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Overview

Course Prescription

An introduction to the principles of design as a fundamental part of engineering practice and a foundation for subsequent design courses. Students are also introduced to essential drawing skills and CAD, and complete group-based design projects. Topics include systems life cycle, design, and introductions to professional issues such as health and safety, ethics, sustainability, cultural diversity, communication, leadership, and teamwork.

Course Overview

Engineering Design is the process of utilising technical and theoretical skills to solve problems in the real world. It involves...

  • careful research of ALL aspects of the problem, including technical, social, economic, and environmental;
  • creative idea generation and documented selection of the best ideas to carry forward;
  • detailed design using theoretical analysis, prototyping, and testing;
  • clear communication of your design using engineering and business tools.

Students in this course will learn about and practice the engineering design process, through two hands-on projects, while also learning essential tools for engineering and communication:

  • Spatial visualisation: fundamental drawing systems, interpreting and sketching isometric drawings, interpreting orthographic drawings and views.
  • 3-D Solid Modelling, CAD: the modelling, assembly, and rendering capability of advanced 3-D computer-aided design software. 
  • Detailed Drawings: generating orthographic and isometric drawings from a 3-D solid model, line styles and dimensioning, and analysis of detailed drawings.
  • Engineering Analysis: choosing and applying a technical analysis to better understand and make design decisions.
  • Presentations: communicating ideas and concepts through visual materials and spoken presentations.
  • Engineering Design in Industry: how engineering design is applied in different engineering specialisations and industries.
  • Professional engineering work practices: working in teams, identifying constraints, and clear communications.


Course structure:

  • Lectures (1 hour each) will start out at three per week, but reduce over the semester to two per week then one per week to allow students to concentrate on project work.
  • Tutorials (2 hours each), once per week during the entire semester, will provide hands-on practice in design tasks and time and space to work on design projects.
  • Drop-in Clinics (1-2 hours each) will provide support for drawing and 3-D CAD modules.

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.

For this course, you can expect 24 hours of lectures, 24 hours of tutorial, 26 hours of reading and thinking about the content and 76 hours of work on assignments and/or test preparation.

Locations and Semesters Offered

LocationSemester
City

Teaching and Learning

Campus Experience

Attendance is expected at scheduled activities including tutorials to complete components of the course.
Lectures will be available as recordings. Other learning activities including tutorials will not be available as recordings.
The course will not include live online events including group discussions and tutorials.
The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable.

Learning Resources

Taught courses use a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas to provide students with learning materials including reading lists and lecture recordings (where available). Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Additional Information on Learning Resources

Course lecture notes will be provided for each lecture and will be the primary reference material for the course.

Copyright

The content and delivery of content in this course are protected by copyright. Material belonging to others may have been used in this course and copied by and solely for the educational purposes of the University under license.


You may copy the course content for the purposes of private study or research, but you may not upload onto any third-party site, make a further copy or sell, alter or further reproduce or distribute any part of the course content to another person.

Health and Safety

Students must ensure they are familiar with their Health and Safety responsibilities, as described in the university's Health and Safety policy.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption, we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and course assessment continues to meet the principles of the University’s assessment policy. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator/director, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the university website for information about how to proceed.

Other Information

Stationery Needs: For the drawings, you will need:

  • Two pencils: thick (2B) and thin (HB). Mechanical pencils can be used instead. For drawing thick lines we recommend the 0.7mm pencil with 2B leads. For thin lines, use 0.5mm pencil with HB leads.
  • Ruler; preferably 30cm long. Avoid using flexible rulers.
  • Eraser and erasing shield. The erasing shield can help you erase lines precisely without affecting other parts of your drawing.
For the design projects, you will need:
  • At least one 1J5 quad book.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed for potential plagiarism or other forms of academic misconduct, using computerised detection mechanisms.

Similarly, research students must meet the University’s expectations of good research practice. This requires:

  • Honesty - in all aspects of research work
  • Accountability - in the conduct of research
  • Professional courtesy and fairness – in working with others
  • Good stewardship – on behalf of others
  • Transparency – of research process and presentation of results
  • Clarity - communication to be understandable, explainable and accessible

For more information on the University’s expectations of academic integrity, please see the Academic Conduct section of the University policy hub.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about taught courses is made available to enrolled students in Canvas.

Students may be asked to submit assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. In exceptional circumstances changes to elements of this course may be necessary at short notice. Students enrolled in this course will be informed of any such changes and the reasons for them, as soon as possible, through Canvas.


Assessment and Learning Outcomes

Course Learning Outcomes

CLO #OutcomeProgramme Capability Link
1
2
3
4

Assessments

Assessment TypeAssessment PercentageAssessment Classification

Additional Information on Assessment

  • A passing mark is 50% or higher, according to University policy.
  • To pass the course, you must get at least 50% in the exam. If your exam mark is less than 50%, your grade will be capped at D+.
  • Students must sit the exam to pass the course. Otherwise, a DNS (did not sit) result will be returned.
  • All mark queries in each coursework must be lodged within two weeks after the grades are released on Canvas or BEFORE the final examination day, whichever is earlier.
  • Coursework may be moderated to ensure uniform marking in all tutorial streams.


No late submission is allowed for the quizzes. Late submissions will be penalised as follows:

  • Hours late -> Penalty (penalty will be multiplied by your total score for the assessment)
  • > 0 hours to ≤ 2 hours -> 10%
  • > 2 hours to ≤ 24 hours -> 20%
  • > 24 hours to ≤ 48 hours -> 50%
  • > 48 hours -> 100%

Assessment to CLO Mapping

Assessment Type1234

Student Feedback, Support and Charter

Student Feedback

Feedback on taught courses is gathered from students at the end of each semester through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions. Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students. In addition, class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

Additional Information on Student Feedback

Based on the 2024 SET results...

  1. Course organisation will be improved.
  2. Marking will be more consistent, and verbal and written feedback will be improved.
  3. More examples from industry and of good design practice will be provided.

Class representatives

Class representatives are students tasked with representing student issues to departments, faculties, and the wider university. If you have a complaint about this course, please contact your class rep who will know how to raise it in the right channels. See your departmental noticeboard for contact details for your class reps.

Tuākana

Tuākana is a multi-faceted programme for Māori and Pacific students providing topic specific tutorials, one-on-one sessions, test and exam preparation and more. Explore your options at Tuakana Learning Communities.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website.

Wellbeing

We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - please see the Support Services page for information on support services in the University and the wider community.

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed work is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due. If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page. This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter.

Student Academic Complaints and Disputes

Students with concerns about teaching including how a course is delivered, the resources provided, or supervision arrangements, have the right to express their concerns and seek resolution. The university encourages informal resolution where possible, as this is quicker and less stressful. For information on the informal and formal complaints processes, please refer to the Student Academic Complaints Statute in the Student Policies and Guidelines section of the Policy Hub.