Manufacture Materials Design

You will focus on the interactions between manufacturing, materials and design rather than studying each one independently. Online texts are combined with investigative learning activities to help you develop the ability to make manufacturing decisions. The manufacturing processes covered are casting, forming, cutting, joining, additive manufacturing, and surface engineering. By gaining a deeper understanding of the scientific and technological principles that govern these basic processes, you will be able to play a more effective role as a professional engineer. Additional topics introduce management of the supply chain and key ideas in assuring the quality of production. Manupedia, an online database of manufacturing processes, plays a key role in your study.

The main study texts are presented exclusively online. Each of the separate topics covered in the online texts is complemented by a number of investigative or exploratory learning activities. One of the key elements in your study will be our online database of manufacturing processes – the Manupedia. You will use this as a rich source of information about different processes and you will create your own Manupedia entries based on your investigations. You will use these to build up your own portfolio of information which you will then draw on to complete your assignments.

The end-of-module assessment is an extended case study, based on a product that you will research, drawing on the full range of information in the module and allowing you to demonstrate the skills you have developed.

Vocational relevance

This Manufacture Materials Design module from The Open University is for engineers with an interest in manufacturing, whether from a production, materials or design perspective.