations.”

(“Engineering Criteria 2000: Criteria for Accrediting Programs in Engineering in the USA”, Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, USA, 1997.)

___________________________________________________________________________

Engineering Management is a specialized form of management that is required to successfully lead engineering or technical personnel and projects.
•Management of technical functions
•Direct supervision of engineers and/or the engineering function
•Engineering managers typically require training and experience in both general management and the specific engineering disciplines that will be used by the engineering team to be managed

Included in a presentation by Muhammad Asif Akhtar, imasif@uet.edu.pk
http://www.engineering-resource.com/Files/LECTURE%202.pdf
__________________________________________________________________________

As an MSEMT student, you will learn how to lead technology projects as well as manage teams, engineering functions, and companies.  (University of Souther California) http://mapp.usc.edu/mastersprograms/degreeprograms/ISE/documents/MSEMT.pdf

Engineering management professionals deal with the planning, organization, scheduling, monitoring and control of engineering projects. (Univerisity of the Pacific) http://www.pacific.edu/x10461.xml

_________

Kansas University College of Engineering

What is Engineering Management?


A graduate program designed specifically for engineers and scientists who want to add management skills and knowledge to their technical undergraduate base. It’s not as technical as a master’s in engineering nor as general as an MBA—it’s the intersection of technology and management.

The Engineering Management Mission


The mission of the Master of Science in Engineering Management (EMGT) program is to prepare technical managers from fields of engineering, science, math and computer science to manage more effectively within technologically-based organizations and to promote entrepreneurial activities in the formation of new business enterprises.

The EMGT program integrates management with technology by focusing on three dimensions.

TECHNICAL: an understanding of and proficiency in engineering and science.

HUMAN: the ability to build a collaborative effort within a group.

CONCEPTUAL: the ability to apply analytical thought to the management process and to enterprise as a total system.

Why a Graduate Program in Engineering Management?

The scope and complexity of engineering management responsibilities has changed dramatically during the past 10 years.

Stiff competition in the marketplace and the need to eliminate the trade and service deficit have put an emphasis on technology. It is the source of new products and improved productivity in manufacturing and service delivery. Today's engineer-manager simply must incorporate technological innovation.

Today's engineer-manager also must satisfy design and safety requirements, manage human resources to boost productivity, use natural resources efficiently, stay on top of other environmental concerns and emphasize total quality in operations.

To meet these challenges, engineers require better education and training in technology management. Precisely these needs led in 1982 to the development of the Master of Science program in Engineering Management at the KU School of Engineering.

Source
Accessed on 31.1.2010
__________

Engineering Management Journal

EMJ is the quarterly journal of the American Society for Engineering Management. EMJ is designed to provide practical, pertinent knowledge on the management of technology, technical professionals, and technical organizations.

EMJ strives to provide value to the practice of engineering management and engineering managers.  EMJ's goals are to:

1.     Improve the practice of technology organizations and engineering management.
2.     Improve the reflective practitioner skills of the practicing engineering manager.
3.     Improve the research skills of faculty to produce useful and relevant knowledge for engineering management.
4.     Improve student's understanding of the engineering management field.

Engineering management focus areas.

To support the practice of engineering management, EMJ publishes papers within key engineering management focus areas. 

Strategic: the processes and tools by which the organization positions itself externally and aligns itself internally. Focus areas include:

Strategic & operations management
Management of design & consulting engineering organizations.

Core: the processes and tools by which the organization produces it products and services for its customers. Focus areas include:

Systems engineering/systems engineering management
Program & project management
Technology management: Research & development, technology transfer, commercialization
Technology management: technology forecasting, emerging technologies
Innovation & new product development.

Enabling: the processes and tools by which the strategic and core processes are supported with the necessary facilities, equipment, personnel, and supporting business functions. Focus areas include:

Organization and work system design
Economics of engineering
Quantitative methods & models
Knowledge & information management
Quality management
Developing engineering management professionals.

Perspectives of the Profession: articles to provide an evolving historical perspective to the profession. Focus areas include:
Engineering management: Past, present, & future

Accessed on 31.1.2010
_______________________

American Society for Engineering Management (ASEM)

Vision
To speak for the Engineering Management profession

Mission
Provide Engineering Management Solutions to leadership and management challenges to create and lead technical organizations

Promote the development and practice of the engineering management profession

Goals

Be the custodian of the engineering management body of knowledge
Grow and share the engineering management body of knowledge
Guide and enhance engineering management educational programs
Advance the careers of engineering management professionals

Connect engineering management professionals

Foster and recognize engineering management best practices
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ASEM Engineering Management Handbook


Purpose Statement
The Engineering Management Handbook provides engineering management practitioners, researchers, policy makers, and analysts with a singular, easy-to-navigate web site through which continuously updated, peer reviewed information and tools can be readily accessed and easily utilized. The EM Handbook will further provide a medium through which users, subject matter contributors, and subject matter experts can communicate on items of mutual interest.

History
At the 1995 American Society for Engineering Management (ASEM) Annual Conference held during September in Washington, D.C., Dr. Greg Sedrick, ASEM Member and then professor (now Acting Dean) in the College of Engineering Computer Science at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, presented an idea for using the Internet as a information resource and distribution medium for what he referred to as a "virtual engineering management (EM) handbook." This virtual EM handbook, once developed, was envisioned to place a variety of EM "resources" at the ready disposal of practicing engineering managers, engineering management researchers, policy makers, and analysts.


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Articles and Papers

Engineering Management: Past, Present, and Future
By Farr, John V
Publication: Engineering Management Journal 
Date: Tuesday, March 1 2005 

Read the article in



INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING AND ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT IN AUSTRALIA
by Professor John W H Price PhD, FIEAust
Mechanical Engineering Department,
Monash University, Australia.



Book Site
Sarah Drasner

Articles on Engineering Management
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Books


The practice of engineering management: a new approach By Patrick D. T. O'Connor, 1994


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Related Knols

Industrial Engineering Definitions - 1911 to 2009
"Industrial Engineering is Human Effort Engineering and System Efficiency Engineering. It is an engineering discipline that deals with the design of human effort and system efficiency in all occupations: agricultural, manufacturing and service. The objectives of Industrial Engineering are optimization of productivity of work-systems and occupational comfort, health, safety and income of persons involved."(Narayana Rao, 2009)
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Articles and Books by B.S. Dhillon

Engineering Product Usability: A Review and Analysis Techniques
www.wseas.us/e-library/conferences/2005argentina/papers/503-115.doc

Design Reliability by Dhillon - ebook available on net (Search)

Robot Safety Analysis
http://nacomm03.ammindia.org/Articles/Rob002.pdf

BECOMING LEAN ENTERPRISE: THEORY AND CASE STUDIES - Management Development Programme at NITIE, Mumbai, India by Narayana Rao K.V.S.S.


Updated on  13 July 2021,  2 March 2014
Published on this blog on 17 March 2012
Original knol - http://knol.google.com/k/narayana-rao/engineering-management-the-definition/ 2utb2lsm2k7a/ 2224

Engineering Management - Bulletin - Information Board -


13 July 2021


https://www.apollotechnical.com/engineering-management-skills/

https://www.aresprism.com/products/engineering-project-management-software/

https://waset.org/engineering-management-conferences

https://www.ieee-tems.org/category/conferences/

https://leaddev.com/professional-development/eight-flavors-engineering-management


https://www.nasa.gov/consortium/SystemsEngineeringManagementPlanTechnicalContent

https://medium.com/@rvprabhu/moving-to-the-dark-side-transitioning-into-engineering-management-266061921049

Jobs




2 June 2012

Craig Downing, was appointed as head of engineering management department of Rose Hulman Institute of Technology, Terre Haute, Indiana.

Down is co-editor of Industrial Engineering Handbook, which is being revised.
http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/newsitem.asp?ID=53975 







Updated 13 July 2021
Pub 2 June 2012

Saturday, August 31, 2019

Introduction - Product Design and Development


Chapter 1 Ulrich and Eppinger - Product Design and Development


Characteristics of Successful New Products


A successful product is one that is being sold profitably. But profitability of a new product cannot be assessed quickly  in the early years. Hence measures which ultimately relate to profits are used.
The success of the product development project is determined by five dimensions.

Product quality
Product cost
Development time
Development cost
Development capability

Who in an organization are involved in new product development?

Main departments or functions involved are:

Marketing, Design, and Manufacturing

The Challenges of Product Development


The product development process is risky. It is difficult to create highly successful products more than half time in case of companies which are considered as good product development companies.

Trade-offs: Design decisions have tradeoffs. Light weight versus cost in case of air planes.
Dynamics: Evolution of technologies, customer preferences, competitor's new products and change in environment.

Details,
Time pressure,
Economics: A large investment has to be made in developing the product, process and acquiring resources to set up the production plant. It must have return on investment.

Approach of The Book by  Karl Ulrich and Steven Eppinger


Structured methods

Step-by-approach is provided for each major activity of product design and development.

The step by step approach makes the process explicit. It provides checklist for practice. Also, the process when implemented provides documentation which can be analyzed later and used as reference.

Industrial examples

Each chapter in the book is developed around an industrial example.

Organizational realities

The negative activities highlighted by the authors in the product development process and teams are:

1. Lack of empowerment of the team.
2. Functional allegiances transcending project goals.
3. Inadequate resources given to the team.
4. Lack of cross-functional representation on the project team.


Updated on 1 September 2019, 2 August 2016

Friday, August 23, 2019

Product - Part Concept Generation, Selection and Testing - Product Architecture




Concept Generation


1. Clarify the Problem
2. Search Externally
3. Search Internally
4. Explore Systematically
5. Reflect on the Solutions and the Process




http://sites.tufts.edu/eeseniordesignhandbook/2013/product-concept-generation/


External Search


Whenever an engineering problem is to be solved, engineers have to consult existing literature, handbooks, catalogues supplied by vendors and also visit places and observe new products. This stage of the process is termed as external search.

– Lead Users
– Experts
– Patents
– Literature
– Benchmarking



• Internal Search

– Individual Methods
– Group Methods


During internal search

Suspend judgment
Generate lot of ideas
Welcome ideas that may seem infeasible
Use graphical and physical media also to generate ideas that can't be described in words.



• Systematic Exploration

– Classification Tree
– Combination Table

Concept Selection



It is based on method developed by Stuart Pugh. Called Pugh Concept Selection.

1. Prepare the Selection Matrix.
2. Rate the Concepts
3. Rank the Concepts
4. Combine and Improve the Concepts
5. Select One or More Concepts


Details

1. Prepare the Selection Matrix.
The concepts are portrayed by written description as well as graphical or pictorial representation.
A reference concept is chosen which is an industry standard or a well known concept to the participants so that it can be used to rate the generated concepts as better or worse.

2. Rate the Concepts
A relative score of "better than" (+) or "same as" (0) or "worse than" (-) is placed in each cell matrix formed by selection criteria and the specific concept.
3. Rank the Concepts
The +, 0 and -  are totalled against each concept to rank the concepts.
4. Combine and Improve the Concepts
The team can now see possibilities of combing the good features of various concepts into new concepts.
5. Select One or More Concepts
Selection of one or more concepts is now done for further refinement.


Concept Testing



1. Define the Purpose of the Concept Test
2. Choose a Survey Population
3.Choose a Survey Format
4. Communicate the Concept
5. Measure the Customer Response
6. Interpret the Results



Details

1. Define the Purpose of the Concept Test
2. Choose a Survey Population and Sample Size
The sample size of the survey should be large enough that the team's confidence in the results is high enough to guide decision making

3.Choose a Survey Format

Survey formats include face to face interaction, telephone, postal mail, electronic mail, internet etc.

4. Communicate the Concept

The concept can be communicated to the survey participant as verbal description, sketch, photo, story board, video, physical model or working prototype. Based on the communication form used, the survye format also will change.

5. Measure the Customer Response

The customer response can be taken in the form

Definitely would buy.
Probably would buy.
Might or might not buy.
Probably would not buy.
Definitely would not buy.

6. Interpret the Results

A product is developed based on functional elements. The product as developed has physical elements, parts and subassemblies.

The architecture of a product is the scheme by which the functional elements of the product are arranged into physical chunks (items of the product) and by which the chunks interact.

The most modular architecture is one in which each functional element of the product is implemented through  one distinct chunk.


Product Architecture


1. Create a Schematic of the Product
2. Cluster the Elements of the Schematic
3. Create a Rough Geometric Layout
4. Identify the Fundamental and Incidental Interactions


Delayed Differentiation of the Product


Platform Planning

A company may offer two or more products that are highly differentiated yet share a substantial fraction of their components. The fraction that is shared is called the platform,

In platform based products, there is a commonality or common parts plan and differentiation plan.

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Product Design and Development - Bibliography



2017

Automotive Product Development: A Systems Engineering Implementation
Vivek D. Bhise
CRC Press, 08-May-2017 - Technology & Engineering - 550 pages

This book is about how to develop future automotive products by applying the latest methodologies based on a systems engineering approach and by taking into account many issues facing the auto industry such as meeting government safety, emissions and fuel economy regulations, incorporating advances in new technology applications in structural materials, power trains, vehicle lighting systems, displays and telematics, and satisfying the very demanding customer.

It is financially disastrous for any automotive company to create a vehicle that very few people want. To design an automotive product that will be successful in the marketplace requires carefully orchestrated teamwork of experts from many disciplines, substantial amount of resources, and application of proven techniques at the right time during the product development process.

Automotive Product Development: A Systems Engineering Implementation is intended for company management personnel and graduate students in engineering, business management and other disciplines associated with the development of automotive and other complex products.
https://books.google.co.in/books?id=wbrODgAAQBAJ


Japan and the Global Automotive Industry

Koichi Shimokawa
Cambridge University Press, 03-Jun-2010 - Business & Economics

The Japanese automotive industry enjoyed spectacular success in the 1980s. This was largely due to the so-called 'Lean Production System' - the combination of an efficient production system, an effective supplier system, and a product development system. In the 1990s the industry fell on hard times because of the Japanese asset price bubble and extreme currency appreciation. In this book, eminent industry specialist Koichi Shimokawa draws on his thirty years of research and fieldwork with Japanese and American firms, to show how the Japanese automotive industry has managed to recover from this difficult period. He shows how firms like Toyota were able to transfer Japanese systems to overseas plants and how they have changed in order to compete in increasingly globalized markets. In addition, the book also addresses the two major challenges to the current industry model: the rise of China and the environmental and energy supply situation.

https://books.google.co.in/books?id=D90-Q6AEEIoC


Earlier posting

Features of Engineering Product Design and Development


Value engineering and cost reduction in a chip
http://www.techeta.com/powercolor-pcs-ax5870-video-card-refines-the-5870-design/

Rethinking Home Designs - 10 Value engineering trends


Updated on 24 August 2019, 18 December 2011

Product Design and Development - Ulrich and Eppinger - Summary Chapters


Summary of 16 chapters

Karl T. Ulrich – Steven D. Eppinger

Introduction to Product Design and Development - Summary Article - All Chapters

1. Introduction - Product Design and Development

2. Product Development Process

3. Product Planning

4. Identifying Customer Needs for Product Development

Industrial Design Process

Prototyping - Planning for Prototyping

Robust Design

Patents and Intellectual Property - Patent Application Process

Product Development  - Economic Analysis

Managing Projects




http://wesp.snt.utwente.nl/~newton//UserFiles/File/Summary%20Product%20Design%20and%20Development.pdf

Summary of 16 chapters

Karl T. Ulrich – Steven D. Eppinger


Updated  24 August 2019,  3 August 2016, 17 Mar 2016, 27 Aug 2012

Product Development Process

Chapter 2 Ulrich and Eppinger - Product Design and Development


A Generic Development Process


0. Planning
1. Concept Development
2. System Level Design
3. Detail Design
4. Testing and Refinement
5. Production Ramp-up



Details of the Steps

0. Planning
1. Concept Development

In this phage needs of the market and the target market are identified first. Based on the needs, product concepts are generated. They are evaluated marketers as well as product development team and one or more concepts are selected for further development and testing. A concept is a description of the form, function, and features of product. Thus specifications of the product based on the concept are developed. For evaluation of each concept, an analysis of competitive products, and the revenues expected from the concept and the fixed cost and variable cost of the concept are also provided.

2. System Level Design

Based on the concept design or designs approved for further development, the product architecture is now created. Architecture defines the subsystems and components and provides a description of function of each component and subassembly and how as a whole they satisfy all the requirements of the customers. Thus the final assembly scheme for the product is specified.  As output of this phase of development, a geometric layout of the product, functional specifications of each subsystem, component are provided. A preliminary process flow chart for the final assembly process is also created. The article on "Product Architecture" will contain the steps followed to complete the system level design.


3. Detail Design
4. Testing and Refinement
5. Production Ramp-up


Updated on 24 August 2019, 2 August 2016