AE 481/882 Course Reflection

Throughout my experience in the AE Senior Thesis project program, I was able to learn many things, both technical and non-technical, about the engineering profession that I had not previously been exposed to.  Initially, I believed Thesis was an impossible task that would require more effort than all of my other classwork combined.  However, as the project progressed, I learned that it would not be as stressful as I had imagined.

One major benefit of the Thesis program was the flexibility to work at my own pace and under my own supervision.  Knowing that I was reliant on myself to complete the project was reassuring because I knew that the work would be done to my own high standards, and I did not need to rely on other people to ensure that all of the work was being completed.  At times, keeping on schedule was difficult, but, in the end, having the responsibility of managing my time effectively was a valuable lesson.

One unfortunate part of the Thesis program was that I was constrained to focusing on one building.  Some of the analyses that I investigated for my depth studies apply different based on the type and size of the building they are applied to, just as many Architectural Engineering topics do.  I believe it would have been beneficial to have an opportunity to pick the topic of study (e.g. Thermal Storage, Variable Primary Flow Pumping) and investigate how those systems apply to different buildings, instead of only the building I was confined to.

CPEP Reflection

I believe that the CPEP website design portion of the Thesis project was very beneficial because it was a good way to display the work done throughout the year-long project.  Because the bulk of the work on these projects is written in report format, the website is a good way to post information so that anyone can view the work that has been done.  Web site design is also a very valuable skill, which although rarely performed by engineers, is a useful tool to have.

Discussion Board

While the practitioner discussion board is a noble idea, I did not take advantage of that resource to its full potential.  I found that it was useful to discuss ideas or problems with the AE faculty, as the professors in the AE department, specifically the Mechanical professors which I am most familiar with, have a great deal of experience in a broad range of AE topics.  Because Dr. William Bahnfleth was both my thesis advisor and an expert in both of the mechanical depth study topics that I investigated, he was a perfect resource for me and removed the need to inquire on the discussion board.  I also received a great deal of useful help and information from the project team and vendor sales engineers on the building my studies focused upon.  If I had not had their incredible cooperation and help, I might have taken advantage of the discussion board to a greater degree.