The merits of computer-aided design and computer-aided engineering are now taken for granted in industry. The ability to conceptualize a product, to analyze its performance, and to expedite its arrival to market have revolutionized the engineering design profession. Unfortunately, the sophisticated hardware and software necessary to achieve these gains have not penetrated into the academic environment due to their prohibitive costs. As a result, current engineering graduates receive little exposure to contemporary methods of true computer-aided design and analysis. A Computer Aided Engineering Laboratory consisting of a local area network of high performance engineering workstations will be established. This facility will expose its undergraduate students to contemporary design and analysis methods including drafting, solid modeling, mechanism analysis, finite element analysis, and computer graphics.
