Overview

Design is in everything that we use. Explore how sometimes the smallest change can makes life easier. Studying our new MEng Additive Manufacturing Engineering degree course at ARU will take you through the fundamentals of mechanical engineering, covering areas such as 3D printing. You'll be ready to work towards Chartered Engineer (CEng) status after graduation.

Find out more about teaching options and studying during COVID-19 in the Entry requirements section, below.

Engineering is all about taking a product or system and looking at how it can be improved, whether it is in the development, processing, design, or even the materials used. Our new four-year MEng Additive Manufacturing Engineering degree course has been created with a focus on project-based learning, allowing you to take your in-class theory and apply it in a hands-on project module that will run throughout the year.

You will study alongside other students in the various areas of mechanical engineering, specialising in additive manufacturing in your final year and in certain modules throughout your course.

By studying our MEng Additive Manufacturing Engineering degree course, you will learn through a wide range of lab sessions, exploring manufacturing, 3D printing, thermodynamics, dynamics, and structural analysis so you can analyse, calculate, model, and experience your proposed concepts. As a part of your project-based learning you will undertake group work where you will be in a team of multi-disciplined students from across the different areas of mechanical engineering. This integrated learning will allow you to develop skills that are invaluable to future employers, including analytical and creative problem-solving skills. You’ll also benefit from dedicated support from our experienced staff, who are both experienced professionals from industry and expert researchers.

Our MEng Additive Manufacturing Engineering degree course leads you through computer based advanced design, simulation and modelling practice in various topics including computational engineering, fluid dynamics, stress analysis, and industrial management. You’ll benefit from using our workshop and laboratory facilities including CAD/CAM and engineering computer modelling centre, industrial-scale CNC milling and lathe machines, metal and plastic rapid prototyping machines, scanning electronic microscope, Instron bi-axial fatigue-testing machine, tensile-testing machine, material-preparation facilities, welding equipment, electronic testing and measuring equipment such as oscilloscopes and signal-generating and testing facilities, wind tunnel, air compressors, steam engine and many more laboratory facilities used during course and in individual and group major projects.

What is the difference between a BEng and an MEng course?
A BEng course will enable to you apply for Incorporated Engineer (IEng) status at the end of your course. To apply for Chartered Engineer (CEng) status you will also need to complete a Masters degree.

A four-year MEng course is a three-year undergraduate degree with a one-year Masters degree in one course. On completing an MEng course you are able to apply directly for CEng status.

Students completing an IMechE accredited degree are deemed to have met, part or all, of the academic requirements for registration as a Chartered or Incorporated Engineer and are in a strong position to move on to achieve professional engineering status after a period of initial professional development in industry.

January intake students will complete Year 1 between January and August (Trimester 2 & 3), however, Year 2 and 3 will be completed during trimester 1 & 2 between September and May. This means January intake students will only take a one-month summer break in Year 1 and will start Year 2 in September the same year they started the course. Therefore students are expected to graduate this MEng course in 3.5 years.

Careers 

Mechanical engineering is possibly the most enabling discipline in engineering, dealing with materials, static and dynamic analysis, structural design, renewable energies, thermal engineering, product quality assurance, and manufacturing.

You'll have the opportunity to work in industries such as aerospace, automotive, medical, renewable energies, 3D printing, and almost any product development and product-related application.

We work with employers to make sure you graduate with the knowledge, skills and abilities they need. They help us review what we teach and how we teach it – and they offer hands-on, practical opportunities to learn through work-based projects, internships or placements.

In addition to our links with industry, our Employability Service and Placements Team provide numerous opportunities to gain experience and employment through internships and career fairs. You can also take advantage of mentoring schemes, CV and interview preparation sessions.

Year 1 (level 4) modules

Apply your learning through project based learning, where you will have both individual work and group work where you will be in a multidisciplinary range of students from the mechanical engineering group. This module is designed to provide you with a basic understanding of manufacturing processes and mechatronics, from the in class theoretical briefings to hands on practical activities. You will gain insight on the need of selecting the most appropriate manufacturing processes, designing and building of basic electronic circuits, integrating mechanical products with electronic circuits, to form a mechatronics product. You will be introduced to modern equipment such as CNC machines and electronic building and testing devices. You will learn how to conform to the regulations relating to safe workshop and laboratory practice applying your materials and structural knowledge to analyse the structural integrity of their design and prototypes.

Engineering Skills

Develop the underpinning engineering skills needed to solve technical problems and communicate technical ideas and concepts. These skills are essential for the successful completion of your project and knowledge based modules. The module will be divided into two main areas; Mathematics and technical report writing. Mathematics will focus on the basic mathematical skills needed to understand the language of mathematics and to interpret engineering mathematical expressions. Algebraic skills will also be extensively developed to carry out mathematical analysis and solve engineering problems. The module will also introduce the mathematics of trigonometry and geometry and their application to solve practical engineering problems. Technical report writing is a fundamental communication skill for engineers and will be developed throughout the course. This part of the module aims to provide the tools to enable you to structure and present technical reports and also reference correctly. You will make use of appropriate IT skills to communicate technical ideas through the written word and by graphical means.

Introduction to Mechanical Engineering

Start your journey to becoming a mechanical engineer and discover the wide range of applications and disciplines related to this industry. By gaining insight into career opportunities at this early stage in the course you can follow your interests throughout your study. You will learn about role of engineering in society, environmental issues, and sustainability, looking at ethical issues in engineering and the importance of marketing, commercial understanding, engineering standards, and legal aspects of pursuing a career in engineering. You will cover the history of mechanical engineering, motivating you with inspiring successes that have changed the human life forever, as well as learning lessons from failures. Through this module students will get the opportunity to visit manufacturing and engineering companies and to start to think and critically analyse as an engineer, discovering how to breakdown complex systems into parts and subparts in mechanical engineering terms so that you can simplify complex systems. Visits from guest lecturers from industry will also be encouraged, as will visits by representatives from the professional bodies such as the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and the Institution of Engineering and Technology. You’ll be encouraged to join professional bodies such as IMechE and IET and use the advantages from this throughout your course.

Materials and Mechanicals

Here you will focus on two key aspects of engineering. To start with you will look at vectors and use this knowledge to understand the Newton's law in basic mechanical problems. You will relate this to the static analysis of a system and equilibrium leading to calculation of various stresses in a mechanical structure. The second part is designed to introduce the structure and properties of a range of engineering materials, with an insight in the atomic structure of metals and non-metals to understand factors that influence the physical properties of materials. It provides a review of mechanical behaviour of metals such as load extension curves and their interpretations. You will carry out hands-on tensile tests on engineering materials, allowing you to apply your knowledge from the classroom. You will also explore the alloying of metals through equilibrium diagrams, using this information to determine structure. You will develop your skills in gathering and interpreting scientific information through a series of laboratory experiments. This will help you to become familiar with definition and applications of mechanical structures and, with further studies in nature of stress distribution and transformation in mechanical parts and structures, you will be able to evaluate basic failure criteria and apply safety factors in engineering design.