To produce graduates who are ready to be productive right out of the gate, schools increasingly find that they need to:<\/P>
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\u2022 Educate engineers in future-oriented, comprehensive software with a role-based user experience so they can use their skills quickly to learn and leverage new technologies in the real world.
\u2022 Provide key teaching methods integrated with digital product development and lifecycle management technologies so students know how to apply technology to solve problems.
\u2022 Take the theory to the shop floor for real-world experience so students have practice in problem-solving, not just a theoretical understanding.<\/P><\/p>\n
Schools such as the Norwegian University of Science and Technology<\/A> (NTNU) and the Ostwestfalen-Lippe<\/A> (OWL) University of Applied Sciences in Germany complement theoretical work with a learn-by-doing approach. This level of hands-on work is performed with the help of different industry-standard software, including Siemens\u2019 software.<\/P><\/p>\n These universities are amongst the many institutions rethinking engineering education by providing tools to the next generation of engineers<\/A> in a real-world team and project environment. These schools are enabling students to become true innovators even while they are still in a degree program and giving them not only the experience needed to find a job, but ensuring they can contribute immediately to a company\u2019s success.<\/P><\/p>\n NTNU is the primary institution for educating engineers and scientists in Norway. The school\u2019s motto is \u201cThe Creating University,\u201d and its objective is to develop engineers who are prepared to make an immediate and productive contribution upon graduation.<\/P><\/p>\n Computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided engineering (CAE), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) and other advanced technologies are essential to achieving the university\u2019s goals.<\/P><\/p>\n \u201cThe risk involved in radical innovation is high, but we want to apply high-end CAD\/CAE\/CAM tools to generate knowledge in the fuzzy front-end of product development, where the right decisions lead to high customer value and competitive edge,\u201d said Professor Terje R\u00f8lv\u00e5g, who works in the department of engineering design and materials (IPM) at NTNU.<\/P><\/p>\n R\u00f8lv\u00e5g added that the school uses Teamcenter in the Shell ECO marathon<\/A> and Formula Student competitions<\/A>, and that \u201cthe outcomes have been excellent.\u201d<\/P><\/p>\n By deploying a system that can connect people and processes with a digital thread, the university has incorporated product development and PLM technologies across its teaching curriculum and research programs. Teamcenter has become the essential collaboration tool for both the engineering faculty and students.<\/P><\/p>\n Using the same software many innovative businesses use has also enabled students to focus more on research and construction, and less on hypothetical programs. By using PLM tools to gain economies of scale, there have been notable efficiency gains, especially relative to administering the curricula.<\/P><\/p>\n Faculty at the university now have more time to develop and exploit an advanced problem-solving teaching approach, which helps educate future engineers on how to address challenges with innovative and sustainable manufacturing.<\/P><\/p>\n R\u00f8lv\u00e5g said that a number of studies have shown that the most successful students are those who know how to use PLM tools in capturing and reusing knowledge. Students that know how to use product development and lifecycle management tools in combination with lean principles can achieve great results in the classroom and carry the skill into the workplace.<\/P><\/p>\n \u201cOur students get a comprehensive theoretical education and real-world training in advanced engineering tools, enabling them to be creative in developing products.\u201d<\/P><\/p>\n Their skills and work have generated new patents, products and entrepreneurship, as well as new processes in leading companies. R\u00f8lv\u00e5g insists that having consistent access to new and groundbreaking tools are essential to advancing educational efforts that foster student innovation and deliver solutions beyond the university.<\/P> Andreas Deuter, professor of computer science in technology and production at OWL, teaches in the department of production and economics, which includes logistics, wood technology and production engineering.<\/P> Andreas Otte is a scientific officer at the department of production and economics at OWL. He said that a digital, networked world impacts the way new things are designed and built so they\u2019re both compliant and commercially successful.<\/P><\/p>\n \u201cWe therefore have students form teams acting in lifelike roles such as designers, produc\u00action or quality managers to perform a comprehensive task covering the entire application lifecycle,\u201d he said.<\/P><\/p>\n To provide students with a framework that supports this approach, Deuter introduced them to Polarion ALM. His team had been using the software in a previous position, and he liked it because they had the support to create products covering requirements for documentation and traceability, so he transferred the product to the university.<\/P><\/p>\n OWL now has a cutting edge Industry 4.0 lab that supports important methods for digitalization on the shop floor, such as additive manufacturing and digital twins<\/A> for both products and production, giving their students the opportunity to gain real-world experience while still in the classroom.<\/P><\/p>\n \u201cPart of our efforts toward research and implementation of smart product creation is the project PLM\/ALM for smart products,\u201d Deuter said. \u201cIn this cooperative project with Siemens, we combine ALM for software and PLM for other product and production aspects to streamline overall mechatronic product creation.\u201d<\/P><\/p>\n By converging PLM and ALM software, students were able to overcome common issues with separate requirements management, interrupted traceability and disconnected project management.<\/P><\/p>\nNTNU<\/H3>
\n![\"University](\"http:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2019\/09\/University-Engineering-Programs_NTNU_NX_Fishing-Reels-1.png\" "\\"University")
IPM students designed these fishing reels in one of their hands-on engineering classes.<\/span><\/span>Hands-on experience with problem solving<\/H3>
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\n![\"University](\"http:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2019\/09\/University-Engineering-Programs_NTNU_NX_Easy-Roller-II-1.png\" "\\"University")
Students also designed the Easy Roller II, a 100 percent universal designed plastic wheelchair. It could be used in airport scanners, swimming, or in hospital testing rooms that use magnets.<\/span><\/span><\/P>
\nOWL<\/H3>
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Deuter says that ongoing digitalization affects this field as much as electrical engineering, computer sciences, machine technology and mechatronics.<\/P>
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\u201cConsequently, our students need a profound understanding of digitalization for their future professional lives, and we are providing this.\u201d<\/P><\/p>\n
![\"University](\"http:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2019\/09\/University-Engineering-Programs_SmartFactoryOWL-1.png\" "\\"University")