Emerging Trends in Manufacturing

Manufacturing isn't just "how parts get made" anymore — it's a modeling problem, where you predict cutting forces, tool wear, and deposition behavior from physics rather than rules of thumb, then search that model for good process parameters. You'll derive objective functions for turning and milling operations, run evolutionary and Bayesian optimization in MATLAB, work through homework and a research-paper-style project, and present on a current trend like additive manufacturing. It sits at the intersection of the IE optimization toolkit and real shop-floor processes, which is why it's worth taking if you want manufacturing to be more than a black box on a process sheet.