Assignment 4: Engineering Proposal (20% of final grade + 10% for presentations)

For this assignment you will produce a written proposal for a creative engineering innovation in collaboration with three to six other students, as a team. Possibly building on work done in assignment 2 (the memo) or assignment 3 (the lab report), you will identify a need for a specific engineering innovation, the design and production of which you will conceive and propose. Similar to the previous assignments, you will locate the need for this innovation within the New York City area. This will help you keep the proposal locally meaningful and facilitate field research. 

In the written component of your proposal, introduce the need for the innovation or the need for an engineering-based improvement on an existing innovation. Describe the technical environment that is affected by or affects the innovation. Discuss engineering innovations that have been proposed to meet similar needs but would not have worked, or innovations in effect that do not work or that could be improved upon. Write a technical description of your innovation.  This will include graphics and spec sheets. Write the process of the innovation itself, and the process of building the innovation.  Estimate cost, time, materials, labor and power, and any other necessary and important factors.

You will also give an oral presentation of your proposal in class. In the oral presentation you can use charts, pictures, videos, graphs and handouts. Every member of your team will participate in the presentation. Remember to specify what each member of the team did for the project.

Determine among yourselves who will be responsible for which project components. Identify individual strengths and work with these.  Who is your team leader?  Who is the best speaker?  Who is most familiar with the technology you choose to use?  Who is the best writer?  You will organize your work online, in class and outside class, and document team progress in weekly reports. Take the time to decide together how best to collaborate. The success of your project depends largely on how well you organize your work. This quick guide to working in teams will help you get started.

Length of written proposal: 7-10 pages

Due Dates:

5/3 – First Draft
5/17 – Final Draft