Welcome to this virtual tour of the Department of Industrial Engineering at Stellenbosch University.
In this video, we will provide you with an overview of industrial engineering at Stellenbosch University,
and tell you a bit more about the value that industrial engineering can add to your career.
Hopefully, by the end of this video, you will know a lot more about what an industrial
engineering career encompasses, and be excited about joining a department that is versatile,
forward thinking, and at the forefront of the industrial engineering discipline.
Before asking ‘Why study industrial engineering?’, let's first look at
‘What is industrial engineering?’
Industrial engineering is the discipline of engineering dealing with the optimization of complex processes or systems.
The field of industrial engineering is concerned with the development, improvement, implementation, and evaluation of integrated systems.
These intricately connected systems are made up of people, money, information, knowledge, equipment,
energy, materials, analysis and synthesis. Such systems and processes produce results
that can be specified, predicted and evaluated, by consolidating the mathematical, physical and
social sciences, and the principles and methods of engineering design.
Industrial engineers therefore leave no stone unturned in their pursuit of improvement.
Operations and financial management are business-oriented disciplines
that are at the heart of many approaches followed by industrial engineers.
However, we follow a scientific approach, by emphasizing mathematical rigour and quantitative analysis.
In order to better understand the work lives of industrial engineers,
consider the following assortment of practical jobs performed by industrial engineers.
Industrial engineers are, for example, capable of reconfiguring airport check-in services,
so as to shorten queues and improve passenger satisfaction.
Industrial engineers use mathematically derived concepts towards solving practical problems analytically.
Another type of industrial engineering job is the design of more efficient car assembly lines, helping to save manufacturing costs.
Another job is the streamlining of an operating room, so that it is safer, faster, and easier to use.
Industrial engineers are equipped with knowledge of industrial ergonomics and behavioural mapping, which can be a lifesaver, literally.
The last example relates to the use of simulation, a powerful tool in an industrial engineer's arsenal.
For example, industrial engineers can simulate urban cities, so as to understand how
cities are likely to evolve, which can support policymakers towards making better decisions.
By now, you hopefully have a better understanding of how many different,
yet useful possibilities await if you pursue an industrial engineering career.
There are certain qualities that will further contribute towards
the unique value proposition that you, as an industrial engineer, can offer.
The first differentiating quality is productivity and efficiency.
Industrial engineers seek to optimize or improve systems or processes.
Analytical thinking:
Industrial engineers possess the ability to analyze and use scientific and engineering principles towards solving problems.
Systems thinking:
Industrial engineers adopt an approach to problem solving that considers viewing problems as part of an overall system.
Integrate physical and social sciences:
Industrial engineers use engineering-based knowledge of mathematical and physical science, whilst taking human factors into account.
Economic sensitivity: Industrial engineers are known for
their understanding of economics and the impact of decisions on an enterprise's economic wellbeing.
And finally, management focus and ability: Industrial engineers are able to lead resources
and projects, and also to advise on the management processes of an enterprise.
This unique combination of qualities is what separates industrial engineers from any other discipline.
It is also this unique combination that future-proofs an industrial engineering degree,
especially so at Stellenbosch University.
The value of industrial engineering is reflected in the achievements made by the frontrunners in the field.
Let us look at a few of the most influential industrial engineers, starting
with the most famous of them all, Henry Ford, who was the founder of the Ford Motor Company.
He is universally regarded as the 'father' of modern assembly lines used in mass production.
Another influential industrial engineer is Lillian Gilbreth, the so-called 'mother' of modern management.
She pioneered job standardization, incentive wage plans, and job simplification.
Moving on to more modern times, Tim Cook is another distinguished industrial engineer.
As CEO, he led Apple to the crowning achievement of being the first public company worth $1 trillion.
In his early days at Apple, he made significant contributions by
using his industrial engineering background to develop an expertise in managing supply lines.
Another prominent industrial engineer is Meredith Westafer, a senior industrial engineer at Tesla.
She manages the design and layout of the company's prestigious Gigafactory,
which will be the world's largest factory, based on footprint.
It is quite clear that industrial engineers have made significant contributions, both historically and currently.
This is a trend that will only strengthen, as reported in various global market forecasts.
Industrial engineering is certainly on the up. The Fourth – and even Fifth – Industrial Revolution will only increase demand.
So far, the focus has been on industrial engineering in general and within a global context.
Let us now turn our attention to industrial engineering in a South African context.
Based on statistical surveys, industrial engineering is one of the
scarcest skills in South Africa, with abundant job opportunities in various industries.
Industrial engineers are sought after in various sectors. These include manufacturing, consulting,
retail, logistics and fintech. Industrial engineers are sought after by many big companies,
such as Volkswagen, Deloitte, Takealot, Woolworths, Capitec,
Discovery and Allan Gray – to name but a few. So industrial engineers can choose from an
illustrious portfolio of companies in the South African job market.
Let us now zoom in further, and focus on the Department of Industrial Engineering at Stellenbosch University.
This photo shows the entire Engineering Faculty of Stellenbosch University.
Label 2 indicates the location of the Department of Industrial Engineering,
which is housed in a dedicated five-level, newly refurbished, state-of-the-art building.
Label 3 indicates the location of our laboratories, which include a rapid product development lab,
a reverse engineering lab, a quality control lab, and lastly, a metrology lab.
Let us now turn our attention to the interior of the industrial engineering building.
As mentioned before, the building is new, and therefore offers a modern, inviting, and professional environment.
Large classrooms, equipped with high-quality projectors and advanced computers,
help facilitate an engaging teaching experience
and empowers students to harness the benefits of technology-driven education.
The building also contains secure open-plan working areas for postgraduate students.
Here they are co-located with other postgraduate students in similar focus areas,
which creates close-knit collaborative research groups.
There are meetings rooms available on each floor, where students can discuss work with lecturers and tutors.
Lecturers are situated in close proximity to both undergraduate and postgraduate students.
Students therefore have more intimate and direct access to the intellectual offering of
the building, which is certainly a catalyst for academic excellence.
Our attention now turns to the undergraduate curriculum of the Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering.
Although the first year of undergraduate study is largely generic for the different engineering disciplines,
there is a discipline-specific module that serves as a differentiating fact.
During the second semester of the first year, there is an introductory module
that covers a few fundamental themes of industrial engineering, such as industrial management,
operations, research and quality management.
The second year of the programme exposes students to elementary, yet important domains within industrial engineering.
For example, in the first semester, the moduleEngineering Economics 214 introduces fundamental notions of accounting;
while Production Management 212 introduces students to operations management,
sustainability, lean supply chains, and materials requirement planning.
In the second semester, Industrial Programming 244 focuses on developing students' proficiency in
Excel and other statistical programming languages. Manufacturing Processes 244 introduces students to
key topics, ranging from the shaping of plastics, to mechanical assembly and additive manufacturing.
During the third year, there is great emphasis on the central themes of industrial engineering.
Manufacturing Systems 344 introduces students to network automation of manufacturing systems;
while Production Management 314 teaches students important concepts relating to facility location,
facility layout, and demand forecasting.
Data Analytics 344 focuses on various fundamental aspects of data science, such as data mining and machine learning.
Operations Research 345 introduces students to problem solving by means of mathematical modelling.
I'm now going to take you from our fourth year. Our fourth year,
which is the final year, focuses entirely on industrial engineering-related modules.
Topics range from workstation and tool design to the development and implementation of information systems.
Other important notions, such as queueing theory, and the powerful tool of simulation are also introduced.
Organizational culture, conflict management and labour legislation are also included in the final year of study.
These topics are central to managing organizational behaviour.
The culmination of the undergraduate programme is represented by the so-called Industrial Project,
but we all know it as the skripsie. Students are required to apply their accumulated knowledge
towards solving a real-world problem over the course of the final year.
Projects range from 3-D printing of surfboards, to the simulation of forest fires in conservation areas.
The Department of Industrial Engineering at Stellenbosch University focuses on diverse
research themes, each of which represents the industrial engineering discipline as a whole.
The research themes are: operations research and decision support, operations management,
systems modelling, engineering management, data science, and of course, manufacturing.
Let's consider manufacturing in greater detail. It consists of three main subareas, and these are:
smart sustainable advanced manufacturing, micromanufacturing, and additive manufacturing.
From the macro assembly of products to manufacturing facial implants
using 3-D printers – we've got it all, and you will love it!
The next major research area is data science. And this focuses on the development of innovative
machine learning and optimization techniques to produce novel, efficient, and robust data science
technologies for use in industrial engineering. Application domains include forecasting,
customer segmentation, production quality control, and supply chain performance prediction.
Operations and supply chain management is another major research theme.
The main subareas here are physical asset management, supply chain management, and learning factories.
Operations research is another major research theme. It focuses
on the development of mathematical models, and their incorporation into computerized systems
to support scientifically justifiable and effective decisions in industry.
Some valuable real-world problems addressed by operations research include:
routing and scheduling decisions for fleets of delivery vehicles;
employee duty roster or timetabling decisions for the manufacturing and health sectors;
shelf space allocation and inventory decisions for retailers;
crop irrigation and agriculture pest control strategy; and lastly, optimal facility or production plant layout.
The last major research theme is engineering management,
which consists of enterprise engineering, sustainable systems, health systems engineering,
industrial policy, and beneficiation of minerals. Overall, problems addressed in this research theme
range from the conceptualization of novel, engineering-based solutions to challenges faced
by the healthcare sector, to the analysis, development and evaluation of inclusive innovations.
According to a recent survey by the South African Institute of Industrial Engineering,
almost a third of industrial engineers have a postgraduate qualification.
Fortunately, our department offers both a diverse spectrum of research themes,
and a selection of top academics that are at the forefront of their field. Our department boasts
over 20 lecturing and supervisory staff, of which a vast majority are professors or have doctorates.
The following postgraduate options are available at our department:
A postgraduate diploma, a structured master's, a research master's, and of course, a PhD.
We just want to conclude by saying thank you for watching this virtual tour of our field of study in our dynamic department.
We hope that you can now make an informed decision regarding your possible pursuit of
an industrial engineering degree – at Stellenbosch University, of course!
For any additional queries, please contact the following staff, or you can visit our website, as shown on the screen.
We look forward to welcoming you to our industrial engineering family. Thank you.