42136 Design for Automation: Food and Beverage Production
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Subject handbook information prior to 2025 is available in the Archives.
Credit points: 2 cp
Result type: Grade and marks
Recommended studies:
Industrial Engineering, Design of Production Systems, Design of Mechanical and Mechatronic Systems, Industrial Automation.
Description
Automation and digitisation in the food and beverage manufacturing industry offers a business the opportunity to improve their traceability, quality control, product consistency, productivity and efficiency, and workplace safety. This subject focuses on design for automation related to the reduction of double handling processes, quality control processes to reduce variation, designing for pallet optimisation, pick and place technologies suitable for Food and Beverages processes, and inline robotics.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
Upon successful completion of this subject students should be able to:
| 1. | Identify automation opportunities for improving food and beverage manufacturing, encompassing traceability, quality control, productivity, efficiency, workplace safety and sustainability. (B.1) |
|---|---|
| 2. | Evaluate product and/or production processes to identify parts suitable for automation and those requiring redesign prior to automation. (D.1) |
| 3. | Develop a strategic automation proposal that encompasses manufacturing technologies, addresses food and beverage handling concerns and anticipates potential issues. (C.1) |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject also contributes specifically to the development of the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs):
- Socially Responsible: FEIT graduates identify, engage, and influence stakeholders, and apply expert judgment establishing and managing constraints, conflicts and uncertainties within a hazards and risk framework to define system requirements and interactivity. (B.1)
- Design Oriented: FEIT graduates apply problem solving, design thinking and decision-making methodologies in new contexts or to novel problems, to explore, test, analyse and synthesise complex ideas, theories or concepts. (C.1)
- Technically Proficient: FEIT graduates apply theoretical, conceptual, software and physical tools and advanced discipline knowledge to research, evaluate and predict future performance of systems characterised by complexity. (D.1)
Teaching and learning strategies
The course uses a combination of self-paced online content, interactive live sessions and industry relevant examples, activities and assessment.
The online component focuses on foundational knowledge which will then be extended in the live sessions. Concepts are presented using theory, high-quality videos and interactive text and practice activities. Learners build a broad introductory understanding of automation, the underlying concepts and relevance for adoption in industry. Each module contains practice activities to test knowledge and deepen understanding. Discussions are held using online discussion boards and during online classes.
The interactive live sessions will build on this understanding by presenting more content.
Content (topics)
The content of the microcredential is structured into four modules
1. Module 1: Introduction to production systems and performance measurement
- Topic 1: Production systems
- Topic 2: Performance measurement
2. Module 2: Fundamentals of automation
- Topic 3: Foundation of modern industrial automation
- Topic 4: Automation in F&B
3. Module 3: Design for manufacturing and automation
- Topic 5: Design for manufacturing
- Topic 6: Design thinking for automation
4. Module 4: Quality and safety issues in F&B automation
- Topic 7: Quality control and inspection automation with food quality and safety standards
- Topic 8: Product packaging and labelling automation
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Automation pitch
| Intent: | The intent of this task is to develop and communicate a proposal to improve an existing food and beverage (F&B) production process through automation and will prepare the learner to identify and implement automation improvements to F&B manufacturing processes at their workplace. |
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| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses the following subject learning objectives (SLOs): 1, 2 and 3 This assessment task contributes to the development of the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs): B.1, C.1 and D.1 |
| Type: | Presentation |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 100% |
| Length: | Should not exceed 10 slides, duration of the presentation should not exceed 5-7 minutes |
Minimum requirements
In order to pass the subject, a student must achieve an overall mark of 50% or more.
Required texts
All required texts and content will be provided through UTS Canvas.
Recommended texts
All recommended texts and content will be provided through UTS Canvas.