Engineering Innovation Centre (EIC)

Sandwich Placement Year

This course offers an optional 48-week sandwich placement in industry – this comes between the second and third years. You are responsible for finding your own placement. We will support you in preparation for this with the Faculty Placement Team and UCLan Careers, who can help you plan and develop your CV and applications, and have practice interviews.

Placements are an invaluable opportunity to help consolidate your first two years learning, gain experience, and radically enhance your employability. The benefit of the experience gained during a placement is often evident in improved performance in the final year of the course, and when competing for graduate jobs.

“If you’re in any doubt about placements, do it! It gives you an idea of being in the industry you have chosen to be a part of. You can make sure it is right for you and gives you an idea of what area within that industry you enjoy, what you don’t like and where the most money is made. That way you can focus your time learning and honing the skills required for that chosen area while the facilities are still available while you are a student.”

Oliver Forbes-Shaw, INDUSTRY PLACEMENT STUDENT

The course is delivered by staff from the School of Engineering who are active in both research and knowledge transfer.

• Matthew Dickinson is lecturer and course leader for the BEng (Hons)/Meng Computer Aided Engineering course. He is lecturing in Fundamental Engineering Simulation. He is currently completing a PhD in investigating the role of running-in in race Engines.

  Course Leader, Matt Dickinson Q&A

• Tony Broad has academic and practical engineering skills with expertise in practical composites manufacturing. Active industrial links with local companies to promote visits and graduate placement opportunities.

Areas of Expertise include:

• Engineering Design and Manufacture, 2D & 3D CAD/Drafting with AutoCAD - CAD/CAM with Alphacam, 3D CAD Solidworks, Autodesk Inventor, 3D Studio Max, Engineering Simulation - FEA, Motion Analysis, Fluid Dynamics, Advanced Composites Design and Manufacture, Advanced Manufacturing Technology, Materials Technology.
• Prof Ian Sherrington has an inter-disciplinary background in physics, mathematics, computing, and engineering, and has interests in wear prediction, wear measurement, friction measurement, effects of wear debris, lubricant leakage and oil film thickness measurement.
• Graham Calderbank is an engineering lecturer and researcher at the University of Central Lancashire. He teaches across several engineering courses in a variety of subject areas, including fluid dynamics and thermodynamics, dynamic systems relating to motor sports, engineering focussed computer programming with MATLAB and LabView, and the design & development of engineering products. Graham is also involved in research with the Jost Institute, and is currently investigating the lubrication of crosshead engines with a view to developing a control system to optimise the lubrication of two-stroke marine diesel engines. Prior to joining UCLan, Graham spent several years as a product engineer for a Lancashire based company that designed and manufactured automotive components.