2024-2025 Undergraduate Catalog & Student Handbook
Department of Mechanical Engineering
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Mechanical Engineering
Department Chair: Dr. Matt Bohm, Professor
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| Degree Programs |
Mechanical Engineering
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Industrial Engineering
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The Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering degree program at Florida Polytechnic University is designed to provide a synergetic foundation in the discipline of Mechanical Engineering through broad educational experiences. The program offers concentrations in Aerospace, Materials and Advanced Manufacturing, Energy, Operations Research, Simulation, and Advanced Topics. Each Mechanical Engineering concentration is offered on a two-year cycle for junior and seniors (i.e. ME students completing all the courses in the freshman and sophomore levels of the ME plan of study). The program seeks to inculcate an understanding of the fundamental principles of science and engineering by providing students with project-based learning experiences and applied research opportunities.
Industrial engineering students obtain a strong foundation in principles and practices to contribute to innovative solutions for complex systems through the integration of people, money, machines, materials, time, and resources for wide range of real-word applications. Students will gain knowledge in a breath of technical disciplines including design, manufacturing, and information systems, and hone their professional skills in engineering and project management. In today’s world, students are presented with the opportunity to be ‘decision makers’ and ‘system integrators’ using mathematical models and methods, artificial intelligence, remote sensing for technology driven innovation to offer pioneering solutions for buildings, factories, hospitals, materials handling, transportation systems, and for many more industries in both the public and private sectors. Industrial engineering students will be workforce ready with the technical knowledge and professional skills to adapt to our ever-changing environment, societal, economic, and political challenges, and emerging technologies.
Bachelor of Science, Mechanical Engineering
See Program Description for full curriculum and additional details.
Concentrations
Advanced Topics
Students select any four ME elective courses to create their own concentration in Advanced Topics.
Aerospace
Aerospace focuses on industries in which engineers design or build aircraft, missiles, and systems for national defense, or spacecraft. Complementing the general mechanical engineering principles, this concentration covers subjects such as propulsion, stability and control, structures, mechanics, and aerodynamics, which is the study of how air interacts with moving objects. Looking forward, the Aerospace concentration provides students with additional courses to pursue career options at aerospace companies and may spark an interest in undergraduate research and advanced study in graduate school.
Materials and Advanced Manufacturing
Materials and advanced manufacturing focuses on expanding knowledge gained in the core mechanical engineering courses to create and improve products and/or process with ‘cutting edge’ technology. Understanding the unique properties of metals, ceramics, polymers or plastics, and novel materials like foams or biomaterials, allows engineers transform them and create value in useful products. The manufacturing processes must be innovative to meet today’s demands in global market place with cost and sustainability specifications, yet develop practical practices that also improve safety, efficiency, and versatility. This concentration provides a foundation in the fabrication, characterization, modeling and rapid prototyping of such materials and product.
Energy
Central Florida (as well as the broader state) is home to several companies and firms that support agriculture processing, mining, power-production, and green/eco-construction industries. Common themes within these industries are the need for large machinery to transmit large mechanical forces, operate under high pressures within a thermodynamic cycle, convert energy, and or heat or cool areas in extreme/semi-extreme environments. Students will build on their mechanical engineering core courses with a focus on more specific topics in the traditional areas of mechanical engineering including Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning (HVAC), Computer Manufacturing and Control, Energy Conversion and Sustainability, and Principles of Turbomachinery.
Operations Research
Operations research focuses on modeling and solving operation efficiency challenges, and predicting and demonstrating value-added gains like cost savings. Professionals with expertise in this field are often found in environments with complex operations like ports and shipyards, where they are responsible for managing and improving traffic flow. Study in this concentration combines information technology, applied engineering, and social sciences to provide diverse technical skills, entrepreneurial abilities, and a global viewpoint required to manage the governing forces that move within the marketplace.
Simulation
Focuses on modeling and simulation covering a variety of applications in mechanical engineering including solid mechanics, thermo and fluid sciences, life cycle analysis (LCA) with product design and sustainability and supported with a choice of advanced mathematics courses. This concentration adds depth and breadth to student’s core mechanical with engineering computer-aided engineering analysis tools and their use in engineering analysis, which is widely used in industry and research.
Florida Common Prerequisites for Mechanical Engineering
Students who started as freshmen at Florida Poly (native students) must complete general education requirements and the following courses to enter the degree program as a junior:
Transfer students must meet general education requirements and satisfy the following Florida State Common Prerequisites to enter the degree program as a junior:
CHM2045/2045L
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or CHM X045C
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or CHS X440/X440L
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or CHS X440/CHMX045L
& MAC 2311
& MAC 2312
& MAC 2313
& MAP 2302
& PHY 2048/2048L
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or PHY X048C
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or PHY X043/X048L
& PHY 2049/2049L
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or PHY X049C
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or PHY X044/X049L
Mechanical Engineering Student Outcomes
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Student Outcomes
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Upon completion of the Mechanical Engineering Degree, students will possess:
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1. an ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics
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2. an ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors
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3. an ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
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4. an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts
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5. an ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
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6. an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions
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7. an ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.
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Florida Common Prerequistites for Industrial Engineering
Students who started as freshmen at Florida Poly (native students) must complete general education requirements and the following courses to enter the degree program as a junior:
Transfer students must meet general education requirements and satisfy the following Florida State Common Prerequisites to enter the degree program as a junior:
CHM2045/2045L
-
or CHM X045C
-
or CHS X440/X440L
-
or CHS X440/CHMX045L
& MAC 2311
& MAC 2312
& MAC 2313
& MAP 2302
& PHY 2048/2048L
-
or PHY X048C
-
or PHY X043/X048L
& PHY 2049/2049L
-
or PHY X049C
-
or PHY X044/X049L
Industrial Engineering Student Outcomes
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Student Outcomes
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Upon completion of the Industrial Engineering Degree, students will possess:
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1. an ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics
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2. an ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors
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3. an ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
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4. an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts
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5. an ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
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6. an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions
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7. an ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.
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