EGB432 Asset Management and Maintenance


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Unit Outline: Semester 1 2025, Gardens Point, Internal

Unit code:EGB432
Credit points:12
Pre-requisite:192 credit points of completed study
Equivalent:ENB432
Coordinator:Ehsan Arzaghi | ehsan.arzaghi@qut.edu.au
Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of the teaching period.

Overview

Engineers are often involved in the acquisition, maintenance, and renewal of equipment. The ability to analyse maintenance data and develop effective maintenance plans remain important skills for today’s engineers. The focus of this unit is on the development of techniques to manage the life cycles of engineering assets effectively to maximise their value. The unit will introduce students to the theory and techniques of Reliability Engineering, develop tools for the analysis of maintenance data, and address the development of optimised maintenance strategies.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:

  1. Apply principles of reliability, maintainability, and risk assessment to evaluate the performance of engineering systems.
  2. Analyse technical, operational and economic data to formulate availability and maintenance costs of assets.
  3. Appraise failure causes, mechanisms and risk in engineering systems using systematic failure analysis techniques, including Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA), Fault Tree Analysis (FTA), and Markov models.
  4. Evaluate asset management challenges in a complex engineering system and synthesise evidence-based strategies to optimize availability, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability.

Content

The following topics will be covered:

  • Overview of engineering asset management concepts and reliability theory.

  • Maintenance vision, mission, organisation, responsibilities and tasks, planning and control

  • Reliability calculations for components and systems; Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM);

  • Availability; Maintainability;

  • Failure mode and effect analysis, Fault Tree Analysis

    Condition monitoring technology and Condition Based Maintenance; Risk management; Cost management issues in asset management

Learning Approaches

Total No. Hours: 3
Lecture/Tutorial: 3 hours
Lectures/tutorials cover the main concepts with examples of applications to work through collaboratively in class to apply strategies (informal group work), including whole of class discussion of results. The main learning and teaching approach is to integrate theory with practice collaboratively in groups in real contexts.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

You will get feedback on mini project/problem solving tasks in lectures/tutorials throughout the semester. For the group project report, you will get oral feedback during lectorials and written feedback on completion. For the exam, oral and/or written feedback is available on request after the exam.

Assessment items submitted after the due date without an approved extension will not be marked and will receive a grade of 1 or 0%. If special circumstances prevent you from meeting the assessment due date, you can apply for an extension http://www.student.qut.edu.au/studying/assessment/extension. If you don't have an approved extension you should submit the work you have done by the due date and it will be marked against the assessment criteria. QUT's assessment submission requirements reflect the expectations of professional practice where you will need to meet deadlines.

Assessment

Overview

Assessment for this unit includes a problem solving task, a quiz and a final examination.

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Project and Presentation

Students will create a report on the application of asset management principles to assist with decision-making processes during asset life cycle. They must evaluate the engineering and management challenges associated with asset availability, cost-effectiveness and sustainability in an industry of their choice and demonstrate how they can be addressed by applying the techniques delivered in the unit and/or the new methods and technologies in asset management and maintenance.

This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.

Weight: 50
Individual/Group: Individual and group
Due (indicative): Week 13
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3, 4
Related Standards: EASTG1CMP: 1, 1.1, 1.3, 2, 2.1, 2.4

Assessment: Class Test

An on-campus class test will examine your understanding of the concepts covered in lectures and tutorials.

Weight: 25
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Week 10
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3, 4
Related Standards: EASTG1CMP: 1, 1.3, 2, 2.1, 3, 3.5

Assessment: Assignment Portfolio

Five (5) take home assignments will assess your mastery of the concepts introduced in lecture. These assignments will be gradually handed out from Week 2. 
Due Date: Each assignment is due at the end of the week it was released.

This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.

Weight: 25
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Throughout Semester
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3, 4
Related Standards: EASTG1CMP: 1, 1.1, 1.3, 2, 2.1

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.

The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Resources

The main resources required for learning the concepts will be lecture notes, lecture slides, and tutorials, all of which will be made available on Canvas. Students may refer to the recommended resources for further reading and practice.

Resource Materials

Recommended text(s)

Type: Reference
Author: Ramakumar, R.
Title: Engineering Reliability: Fundamentals and Applications
Year: 1993
Publisher: Prentice Hall

Type: Reference
Author: Tobias, P.A. and Trindade, D.C.
Title: Applied Reliability
Year: 2012
Publisher: CRC Press

Type: text
Author: Beasley, M
Title: Reliability for Engineers
Year: 1991
Publisher: Macmillan Press

Risk Assessment Statement

There are no out of the ordinary risks associated with this unit

Standards/Competencies

This unit is designed to support your development of the following standards\competencies.

Engineers Australia Stage 1 Competency Standard for Professional Engineer

1: Knowledge and Skill Base


  1. Relates to: Project and Presentation, Assignment Portfolio

  2. Relates to: Project and Presentation, Class Test, Assignment Portfolio

2: Engineering Application Ability


  1. Relates to: Project and Presentation, Class Test, Assignment Portfolio

  2. Relates to: Project and Presentation

3: Professional and Personal Attributes


  1. Relates to: Class Test

Course Learning Outcomes

This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.

EN01 Bachelor of Engineering (Honours)

  1. Engage with and apply regulatory requirements relating to safety, risk management, and sustainability in professional engineering practice.
    Relates to: Class Test
  2. Demonstrate coherent knowledge and skills of physical, mathematical, statistical, computer, and information sciences that are fundamental to professional engineering practice.
    Relates to: Project and Presentation, Class Test, Assignment Portfolio
  3. Demonstrate a thorough understanding of one engineering discipline, its research directions, and its application in contemporary professional engineering practice.
    Relates to: Class Test

EN55 Master of Professional Engineering

  1. Apply advanced and specialist knowledge, concepts and practices in engineering design, analysis management and sustainability.
    Relates to: Project and Presentation, Assignment Portfolio
  2. Critically analyse and evaluate complex engineering problems to achieve research informed solutions.
    Relates to: Project and Presentation, Class Test, Assignment Portfolio
  3. Apply systematic approaches to plan, design, execute and manage an engineering project.
    Relates to: Class Test
  4. Communicate complex information effectively and succinctly, presenting high level reports, arguments and justifications in oral, written and visual forms to professional and non specialist audiences.
    Relates to: Class Test
  5. Organise and manage time, tasks and projects independently, and collaboratively demonstrating the values and principles that shape engineering decision making and professional accountability.
    Relates to: Class Test

EN60 Graduate Certificate in Communication for Engineering

  1. Demonstrate and apply specialised knowledge and technical skills in at least one Engineering discipline.
    Relates to: Project and Presentation, Class Test, Assignment Portfolio
  2. Critically investigate real world engineering issues and solve complex problems drawing on specialised creative skills, analysis, evaluation and synthesis of discipline knowledge, theory and practice.
    Relates to: Project and Presentation, Assignment Portfolio
  3. Employ effective written and oral professional communication skills across social, cultural and discipline domains.
    Relates to: Class Test
  4. Exercise responsibility and accountability in applying knowledge and skills for own learning and effective practice including working independently, ethically and collaboratively.
    Relates to: Class Test