DA4073 - Design and Materials

What will I learn on this module?

You will learn the relevant principles of material science as applicable to common civil engineering materials, including steel, concrete and timber, as well as some more novel materials. You will learn how to select suitable materials for different civil engineering designs based on their likely loading, including both imposed and environmental loads (heat, flood etc.), and in the context of requiring a safe design. You will learn how to consider sustainable development in selecting materials for civil engineering design, including consideration of the whole life cycle. You will be introduced to the concept of limit state design and how Eurocodes and other relevant standards are set up and employed in design.

How will I learn on this module?

Most of your learning on this degree apprenticeship module will be in your workplace. Your involvement in civil engineering tasks will enable you to put into context the theoretical material that you will study at University, thereby cementing your understanding. You will do this in conjunction with your workplace mentor/Supervising Civil Engineer, appropriate members of your team, and with the assistance of your University workplace coach.

The module will include a range of learning materials and opportunities, such as online presentations, notes, seminar/tutorial questions, video links and digital reading materials. All these resources will be arranged in a convenient learning journey, giving you a clear expectation of the content to be studied and tasks you will complete on a weekly basis.

How will I be supported academically on this module?

During your normal working day, your industrial mentor/Supervising Civil Engineer will support your learning through the allocation of appropriate work tasks relevant to the theoretical content of the module, allowing you to contextualise and cement your knowledge. The University will monitor this educational process.

University academic staff will support you in formally-scheduled teaching. This arrangement will give you ample opportunity to ask questions to clarify and deepen your understanding of the module content, as well as to seek specific help, for example, with your preparation for assessment. At other times, you will have access to University academic staff via telephone, email, and the University’s virtual learning environment (VLE). These media will allow you to access and make full use of the support and guidance available to you.

What will I be expected to read on this module?

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. The reading list for this module can be found at: http://readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk
(Reading List service online guide for academic staff this containing contact details for the Reading List team – http://library.northumbria.ac.uk/readinglists)

What will I be expected to achieve?

Knowledge & Understanding:

MLO1: Explain the scientific principles involved in predicting the behaviour of a variety of civil engineering materials under load

Intellectual / Professional skills & abilities:

MLO2: Apply practical and laboratory skills

MLO3: Explain the characteristics of examples of materials, equipment and processes commonly considered in your employing organization’s business

Personal Values Attributes (Global / Cultural awareness, Ethics, Curiosity) (PVA):

MLO4: Demonstrate a strong commitment to health, safety and welfare.

How will I be assessed?

Summative assessment will be by coursework. It will be worth 100% of the module marks and will cover all the module learning outcomes.

Formative assessment (sometimes from occasional homework tasks) will be by verbal or written (digital) support from University academic staff. In line with the workplace approach of a degree apprenticeship, you will be expected to take on-board verbal feedback from your workplace mentor/Supervising Civil Engineer, which is the case generally with employee performance.

Assessment feedback will be mapped between summative assessments from different modules, so that you receive clear guidance on improving work, based on performance in assessments in different modules. This will be made explicit to you via digital pro-forma as well as verbally.

Pre-requisite(s)

N/A

Co-requisite(s)

N/A

Module abstract

All civil engineering deals with materials, most commonly steel and concrete, but also earth, rock and many novel materials. How materials behave under load is fundamental to being able to consider them in design. This module introduces you to relevant principles of materials science for common and less common civil engineering materials, enables you to deepen your understanding of them in practical activities, and then to reflect on how they are specified for different designs being undertaken in industry. You will be introduced to the concept of limit state design and how Eurocodes and other relevant standards are set up and employed in design. Assessment is a piece of coursework.

Course info

Credits 20

Level of Study Undergraduate

Mode of Study 5 years Part-Time

Department Mechanical and Construction Engineering

Location City Campus, Northumbria University

City Newcastle

Start September 2024

Fee Information

Module Information

All information is accurate at the time of sharing. 

Full time Courses are primarily delivered via on-campus face to face learning but could include elements of online learning. Most courses run as planned and as promoted on our website and via our marketing materials, but if there are any substantial changes (as determined by the Competition and Markets Authority) to a course or there is the potential that course may be withdrawn, we will notify all affected applicants as soon as possible with advice and guidance regarding their options. It is also important to be aware that optional modules listed on course pages may be subject to change depending on uptake numbers each year.  

Contact time is subject to increase or decrease in line with possible restrictions imposed by the government or the University in the interest of maintaining the health and safety and wellbeing of students, staff, and visitors if this is deemed necessary in future.

 

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