SE CAPSTONE: Implementing a systems engineering framework for multidisciplinary capstone design

Abstract

In this paper we discuss a pilot project at Stevens Institute of Technology to develop a systems engineering (SE) framework for multidisciplinary capstone design which can be a model for broad implementation. It is part of an initiative involving 14 institutions (including all the military academies), sponsored by the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (ASD(R&E)) STEM Development Office to incorporate SE in undergraduate capstone design. The initiative is a clear demonstration of the significance placed by DoD on the need to have graduating engineers educated in the overarching significance of systems engineering for the development of large-scale and complex systems, and to have those graduates develop some foundational SE competencies. The distinguishing features of the SE framework being developed at Stevens are: it builds on early exposure to SE concepts in core design courses; it provides a series of workshops through the course of the capstone project to teach SE concepts in what approximates to a just-in-time mode; and it engages graduate design students with the undergraduates to perform an interdisciplinary capstone of significant scope, working with external stakeholders and mentors. The goals that are addressed in the project are connected directly to primary SE Competency Areas of DoD (SPRDE-SE/PSE). Assessment is applied locally at the authors' institution and via an external assessor to the overall 14-school program, to determine the progress in meeting the institutional and consortium educational goals. The Stevens project has involved working with various stakeholders, within and associated with the Department of Defense, to address a need for an expeditionary housing system for the military, with a major focus on integrated alternate energy sources and associated micro-grid. This has application to both forward operational units and for disaster relief missions. This paper reports on the implementation of the project and preliminary findings. © 2011 American Society for Engineering Education.