Industrial Engineering

The baccalaureate programs in industrial engineering and manufacturing engineering are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org.  The baccalaureate program in manufacturing engineering technology is accredited by the Technology Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org.

FACULTY Professors Chen (chair), Li, Shareef, Tayyari; Associate Professors Guo, Saboury, Yoo. Emeritus Professors Emanuel, Krishnamoorthi, Kroll, Lin; Emeritus Associate Professor Ness.

The department offers three baccalaureate degree programs:

  • Industrial Engineering (B.S.I.E.)
    • Engineering Management Concentration
    • Supply Chain Analytics Concentration
  • Manufacturing Engineering (B.S.Mf.E.)
    • Lean Manufacturing Concentration
    • Process Engineering Concentration
  • Manufacturing Engineering Technology (B.S.Mf.E.T.)

The department offers one minor:

  • Minor in Quality Engineering

The department also offers master’s degrees in industrial engineering (M.S.I.E.), manufacturing engineering (M.S.MF.E.), and data science and analytics (M.S.D.S.A.). See the Graduate Catalog for information about these programs.

Mission and Core Values

Mission Statement

The mission of the Department is to educate students for life-long learning and equip them for distinguished careers in industrial engineering, manufacturing engineering, and manufacturing engineering technology.

IMET Core Values

The Department of Industrial & Manufacturing Engineering & Technology (IMET) at Bradley University is committed the following core values:

  • Customer-Driven
    As a consumer-focused educational provider, our program offerings and course structures are based entirely on the internal and external demands of our constituencies. Through catering to the needs of internal constituencies such as our students and external constituencies such as federal agencies, nonprofit organizations, and corporate companies, we ensure an ideally balanced curriculum. Further, we are conscious that our lectures reach not an audience, but a group of individual students, each with his or her specific interests and aspirations. Our varied programs and research opportunities allow students to pursue unique scholastic concentrations.
  • Global Understanding
    As a modern entity, we understand the magnitude of globalization’s effects on today’s economy. Our diverse and progressive department prepares our graduates to be competitive on a global scale.
  • Spirit of Entrepreneurship
    As a group of innovative leaders, we teach our students to become successful in any industry they may choose. Our emphasis on the spirit of entrepreneurship imparts to graduates management skills, the ability to be ingenious, and the motivation to capitalize on both opportunities and obstacles.
  • Community
    As a tightly woven community, we place great importance on respect, teamwork, communication, and cooperation. We encourage the development of lasting, professional relationships between students and faculty members through research projects and classroom interaction.
  • Adaptive Strategies
    As a dynamic organization, we harness the tools of improvisation and mold them to fit current situations. In a changing global environment and uncertain market, we believe the flexibility to re-evaluate, plan strategically, and adapt to varying circumstances is crucial to the success of our students.

Industrial Engineering Major (BSIE)

Program Educational Objectives

Within five years into their careers, the graduates from the Industrial Engineering Program at Bradley University will have successful careers based on

  • Demonstrated ability to recognize business and technical engineering problems and implement effective solutions to such.
  • Demonstrated ability to effectively lead cross-functional multi-disciplinary diverse teams in the design, implementation, and/or improvement of processes and systems both regionally and globally.
  • Demonstrated professional development through continuous learning opportunities such as varied work assignments, promotions, graduate schools, and/or professional associations.
  • Demonstrated involvement in service activities that benefit the profession or the community.

Student Outcomes 

In order to meet these program educational objectives, students graduating from Bradley’s industrial engineering program will attain the following outcomes.

  1. an ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics
  2. an ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors
  3. an ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
  4. an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts
  5. an ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
  6. an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions
  7. an ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies

Industrial engineers design, develop, test, and evaluate integrated systems for managing production processes including human work factors, inventory control, logistics and material flow, quality control, cost analysis, and production coordination. The industrial engineer applies engineering methods to a variety of activities in the design, production, and distribution of goods and services; works in organizations including manufacturing, hospitals, commerce, and government agencies; and operates in such specific professional areas as human work measurement, management systems design, human factors engineering, applied statistics, operations research, reliability and quality control, and systems engineering. Industrial engineering is the combination of engineering and business administration.

The curriculum provides a sound basis in the fundamentals of engineering, physical and behavioral sciences, and theoretical and applied mathematics. The emphasis on problem solving of both structured and unstructured types prepares the student for a wide variety of IME employment opportunities as well as for graduate training in IME, or such associated professions business, law, or medicine. This diversity of career opportunities is a major reason that students choose IME. The student is encouraged to select a minor in a supporting area such as business, quality engineering, computer science, manufacturing, math, psychology, or economics. Some minors will require additional hours beyond BSIE requirements.

Most faculty teaching in the IME program have had full-time industrial experience. The emphasis of the department is directed towards real-world problems. During the senior year, students work under faculty supervision on actual problems that exist in the community in manufacturing organizations and service organizations such as hospitals, government agencies, air transport companies, court systems, and utility companies.

Programmatic Distinctions

Industrial engineers determine the most effective ways to use the production resources (people, machines, materials, information, and energy) to make a product or provide a service. They are concerned primarily with increasing productivity through the management of people, methods of business organization, and technology. They develop management control systems to aid in financial planning and cost analysis, and they design production planning and control systems to coordinate activities to meet the demand and ensure product quality. They also design or improve systems for the physical distribution of goods and services and determine the most efficient plant locations. Industrial engineers develop wage and salary administration systems and job evaluation programs. Many industrial engineers move into management positions because the work is closely related to the work of managers. Manufacturing engineers apply knowledge of materials and engineering theory and methods to design, integrate, and improve manufacturing systems and processes. They may work with designers to refine product designs to increase productivity and decrease costs.

The department works closely with industry and has an outstanding Industrial Advisory Council (IAC) consisting of distinguished members from industry, government, and education.

Industrial Engineering Program

Students have the option to complete the Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering program with or without declaring an area of concentration. The listed courses, an expected  total of 121 hours, in the Industrial Engineering curriculum must be completed to meet degree requirements in industrial engineering, leading to the Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering. The Industrial Engineering curriculum consists of (1) Bradley Core Curriculum, (2)  Mathematics and Basic Science courses, (3) the required courses, and (4) the technical elective courses.

Bradley Core Curriculum (BCC) 18 hours

  • BCC Communications (BCC – CM) COM 103 Oral Communications Process - 3 hrs.
  • BCC Communications (BCC – W1) ENG 101 English Composition - 3 hrs.
  • BCC Communications (BCC – W2) ENG 300, 301, 305, or 306 Advanced Writing - 3 hrs.
  • BCC Fine Arts (BCC – FA) - 3 hrs.
  • BCC Global Perspectives (BCC – GP) - 3 hrs.
  • BCC Humanities (BCC – HU) - 3 hrs

Mathematics and Basic Sciences 33 hours:

  • CHM 110 General Chemistry I — 3 hrs. (BCC – NS1)
  • CHM 111 General Chemistry I Lab — 1 hr.
  • MTH 121 Calculus I — 4 hrs. (BCC – QR1)
  • MTH 122 Calculus II — 4 hrs. (BCC – QR2)
  • MTH 207 or MTH 224 — 3 hrs.
  • MTH 223 Calculus III — 4 hrs.
  • PHY 110 University Physics I — 4 hrs. (BCC – NS2)
  • PHY 201 University Physics II — 4 hrs.
  • IME 311 Intro to Engineering Statistical Methods — 3 hrs. (2 hrs of Math/Basic Science)
  • IME 331 Fundamentals of Materials Science — 3 hrs. (2 hrs of Math/Basic Science)

Required Courses 49 hours

  • CE 150 Mechanics I — 3 hrs.
  • CE 270 Mechanics of Materials — 3 hrs.
  • ECO 100 or ECO 221 — 3 hrs. (BCC – SB)
  • IME 101 Intro. to Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering — 1 hr.
  • IME 103 Computer Aided Graphics — 2 hrs.
  • IME 110 Intro. to Computers and Computational Analysis — 3 hrs.
  • IME 301 Engineering Economy I —3 hrs. (BCC – MI)
  • IME 313 Operations Research I — 3 hrs.
  • IME 341 Intro. to Manufacturing Processes — 3 hrs.
  • IME 386 Industrial and Managerial Engineering — 3 hrs.
  • IME 401 Engineering Economy II — 3 hrs.
  • IME 412 Regression and Experimental Design — 3 hrs.
  • IME 422 Manufacturing Quality Control — 3 hrs.
  • IME 461 Simulation of Manufacturing and Service Systems — 3 hrs. (BCC – EL Tag)
  • IME 466 Facilities Planning — 3 hrs.
  • IME 485 Occupational Ergonomics — 3 hrs. (BCC – WI Tag)
  • IME 499 Senior Design Project — 4 hrs. (BCC – WI and EL Tags)

Technical Elective Courses 21 hours

  • Approved Technical Elective Courses, see below — 21 hrs.

Approved Technical Elective Courses

Students with a concentration should see the specific list of technical elective courses under their concentration.
For students without a concentration, at least four of the technical electives (12 hrs.) must be
Industrial Engineering courses from the following list:

  • IME 314 Operations Research II – 3 hrs.
  • IME 468 Engineering Analytics I – 3 hrs.
  • IME 478 Engineering Analytics II – 3 hrs.
  • IME 481 Lean Production Systems – 3 hrs.
  • IME 483 Productions Planning and Control – 3 hrs.
  • IME 486 Logistics and Supply Chain Systems – 3 hrs.
  • IME 487 Occupational Safety and Health – 3 hrs.

The other elective requirements (9 hrs.) may be satisfied by any non-required IME courses above 300-level or by non-required courses from other disciplines  as listed below.

  • Accounting: ATG 304 to ATG 699
  • Biology: BIO 302 to BIO 699
  • Chemistry: CHM 316 to CHM 699
  • Civil Engineering: CE 310 to CE 699
  • Computer Science: CS 203 to CS 699
  • Economics: ECO 300 to ECO 699
  • Electrical Engineering: ECE 301 to ECE 699
  • Finance: FIN 322 to FIN 699
  • International Business: IB 306 to IB 699
  • Mathematics: MTH 301 to MTH 699
  • Management Information Systems: MIS 300 to MIS 699
  • Management and Leadership: ML 315 to ML 699
  • Marketing: MTG 304 to MTG 699
  • Mechanical Engineering: ME 301 to ME 699
  • Physics: PHY 305 to PHY 699
  • Additional Business Courses: BLW 342, ENT 385, or QM 326
  • Courses in Health Sciences: KHS 460, or KHS 480
  • Courses in Psychology: PSY 320 or PSY 321

Supply Chain Analytics Concentration 

The Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering (BSIE) program with the Supply Chain Analytics concentration focuses on descriptive, predictive, diagnostic, and prescriptive analytics theories and applications to supply chain management. Students with this concentration will learn theoretical background of data analytics and various applications in supply chain and engineering environment. The students will be equipped with data-driven decision-making skills in complex supply chain systems.

  • Approved Supply Chain Analytics Concentration Technical Electives (21 hrs.)
    • IME 468 Engineering Analytics I – 3 hrs.
    • IME 486 Logistics and Supply Chain Systems – 3 hrs.
    • Choose two courses from the following list (6 hrs.)
      • IME 314 Operations Research II – 3 hrs.
      • IME 478 Engineering Analytics II – 3 hrs.
      • IME 483 Production Planning and Control – 3 hrs.
      • ECO 355 Supply Chain Economics – 3 hrs.
      • MTG 388 Global Supply Chain Management – 3 hrs.
      • MTG 394 Supply Chain Tools and Techniques – 3 hrs.
      • MIS 471 Business Analytics Software and Applications II – 3 hrs.
      • MIS 473 Data Visualization for Business Analytics – 3 hrs.
    • Two additional above 300-level non-required IME courses (6 hrs.)
    • An additional elective course from the Approved Technical Elective Courses (3 hrs.)

Engineering Management Concentration

The Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering (BSIE) program with the Engineering Management concentration is most appropriate for technically focused individuals who desire to achieve management-level positions in engineering environments. This concentration focuses on management of technology and intellectual property; research and development; engineering and technical projects; people, resources and organizations; quality; and team-based projects. The courses listed in the following curricular schedule must be completed to meet degree requirements in industrial engineering, leading to the Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering with the Engineering Management concentration. Students declaring this
concentration must also declare and complete the Management & Leadership minor in the Foster College of Business.

Approved Engineering Management Concentration Technical Electives(21 hrs.)

    • M L 350 Managing for Results in Organizations – 3 hrs.
    • M L 356 Human Capital in Organizations – 3 hrs.
    • M L 357 Leading Organizations – 3 hrs.
    • Two additional Management and Leadership courses: M L 315 to M L 499 – 6 hrs.
    • Choose two courses from the following list (6 hrs.)
        • IME 314 Operations Research II – 3 hrs.
        • IME 468 Engineering Analytics I – 3 hrs.
        • IME 478 Engineering Analytics II – 3 hrs.
        • IME 481 Lean Production Systems – 3 hrs.
        • IME 483 Production Planning and Control – 3 hrs.
        • IME 486 Logistics and Supply Chain Systems – 3 hrs.
        • IME 487 Occupational Safety and Health – 3 hrs.

BSIE Combined with MBA Program

Undergraduate students in the industrial engineering program may combine their studies and earn an MBA degree in five and one-half years or fewer. Students may include all of the prerequisites for the MBA program as part of their required undergraduate semester hours. Careful scheduling is required and should be coordinated with the student’s undergraduate advisor and the director of graduate programs.

Students electing this option must be fully admitted before registering for graduate-level courses and have the written approval of the director of graduate programs. Students should contact the director of graduate programs during their sophomore year for particular information.

Student Organizations

Student chapters of the American Society for Materials (ASM), American Society for Quality (ASQ), Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE), Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), American Foundrymen’s Society (AFS), Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME), and The Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM, formerly APICS) are sponsored by the department or the Caterpillar College of Engineering and Technology to support and encourage the professional development of the students. The department is also a strong supporter of the student chapter of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE).

Honor societies for industrial engineering students (Alpha Pi Mu) and for manufacturing students (Beta Tau Epsilon) are also represented.

This is the official catalog for the 2022-2023 academic year. This catalog serves as a contract between a student and Bradley University. Should changes in a program of study become necessary prior to the next academic year every effort will be made to keep students advised of any such changes via the Dean of the College or Chair of the Department concerned, the Registrar's Office, u.Achieve degree audit system, and the Schedule of Classes. It is the responsibility of each student to be aware of the current program and graduation requirements for particular degree programs.