2020/21 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

ELEC3885 Group Design Project

50 creditsClass Size: 100

Module manager: Dr Lotfi Mhamdi
Email: L.Mhamdi@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semesters 1 & 2 (Sep to Jun) View Timetable

Year running 2020/21

Module replaces

ELEC3880 Group Design Project

This module is not approved as a discovery module

Module summary

The teaching and assessment methods shown below will be kept under review during 2020-21. In particular, if conditions allow for alternative formats of delivery, we may amend the timetable and schedule appropriate classes in addition to (or in place of) the Online Learning Workshops. For Semester 2 (from January 2021), we anticipate that this will be most likely, in which case online teaching will be substituted for traditional face-to-face teaching methods, including lectures and practical classes. ‘Independent online learning’ will involve watching pre-recorded lecture material or screen-casts, engaging in learning activities such as online worked examples or remote/virtual laboratory work, etc. Students will be expected to fully engage with all of these activities. The time commitment for independent online learning, and also the frequency and duration of Online Learning Workshops, are approximate and intended as a guide only. Further details will be confirmed when the module commences.

Objectives

The Group Design Project (GDP) is a major, group-based, design and development project taken by students on the School's core degree programmes in the penultimate year of an MEng Honours degree. Groups of three or four students are involved in the organisation and delivery of a substantial engineering project. A report on the project is written and there is a public oral presentation at the end of the work.Each project is supervised by an academic, who guides and monitors the work of the group through regular (usually weekly) meetings. However, it is a feature of the module to encourage self-organisation and use of initiative by the students. At the conclusion of the module, the student should have gained significantly in self-confidence in the context of a team technical project; verbal and written communication skills should have developed and technical knowledge in some area should have been expanded.

Learning outcomes
On completion of this module students should be able to:

1. Define an overall design objective and functional system block diagram, and propose a suitable distribution of sub-system parts for each group member to work on.
2. Propose a plan of work to develop an appropriate solution for the overall system and sub-systems, within the constraints of time and resources available.
3. Demonstrate project management skills including time planning, team working, working to deadlines and producing deliverables.
4. Demonstrate creativity, innovation and technical competence by implementing the project proposal, delivering the design and development work specified in the plan.
5. Manage technical uncertainty, analyse scenarios and identify realistic options.
6. Demonstrate proficiency in written and oral communications.
7. Understand how to make use of technical literature and other information sources.
8. Develop communication skills and the ability to reflect on progress by working with an expert (the project supervisor) and gain experience of their work being put under sustained scrutiny.

Syllabus

Topics may include, but are not limited to:

Project planning and management
Identification of resources and managing cost drivers
Identification and analysis of project risk
Working with Gantt charts, work breakdown structure, critical path, milestones and deliverables
Safe working practices, Risk assessment
Report writing and oral presentation

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
On-line Learning	6	1.00	6.00
Private study hours			494.00
Total Contact hours			6.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			500.00

Private study

In addition to the supporting lectures, students will have meetings with an academic (staff) supervisor. It is expected that there will be an opportunity for students to meet their supervisor an average of once per week for the duration of the project (term weeks). However, the precise format and frequency of these meetings will be arranged between the supervisor and the student.

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Students will receive feedback on their progress during meetings with their academic supervisor.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Report	Contribution to preliminary design report	20.00
Report	Contribution to final design report	20.00
Presentation	Public exhibition	20.00
Oral Presentation	Individual oral presentation/viva examination of technical achievement and understanding	30.00
Group Project	Project commitment and independence	10.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

Resits for ELEC and XJEL modules are subject to the School's Resit Policy and the Code of Practice on Assessment (CoPA), which are available on Minerva. Students should be aware that, for some modules, a resit may only be conducted on an internal basis (with tuition) in the next academic session.

Reading list

There is no reading list for this module

Last updated: 10/08/2020 08:35:35

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