Competency developing of smart hand-on engineers for supporting sustainable industry 4.0

Abstract

The objective of this research was to develop the engineering students in accordance with the Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng.) curriculum (industrial engineering) through the work-integrated learning program, under which the students worked in the production line from Monday to Friday and studied the theories on Saturday. The learning program continued throughout the semester under the collaboration with Thai Cutting Tools Manufacturers (TCTM), of which 26 companies participated in the program. The program determined the development plan for the students of IE.102 course: Basic Production Process for Engineers through the project-based learning (PBL) program in accordance with the CDIO standard (Standards No.1-4). Twenty-seven (27) students of the work-integrated learning (WiL) program worked in 7 companies which were manufacturers and developers of cutting tools, machine tools, high precision parts and machines. All participating companies were designer and developers of new products and innovations and their products were distributed in and outside the country. Hence, the students learnt from working in the production line to create new products according to the production plan. The products newly created through the integrated production method consisted of machine tools, automated machines, lathe, milling, drilling, fitting, grinding, welding, and metal sheets. The students learnt to use the tools to assemble and create the machines, and developed the technology operation skill for production of high precision products. The learning and working were combined and applied to create those products. The students’ skills were developed in compliance with the CDIO standard (Standards No. 5), as the program required them to work in the workspaces to create the products in compliance with the CDIO standard (Standards No.6). The students created the cutting tools in compliance with the CDIO standard (Standard No.7), such as drills, center drills, end mills, reamers, insert tools and cutter tools. The students also created shafts, gears, bushes, bolts and wedge, assembled the parts in the power transmission of the machines, the electric and electronic circuits of the machines and the electric motors, and created the machines and molds for production. The teaching arrangement, learning assessment and examination of the students’ competency were assessed from the integrated learning skills. Each student undertook the practices to develop the personal and interpersonal skills. The program development was based on self-learning, under the supervision, monitoring and recommendation of the lecturers specialized in the product design, product creation and production management, to develop the students in compliance with the CDIO standard (Standard No.7).The students practiced different skills, such as conceiving, designing, implementing, and operating, respectively. In addition, the students reported the progress under the project-based learning program and assessed the learning results before and after the learning session. Based on the study development under the “work college” project, it was found that the students could develop the basic engineering skills throughout the semester. The basic engineering skills comprised the followings; 1) Integrated skill on the machine and tool operation in the basic engineering production process 2) Drawing and production drawing analysis skills 3) Material feature analysis skill for production 4) Machine-operating skill for production 5) Measuring tool-operation skill for product quality inspection 6) Machine tool and equipment operation skill for production of finish products 7) Part and component replacement skill for machine maintenance 8) Problem-solving skill in part and component production in case of incompliance with production drawing 9) Analysis skill of production process and conditions for operation at the workplace 10) Interpersonal skill obtained through the duty performance, correction of defect parts in accordance with the advices of supervisors, problem-solving with colleagues and project development. The 27 students gained the experiences through the work performance in the workplace according to the learning by doing approach. They performed duties, developed the project, solved problems and obtained the technology operation skill for production in accordance with the assigned tasks. They were trained to systematically solve the work problems. All of them produced cutting tools, high precision tools and other tools from drawings and innovative development. They were equipped with basic engineering skills in compliance with the course curriculum standard and CDIO (Standards No. 8). The research findings affirmed that the students’ competency was increased with statistical significance of 0.5. Each of them developed a project under the project-based learning program. The developed projects were highly important. The students’ competency was developed through work performance, covering product creation, problem-solving. They learnt about the created products and their lifecycle in accordance with the science and engineering study approach. They were trained to identify the problems, analyze the causes, design the solutions, implement the drawing designs and create the new products from the experimental results. The students were developed under the work-integrated learning program in accordance with the CDIO standard. The engineering skills were equipped through the creation of high precision tools and hard metal tools. Through the integrated learning, the students obtained the basic engineering knowledge on the mathematic and physic calculations, creation of the engineering drawings, material analysis for engineering production, project management and technology and innovation creation. The students communicated in English during working at the workplace. They understood the material features, designed products for production, and used these products to further create other products. They understood the connection of the supply chain in the industry with regard to production of 4 product categories which helped the students on creativity, knowledge integration for engineering product creation, product integration for further production and utilization of the industrial supply chain. The research contributed to the engineer development with regard to science, research and innovation for the sustainable development.