Engineering
Unit 1: The Engineered World
Level: 1 and 2
Unit type: Core
Guided learning hours: 30
Assessment type: External
Unit introduction
What is ‘engineering’? Is it using materials and processes to manufacture a single item? Is it applying new technologies to the mass production of well-known products? Or is it implementing methods to reduce waste and improve the sustainability of energy sources? Engineering is all of these things and many more. It affects all aspects of our lives, from the daily use of time-saving appliances to performance materials applied in ways we may never have imagined.
In this unit, you will discover the world of engineering. You will investigate the processes used to manufacture modern products within different engineering sectors. You will also study some of the new developments in materials and engineering technology that have an impact on life today – or will have in the very near future.
Engineers must be aware that products and processes may require the use of scarce resources that could have an impact on the environment. When an engineered product is made, used and disposed of, any waste of energy and environmental damage must be minimised at all stages. Therefore, you will also investigate waste reduction and sustainability issues from an engineering perspective, discovering how engineers can help control and reduce environmental damage.
Learning aims
In this unit you will:
- know about engineering processes used to produce modern engineered products;
- know about developments in engineering materials and technologies;
- understand how engineering contributes to a sustainable future.
Unit 2: Investigating an Engineering Product
Level: 1 and 2
Unit type: Core
Guided learning hours: 30
Assessment type: Internal
Unit introduction
Have you ever wondered how engineered products progress from an idea in a designer’s head to the finished article ready for use? When a product is being designed to meet a need, crucial decisions must be taken. The designer must ask key questions about the product, for example what form might it take; what functions must it fulfil; what user and performance requirements must be included; and what materials should be used to make it fit for purpose.
Materials used in a product are not selected at random. From the thousands of options available, materials are chosen on the basis of their specific properties and whether they match the needs of the product.
When a product is manufactured, particular production processes are used so that component parts are made accurately, quickly and to the same high quality standards time after time. As part of the quality assurance (QA) process, quality control (QC) checks are carried out during manufacture on materials and component parts to ensure the finished product reaches users in the best possible condition.
In this unit you will investigate a manufactured product to learn what considerations a designer would keep in mind when writing a technical specification.
You will investigate the materials and commercial production processes used to manufacture the product, in order to learn why they were used in preference to others that might also have been appropriate. You will also learn how certain materials and processes can affect the environment.
In studying quality issues, you will come to understand how the quality of a product is assured throughout its manufacture, and you will learn how specific forms of quality control contribute to overall quality assurance.
Learning aims
In this unit you will:
- understand the performance requirements of an engineered product
- understand the selection of specific materials for use in the components that make up an engineered product
- understand the selection and use of manufacturing processes in an engineered product
- understand the quality issues related to an engineered product.
Unit 3: Health and Safety in Engineering
Level: 1 and 2
Unit type: Optional specialist
Guided learning hours: 30
Assessment type: Internal
Unit introduction
The ability to work safely in an engineering environment is essential for your own wellbeing and that of others. This unit will help you to understand health and safety requirements and to know how to prepare and carry out an activity safely in your engineering work space. In this way, you can enjoy all the challenges that engineering activities can offer without undue fear for your own safety or for that of others.
The initial focus of the unit is on gaining awareness of the dangers of not working within appropriate legislation and procedures. In the event of an incident, it is essential that you know how to respond. This unit will take you through the important legislation and policies that you need to know.
You will then consider how materials and equipment should be handled and the most appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) to use when undertaking particular engineering activities. Identifying risks is an important activity here.
The knowledge and understanding gained through studying this unit will be put to good use in other areas of engineering study and working life.
Learning aims
In this unit you will:
- understand safe and effective working in an engineering workplace;
- know how to follow procedures and undertake a work activity safely.
Unit 5: Engineering Materials
Level: 1 and 2
Unit type: Optional specialist
Guided learning hours: 30
Assessment type: Internal
Unit introduction
Have you ever wondered how large commercial aircraft take off and fly thousands of passengers and their luggage to destinations around the world? The answer lies in the ability of skilled engineers to successfully identify and use a range of materials that combine a number of factors, such as strength to weight ratio, cost and availability. Engineering technicians need to be able to identify materials that are specified on engineering drawings, production plans and servicing schedules. Some materials, such as copper and lead, have a distinctive appearance, but others are not so easy to tell apart. This is particularly true of the different grades of steel, polymers, composites, brass and aluminium alloys. Very often, an engineering technician has to select raw materials in the form of wire, bars, sheet, tube and plate and also components such as rivets, nuts and bolts from stores. It is essential for engineers to select the correct material if a product or a replaced component is to be fit for its intended purpose.
This unit will develop your knowledge of a range of common materials you may encounter in engineering, as well as their properties, uses, availability, and how they contribute to a sustainable environment.
You will be expected to identify a range of ferrous, non-ferrous and non-metallic materials and know about the form in which they are obtained. You will also need to know about the properties that make individual materials suitable for particular tasks. You will need to know about the way in which materials are colour coded when stored, as well as other material identification standards that are commonly used, such as the British and European Standard classifications. Armed with this knowledge, and using information, abbreviations and symbols supplied on engineering drawings, you will then be able to select the correct form and size of the material specified for a particular application. You will conduct some tests, to investigate properties of materials and their suitability in engineering applications. You will also be introduced to the sustainability issues that surround the use of a range of engineering materials and come to understand how this is a major consideration when developing products for the present day and in the future.
Learning aims
In this unit you will:
- A know about the properties of common engineering materials and selection for engineering applications
- B know about the supply and sustainable use of engineering materials and selection for an engineering product or activity.