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Project Based Approach to Introduce Building System Design in an Electrical Engineering Curriculum Abstract

The current demand for engineers with fundamental understanding of systems design in buildings is a growing niche in industry. Some universities are recognizing this need and are introducing new courses and/or new programs to provide students with this knowledge. Approximately sixteen universities across the USA are offering undergraduate and graduate degrees in Architectural Engineering (AE) with emphases on the electrical, lighting, acoustical, mechanical and structural building system design. In the electrical and lighting field, students are designing systems with emphases on efficiency, implementation of renewable resources and conservation of energy. A basic understanding and an overview of this material can be introduced into current electrical engineering curriculum courses at the junior level in universities without such programs. This introduction will serve as means to introduce one such critical and practical implementation of the fundamental theory covered in the classroom. This approach has been implemented in a current junior electrical course at the University of Idaho and will be the subject of this paper. The practical implementation of fundamental engineering theory, the National Electrical Code and its application and methods to conserve energy are covered in the lectures and are explored by students in two separate projects. Student participation, learning and engagement in the material have made a difference in their approach to electrical machinery, power calculations and perspective on their roles as future engineers. Work samples from the student’s projects will be presented and an assessment and observation of these samples and the student involvement will be discussed.

I - Introduction

Engineering programs within colleges and universities are adapting to technological advances and society needs by introducing new courses, new programs and concurrently implementing innovative methods to complement the class room teaching. Fundamental engineering theory concepts are still the core material in introductory courses, however, implementation and applications of this theory is becoming more and more specialized. Specialized fields in engineering disciplines continue to grow in order to meet this demand. As a result engineering curricula must provide relevant examples for students, be based on the needs of society, and develop methods used by real world engineers1.

One such specialized field is the current demand for engineers with fundamental understanding of building system design. This specialization is a growing niche in industry. Approximately sixteen universities across the USA are offering undergraduate and graduate degrees in Architectural Engineering (AE) with emphases on electrical, lighting, acoustical, mechanical, and structure systems2. These systems constitute a building system design. In the electrical and lighting field, students are learning the fundamental theory of electrical circuits, single and three phase systems, power calculations, basic machinery and transformers. This material is then applied to the electrical building design via an introduction to the National electrical Code (NEC)3. An emphasis is focused on designing practical electrical systems with efficiency,

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Alahmad, M., & Hess, H., & Johnson, B. (2007, June), Project Based Approach To Introduce Building System Design In An Electrical Engineering Curriculum Paper presented at 2007 Annual Conference & Exposition, Honolulu, Hawaii. 10.18260/1-2--2506