CI-TEAM Demonstration Project: Collaborative Research - A Sustainable Product Development Collaboratory

Wayne State University, Detroit MI

Investigators

Abstract

This Sustainable Product Development Collaboratory at Wayne State University is realizing a collaborative e-learning laboratory for sustainable design and manufacturing?a Sustainable Product Development Collaboratory?for conveying sustainability principles in the context of product architectural design, manufacturing, assembly, and supply chain decisions across a spectrum of active learners (i.e., K-12, university, and practitioners). Intellectual Merit : This collaboratory is creative and original because it will result in a holistic and broadly useable tool that will support cyber-based conceptual product design by integrating existing research in the following areas: distributed decision support, semantic assembly design, product architecture optimization, assembly and process analysis, supply chain configuration, life cycle assessment, and manufacturing education innovation, to address the needs across a spectrum of learners (K-12 students, engineering students, and practitioners). The project is delivering four outcomes. Outcome one: A user friendly and license-free web-based tool and interactive e-learning platform to educate users in sustainable design and manufacturing. This collaboratory is demonstrating the effects of different product designs on supply chain costs and environmental impacts with learner friendly examples (i.e., three ring binder, backpack, electric toothbrush, and bicycle). Researchers are overcoming limitations of the existing state of the art, which include a lack of scalable tools/technologies that can capture interdependencies between product design architecture and life cycle process requirements at all phases of product development, and the complexity of jointly improving the product and processes through flexible, representative models and algorithms. Outcome two: Secondary and post-secondary educational materials that provide hands-on, project-based activities in interaction with the Collaboratory. Outcome three: Evaluation tools to assess the educational impacts and competency of the Collaboratory in educating students about cyberinfrastructure, including assessment of students at the participating high school and universities and user adoption of the cyber-platform. To date, there has been a significant level of grassroots activities for sustainable design and manufacturing. However, engineering programs and manufacturing companies continue to struggle with methods to educate engineers in holistic product and process development with a view of life cycle costs and environmental effects. Outcome four: This research will engage high-school students and underrepresented college populations to promote a diverse cyber-ready workforce. Under the cyber-learner paradigm, users are experiencing and undertaking sustainable product design with consideration of product, process, and supply chain impacts facilitated by product architecture and environmental performance knowledge sets. Broader Impacts : The proposed work directly responds to the needs for a cyber-enabled workforce and sustainable engineering education by increasing awareness of product and environmental sustainability through cyber-based product design. Sustainability-related research has been shown to disproportionately attract students to STEM disciplines from underrepresented groups, and will broaden their involvement in next generation engineering education and research. To increase workforce preparedness for design and environmental sustainability, the Collaboratory is supporting the development of products and related supply chains for increased performance, reduced costs, and reduced environmental impacts (e.g., carbon footprint). Indeed, the trend towards outsourcing will lead to growth of the global carbon footprint, even without accounting for associated transportation, due to less efficient energy generation and manufacturing processes. The Collaboratory is directly supporting the product manufacturing industry by educating engineers about sustainable design through accessible cyber-based tools. These tools will help maintain the U.S. industry?s competitive edge by enhancing productivity, and quality and sustainability of mechanical products. Given the underrepresented student populations at participating universities, and in particular Wayne State in Detroit, the project will support societal educational needs by involving women and minority high school and university students in research and field studies. Successful implementation of the project will help to develop, at a modest cost, new pedagogy for academic institutions to integrate sustainability into engineering curricula, and prepare a skilled workforce that meets the needs of modern industry for sustainable product development. The proposed integrated learning environment will also advance high school students? multi-step problem solving skills through tangible, realistic examples. Finally, the project will enhance research and education infrastructure by extending the effects of previous research findings and by forming the basis for collaboration on other research and education projects.