Advanced Manufacturing Skills Bootcamp

This innovative bootcamp aims to challenge and empower you to develop versatile, advanced manufacturing technological awareness at appropriate fundamental level. This is required in the current and future manufacturing sector with the advent of (and advancement in) industry 4.0 and cyber-physical technologies.

Course duration

This course will run over 10 weeks between 4 March and 10 May. For more details please contact CUSkillsBootcamp@cusltd.co.uk

Venue

This course will be delivered online.

Qualification

Upon successful completion of this course, you will receive a Certificate of Achievement. You must attend at least 80% of all online sessions to receive a Certificate of Achievement at the end of the course.

Why you should study this course

Employability skills 

This course has been designed to help you develop core employability skills, including:

• critical thinking and problem-solving within the remit of Advanced Manufacturing at fundamental level.
• the skills needed to advance and gain appropriate employment
• teamwork and collaboration
• oral and written communication skills
• professionalism and industrial best practices.

Industry relevance

This course has been designed such that it is industry relevant within current trends in Advanced Manufacturing at the appropriate level. For example, students will be exposed to 2D and 3D CAD modelling supported with relevant simulation demonstration and focus on the key elements of IoT, Digital Twin and Lean Manufacturing concepts at fundamental level.

Academic Support

Academic staff on this course will provide support online.

Teaching and Learning

Our experienced academic staff will provide engaging and stimulating class sessions, bringing in their industry technical experience and research to the virtual classroom.

Flexibility

This course is delivered online, therefore offering you the opportunity to study from home.

About Skills Bootcamps

Skills Bootcamps are flexible courses of up to 16 weeks for adults aged 19 or over and can give you the opportunity to build up valuable sector-specific skills based on local employer demand and can provide a direct path to a job on completion. They are free to individuals. Where an employer is training an existing employee, they must contribute to the cost of the course. For small or medium sized enterprise: £400 and large sized enterprise: £1200. Please contact CUSkillsBootcamp@cusltd.co.uk for more information.

Skills Bootcamps are aimed at adults who are either unemployed, in work, self-employed, looking to change career or returning to work after a break. They are an opportunity to learn and develop technical skills in the chosen Skills Bootcamp. We encourage all eligible adults to apply, including those from underrepresented groups.

The Advanced Manufacturing Bootcamp course runs over 10 weeks between 4 March and 10 May. Following successful completion you will be supported by Gradcore's Employability Team for up to three months to help develop your employability skills in preparation for job interviews.

You do not need any qualifications but will need to meet eligibility criteria and entry requirements (please refer to the Entry Requirements section for further information).

Places are limited and will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis to eligible applicants. Please note that individuals are only eligible to participate in one Skills Bootcamp per financial year and must not be on more than one Skills Bootcamp at any one time, but you can apply for multiple Skills Bootcamps.

Collaborations with other organisations

West Midlands Combined Authority

Gradcore

• What you'll study

  All sessions are compulsory.

  The fundamentals

  • Health and safety in the engineering workplace.
  • Communications for engineering technicians.
  • Mathematics for engineering technicians.

  Introduction to manufacturing

  • What is manufacturing?
  • Design for manufacture, assembly, disassembly and service.
  • Environmentally conscious design, sustainable manufacturing and product life cycle.
  • Selection of materials.
  • Selection of manufacturing processes.
  • Industry 4.0 and challenges of manufacturing organisations.
  • Trends in manufacturing.

  Materials selection

  • Properties of engineering materials.
  • Mechanical behaviour, testing and manufacturing properties of materials.
  • Types of engineering materials.
  • Selection of a manufacturing process.

  Standard/classical manufacturing processes

  • Metal casting process.
  • Forming and shaping process.
  • Joining process.
  • Heat treatment.
  • Surface technology.
  • Engineering metrology, equipment and quality assurance.

  Machining operations and computer aided manufacturing

  • Fundamental concepts in turning, milling, drilling and other operations.
  • Computer-aided design (CAD) and computer aided manufacturing (CAM).
  • Demonstration of CAD and CAM software.
  • Manufacturing economics.

  Additive manufacturing and production facilities

  • Key features of Additive Manufacturing (AM).
  • Advantages/limitations and applications of AM.
  • Different methods of AM.
  • Process layouts for advanced manufacturing.
  • Group technology and cellular manufacturing.
  • Computer simulation of manufacturing process.

  Automation in manufacturing

  • Introduction to automation and control in manufacturing.
    Flexible manufacturing systems.
  • Automated production line and assembly.
  • Material handling and transport systems in manufacturing.

  Digitalisation in manufacturing

  • Implications of digital transformation for manufacturing organisations.
  • Enabling technologies of digital manufacturing.
  • Brief overview of key technologies: IoT (Internet of Things), Digital Twin and Cloud Computing.

  Lean manufacturing

  • Why lean manufacturing?
  • Lean manufacturing concepts.
  • Metrics for speed, quality and cost and KPI development.
  • Reducing lead time and non-value-added cost: value stream mapping, statistical tools, 5S implementation, pull production control, set-up reduction, preventive maintenance etc.
  • Kaizen or continuous improvement process: DMAIC problem-solving method.

  Employability skills

  • Manufacturing job market evaluation.
  • Soft skills and hard skills required for a manufacturing engineer/technologist.
  • Effective project management and problem-solving skills.
  • What next for your career?
  • What have you learnt on this journey?

  From week 2 of teaching, the Graduate Team at Gradcore will help signpost you to jobs and employability guidance for up to 3 months.

  We regularly review our course content, to make it relevant and current for the benefit of our students. For these reasons, course sessions may be updated.

• Teaching contact hous

  Throughout this course, you can expect up to 80 hours of learning activities, made up of online teaching and independent learning. Additionally, you will be expected to undertake significant self-directed study of approximately 120 hours, depending on the demands of individual modules.

  As an innovative and enterprising institution, the university may seek to utilise emerging technologies within the student experience. For all courses (whether on-campus, blended, or distance learning), the university may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via online technologies and methods.

  Since COVID-19, we have delivered our courses in a variety of forms, in line with public authority guidance, decisions, or orders and we will continue to adapt our delivery as appropriate. Whether on campus or online, our key priority is staff and student safety.

   

• Facilities

  Online.

  Facilities are subject to availability. Due to COVID-19, some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) may vary from those advertised and may have reduced availability or restrictions on their use.

• Career opportunities

  Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to:

  1. Show an understanding of the fundamental concepts required to work in advanced manufacturing sectors.
  2. Show an understanding of the shift of technological changes from classical manufacturing to Computer Aided Manufacturing.
  3. Demonstrate an understanding of the key fundamental concepts in advance manufacturing techniques and manufacturing automation.
  4. Demonstrate an understanding of the key fundamental concepts in IoT, data and Digital Twin application.
  5. Show an understanding of performance principles that are employed to improve the productivity, efficiency, and effectiveness of a manufacturing organisation.
  6. Identify the skills required for a successful career as a technician, technologist, or engineer in manufacturing sectors.

   

• Further study
  • Access to Higher Education
  • Apprenticeships
  • Higher Technical Qualifications
• Entry requirements

  You do not need any qualifications but will need to meet eligibility criteria and entry requirements as highlighted below.

  Entry requirements

  To be eligible to join this course you must meet all the following criteria. You must:

  • Be aged 19 or older.
  • Live or work in the West Midlands Combined Authority area.
  • Live in England.
  • Have the right to work in the UK. This can be checked on the Government website.
  • Meet residency requirements - applicants should be UK nationals or other persons with a right to live and work in the UK without any immigration restrictions who have been ordinarily resident in the UK, or the British Overseas Territories, or the Crown Dependencies (Channel Islands and Isle of Man) for at least the previous 3 years on the first day of learning.
    For more information on the residency criteria, please refer to AEB Funding Rules page.
  • Not have already taken any accredited Advanced Manufacturing training.
  • Not be currently enrolled in an apprenticeship or programme funded from the Adult Education Budget.
  • Agree to provide mandatory personal data and supplementary information on their employment outcomes for up to 8 months following completion of the Skills Bootcamp.
  • All Independent Learners (not co-funded by their employer, and not self-employed) are expected to progress on to a guaranteed job interview upon the completion of the Skills Bootcamp. This should be a genuine vacancy related to the skills gained through the Skills Bootcamp and the job must be expected to last at least 12 weeks.
  • Independent Learner, who are currently in employment, are required to confirm that they intend to change employer if offered a suitable role following interview. A learner declaration will be provided if your application is successful.

  You must also be either:

  • unemployed within the last 12 months, or
  • career changers/returners/redeployed, or
  • self-employed/employed.

  In addition to the criteria outlined above, you will need to meet the following minimum requirements to apply successfully for the Advanced Manufacturing Skills Bootcamp:

  • You should be available to attend and complete the course.
  • You must have an appropriate standard of English so that you can access relevant resources and complete the course which will be determined during the application process.
  • You will need to demonstrate you do not already have the Knowledge Skills and Behaviours which will be taught as part of this Skills Bootcamp.

  Required equipment:

  • access to a computer with sufficient RAM and memory to support study
  • microphone, speakers and web camera
  • office suite, such as Microsoft Office
  • internet connection.

  Computer or software specifications

  • 250GB hard drive or higher.
  • 8GB RAM or higher.
  • 2.0GHz Intel or AMD processor.
  • Windows 10 or MAC OS 10.10 or later.
  • Browser: Google Chrome 96, Firefox 48, Safari 11 or later.
  • Anti-virus software.
• Fees and funding

  Courses are fully funded by the Government for independent learners (individuals not being co-funded by their employer). Where an employer is training an existing employee, they must contribute to the cost of the course. For small or medium sized enterprise: £400 and large sized enterprise: £1200. Please contact CUSkillsBootcamp@cusltd.co.uk for more information.

  Fees are subject to annual review and change each year due to inflation (this would usually result in a nominal increase in line with consumer retail price index figures released by the UK Office for National Statistics) and/or as a result of funder requirements.

• How to apply

  Places are limited and will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis to eligible applicants. Please note that individuals are only eligible to participate in one Skills Bootcamp per financial year and must not be on more than one Skills Bootcamp at any one time, but you can apply for multiple Skills Bootcamps.

  To apply please complete all steps below:

  1. Familiarise yourself with the Skills Bootcamp Privacy & Cookie Notice.
  2. Review the Learner Declaration as you will be required to sign it as part of your online application form.
  3. Complete the application.
  4. Prepare documents to evidence your identity and age, current address, residency and right to work in the UK. The acceptable forms of ID and documentation to evidence all the above are below:
     • Identity and age - Valid passport. A photo driving licence. A proof of age card such as the PASS card from the national Proof of Age Standards Scheme.
     • Current address - Valid UK driving licence. Recent utility bill (gas, electricity, water, or landline phone) Council tax bill. Recent credit card or bank statement.
     • Continuous residency - Documentary evidence of continuous residence in the UK – find a list of accepted documents here.
     • Right to work in the UK:
       • If you are British and hold UK or Irish Citizen passport or Irish passport card your will not need to provide any additional evidence for this. Right to work share code.
       • If you are required to hold a Visa to work in the UK you will be asked to evidence of your right to work in the UK with a "right to work share code". If possible, please obtain this code before submitting your application via the government website.

  If you are not satisfied with any aspect of your Skills Bootcamp and wish to raise a complaint you should do so in the first instance with Coventry University by completing the CU Coventry Complaints Form, with full details of your issue. If you are not satisfied with how your complaint has been dealt with you may write to DfE through their Whistleblowing and Complaints process. Complaints 03700002288; Whistleblowing advice line on 0800 028 0285.

  Whistleblowing involves entering a 'whistleblowing' webform on the 'Contact the Department for Education' page.

  Whistleblowing submissions for Skills Bootcamps must be clearly marked 'Skills Bootcamps'. They will be submitted via the DfE's whistleblowing submission process and will be escalated to the DfE Skills Bootcamps policy team for response.