A FEW ACADEMIC EXPERIMENTS
by
Warren P. Seering
Weber-Shaughness Professor
Director, Center for Innovation in Product Development
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA 02139
Wednesday, April 28, 1999
1:25 - 2:15 p.m.
Room 102 ME
Broadcast on UNITE Channel B
Coffee will be available in 152 ME following the seminar
As with many universities, there is a good bit
of reflection going on at MIT about the question, ÒWhat
will be the role of The Institute in educating engineers over
the next quarter century?Ó An array of experiments in both
the domains of research and of education are under way. One set
of these experiments focuses on the idea that a great opportunity
for growth lies at the interface between the disciplines of engineering
and management. Among the ongoing experiments is establishment
of a Center for Innovation in Product Development. The CenterÕs
research program is designed to support the research activities
of engineering and management faculty that the Institute wants
to attract to teach prospective engineers and managers about bringing
successful products to the market. This is arguably the central
mission of engineering, yet it has received little emphasis in
engineering curricula. In this seminar, we will discuss the climate
for change at MIT, the opportunities and challenges associated
with collaboration among management and engineering faculty, and
the opportunities for research in the field of product development.
Several of the CenterÕs educational experiments will also
be described.
Professor Seering received his B.S. and M.S.
degrees from the University of Missouri at Columbia He continued
his graduate work at Stanford University, receiving the Ph.D.
in 1978. In the fall of 1978, Professor Seering was appointed
to the faculty of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at
MIT in the Systems and Design division. His work within the division
has focused on product development, machine design and the role
of computation in machine performance. Professor Seering has taught
courses in design, product development, system dynamics, and computer
programming and numerical methods. He has served several terms
as head of the Systems and Design division, which is made up of
30 faculty who work in the areas of design, engineering systems,
controls, and manufacturing. He is among the founding faculty
of MITÕs new Engineering Systems Division. Professor Seering
is currently serving as Director of the Center for Innovation
in Product Development which he founded in 1996 [ http://mit.edu/cipd/].
The CenterÕs faculty are drawn from the Schools of Engineering
and Management at MIT. Members of the Center conduct research
on product development practices in collaboration with employees
of cooperating companies. They also develop and teach courses
on product development. In 1982 Professor Seering received the
Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award from the Society of Automotive
Engineers for his efforts in educational development. Along with
his students, he has received numerous awards for design projects.
In 1985 he received a special commendation from the Trustees of
the Lincoln Arc Welding Foundation for his contributions to design
education. In 1983 Professor Seering received the Harold E. Edgerton
Award, given annually at MIT to one young faculty member for distinction
in teaching, research and scholarship. In 1993 he became a Fellow
of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
Informal Faculty Luncheon: Wednesday,
April 28, 1999, 11:45 am, Room 404, Campus Club. Prof. Seering
will be able to attend.
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