Part A: Course Overview
Course Title: Engineering Industry Capstone Project Part A
Credit Points: 12.00
Course Coordinator: Professor James Scott
Course Coordinator Phone: -
Course Coordinator Email: james.scott@rmit.edu.au
Course Coordinator Location: -
Course Coordinator Availability: via email
Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities
Assumed Knowledge
This capstone course coalesces and further develops all of the graduate attributes and skills that you have learnt and established to date. It is therefore intended to form part of your final year of engineering studies.
You need to be enrolled in the BH070IP Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical Engineering) (Industry Practice) (Honours) plan to undertake this course.
Contact the Course Coordinator for further information.
Note: it is a condition of enrolment at RMIT that you accept responsibility for ensuring that you have completed the prerequisite/s and agree to concurrently enrol in co-requisite courses before enrolling in a course.
For information go to RMIT Course Requisites webpage.
Course Description
Engineering Industry Capstone Project Part A and Engineering Industry Capstone Project Part B are designed to provide you with a work-integrated learning experience where you will apply your technical knowledge, research abilities, design skills, and expertise in a real workplace environment with your employer. This course provides you with a capstone experience, which will give you the opportunity to integrate, critically reflect on and consolidate what you have learnt in your program. You will have the opportunity to apply your professional engineering skills in a real research and development (R&D) project. The authentic project will concentrate on generating well-managed, practical, and pertinent solutions to either discipline-specific or cross-disciplinary engineering problems. These solutions will be developed through rigorous research and established engineering design processes. Additionally, you will receive feedback from your employer, which will serve as a crucial capstone experience. This experience is essential for advancing your practical expertise and preparing you to address real-world challenges in your field.
Engineering Industry Capstone Project Part A constitutes the first part of a two-part capstone project course, designed to provide an initial segment of the capstone experience. The first part of the project (Part A) focuses on:
- articulation of the project requirements, challenge, need, problem or feasibility;
- establishment of design criteria and constraints;
- project planning;
- the critical appraisal of all the relevant published material by way of a comprehensive literature search and review;
- benchmarking of all related and relevant solutions;
- and hence well-informed consideration of possible solutions.
After successfully passing this course, you will undertake the required companion course “Engineering Industry Capstone Project Part B”, which will result in the fulfilment of the final project deliverable.
If you are enrolled in this course as a component of your Bachelor Honours Program, your overall mark will contribute to the calculation of the Weighted Average Mark (WAM).
See the WAM information web page for more information.
Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development
This course contributes to the program learning outcomes for the following program(s):
Bachelor Of Engineering (Mechanical Engineering) (Industry Practice) (Honours)
PLO 2: Utilise mathematics and engineering fundamentals, software, tools and techniques to design engineering systems for complex engineering challenges.
PLO 3: Apply engineering research principles, methods and contemporary technologies and practices to plan and execute projects taking into account ethical, environmental and global impacts.
PLO 4: Apply systematic problem solving, design methods and information and project management to propose and implement creative and sustainable solutions with intellectual independence and cultural sensitivity.
PLO 5: Communicate respectfully and effectively with diverse audiences, employing a range of communication methods, practising professional and ethical conduct.
PLO 6: Develop and demonstrate the capacity for autonomy, agility and reflection of own learning, career and professional development and conduct.
PLO 7: Collaborate and contribute as an effective team member in diverse, multi-level, multi-disciplinary teams, with commitment to First Nations peoples and globally inclusive perspectives and participation.
For more information on the program learning outcomes for your program, please see the program guide.
Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to:
- Demonstrate the ability to strategically plan and ethically assess the entire project lifespan, considering its diverse influences (aligned with ‘articulation of the project requirements, challenge, need, problem or feasibility’ and ‘project planning’).
- Integrate engineering theory with rigorous research to employ design processes for evaluating and selecting optimal solutions (aligned with ‘establishment of design criteria and constraints, ‘benchmarking of all related and relevant solutions’, and hence well-informed consideration of possible solutions).
- Effectively execute and manage initial phases of a research and development project at a professional engineering level, incorporating comprehensive literature search and review for critical assessment (aligned with the critical appraisal of all the relevant published material by way of a comprehensive literature search and review).
- Demonstrate engineering professional and personal attributes in communication, organization, participation, and leadership activities.
Overview of Learning Activities
The authentic engineering project (representative of relevant real-world challenges) is intended to develop self-motivated life-long learning skills and is dependent upon the application of initiative and a proactive approach to your experience, whether you are part of a team or conducting this as an individual. You will form a close working relationship through regular (weekly) meetings with an academic supervisor, and an industry mentor, who will both offer guidance, advice and assessment. In addition to the assessment deliverables, you will be expected to keep a comprehensive record of your meetings and progress in a professional journal. Relevant information, resources and expectations shall be provided by the Learning Management System. This project exemplifies the development of employability skills, and potential employers will be genuinely interested in your role and your achievements.
You are encouraged to be proactive and self-directed in your learning, asking questions of your lecturer and/or peers and seeking out information as required, especially from the numerous sources available through the RMIT library, and through links and material specific to this course that is available through myRMIT Studies Course.
Overview of Learning Resources
RMIT will provide you with resources and tools for learning in this course through myRMIT Studies Course.
There are services available to support your learning through the University Library. The Library provides guides on academic referencing and subject specialist help as well as a range of study support services. For further information, please visit the Library page on the RMIT University website and the myRMIT student portal.
Overview of Assessment
Assessment Tasks
This course has no hurdle requirements and consists of the following assessment tasks:
Early Assessment Task - Project Proposal and Risk Assessment
Weighting: 15%
Students shall clearly articulate the project problem, the scope of work and a mutually agreed contract for the project outcomes.
This assessment supports CLOs: 1, 3 & 4.
Assessment Task 2 – Progress Report
Weighting: 50%
This exercise will comprise an executive summary; a clear exposition of the problem; a literature review and benchmarking exercise; definition of the criteria and constraints and preliminary conclusions.
The progress report is to be independently marked.
This assessment supports CLOs: 1, 2, 3 & 4.
Assessment Task 3 – Presentation
Weighting: 25%
A project progress presentation will be delivered.
This assessment supports CLOs: 3 and 4.
Note: All assessments must be individualised. Where assessment is the product of a team contribution, it shall be clear who has contributed, how and where.
Assessment task 4 - Professional Practice and Contribution
Weighting: 10%
The assessment comprises:
- Supervisor's assessment of your engagement, team-work and independent practice Engineering journal
- Professional conduct and performance shall be assessed throughout the regular meetings and record keeping (i.e. professional journal).
This assessment supports CLOs: 1, 2, 3 & 4.
If you have a long-term medical condition and/or disability it may be possible to negotiate to vary aspects of the learning or assessment methods. You can contact the program coordinator or Equitable Learning Services if you would like to find out more.