Brainstorming & Project Management Objectives: After completing this lesson the students should be able to: Participate in a brainstorming session Prepare a Project Schedule for tracking progress

Brainstorming Definition Proposing new ideas Free flowing exchange of ideas No judgment No decisions Build on others’ ideas Silly is good – Can trigger creativeness A note-taker is needed

Brainstorming Exercise A company has built a new, clean factory on some land it owns. Unfortunately, … Brainstorming is fun – one of the best parts of being an engineer. Let’s assume the whole class is a team and do some brainstorming on this project. A very old factory is run down and is a major polluter. A town has grown up around the factory and almost all of the factory workers live there. The company has built a new, clean factory on some land it owns. Unfortunately,…. OLD FACTORY NEW FACTORY

Brainstorming Exercise …there is a river between the town and the new factory. To bridge - 50 miles RIVER …there is a river between the town and the new factory. The problem is how to get the workers to the new factory. When you are brainstorming, all ideas are accepted. We can analyze the concepts later by seeing how well each one meets the requirements and constraints. We ought to be able to generate atleast 20 ideas. Let students tell you their ideas. You may out student ideas on a blank overhead. You may also want to make a list of requirements, constraints and information needs they identify. To bridge - 60 miles OLD FACTORY NEW FACTORY

Project Management Definition Project Management is an important function used in projects to plan and manage the cost and schedule of projects.

Project Management Project Management Cycle Define project Create plan Implement plan Monitor progress Complete and document This is not equivalent to a complete “Project Cycle” as shown in TTD. Here we are only focusing on the project management aspect of a project.

Project Management Main Tasks Create a Project Plan Anticipate problems Make a Project Schedule Solve problems Track the schedule Meet the deadlines Revise the schedule Organize all documentation in a Project Notebook Hold team meetings

Create a Project Plan Step 1: Identify all tasks Read the project description document. Look at course website to see what your weekly assignments will be. Brainstorm in your group the tasks your project will require. After you have identified these tasks, break them down into small enough parts to be able to measure progress weekly.

Sample Task Breakdown Etc. - add additional tasks as needed Project Determine Requirements Design Build Document Test This represents a good starting point for the students. It gets them pointed in the right direction. They need to use this and expand upon it to include all appropriate tasks to allow them to track their progress. No information about schedule or timeframe is involved in this step. Read project description Brainstorm Initial Paper Design Etc. - add additional tasks as needed P. 9

Create a Project Plan - Sample Schedule Group X Roller Coaster Project Schedule Last updated: 9/27/2014 Task Assigned Person Planned Start Actual Start Planned Complete Actual Complete Completion Percent (%) Browse course website and read project description All 9/12/2014 9/14/2014 9/16/2014 100% First team design brainstorming session 9/28/2014 9/27/2014 90% Start project notebook R. L. K   10/1/2014 Initial paper design 10/11/2014 10/16/2014 Etc. This is what we expect from students in their project notebook. The instructional staff needs to check this weekly to reinforce the importance of continuous monitoring of the plan. This is due at the beginning of lab 5. P. 10

Project Schedule Updating Schedule Weekly Update and revise your schedule weekly. Instructional staff will check these updates weekly when they check your notebook. (for points!) If the project schedule begins to fall too far behind, you should re-plan the remaining tasks to complete on time. The constant monitoring of the plan is the best way to identify schedule difficulties as early as possible. This maximizes the opportunity to make corrections and maintain the project schedule. This goes in direct conflict with the students’ proclivity toward procrastination.

Project Notebook To Start…. Use a 3-ring binder. Provide clearly labeled tabs for each section. Assign a project manager to maintain the notebook throughout the semester.

Project Notebook Notebook Content Create the following (8) sections: Table of Contents – List of sections organized and labeled properly. Project Description Document – Copy of Project Description Document. Team Working Agreement – Signed copy of agreement (created at beginning of project). Project Schedule – More details to come….

Project Notebook Notebook Content Initial Design & Documentation – Include the graded Initial Concept Design and all initial brainstorming records. Lab Documentation – This section should be organized sequentially and include the following: Graded lab assignments (memos, performance test summaries, etc.) Meeting notes – member attendance, date, time, duration, tasks, discussion Brainstorming Sketches

Project Notebook Notebook Content Final Design & Documentation – Include copies of Final Report Draft and Final Report (including final drawings). Handouts – Any handouts or research done for this project not included in other sections.

Project Notebook Updating Notebook Weekly Record all weekly meeting notes. Collect and organize all graded lab assignments, graded design documentation, and handouts received that week. Update the project schedule based on work done that week and work to be completed. Have your notebook checked weekly.

Assignments PROJECT NOTEBOOK PROJECT SCHEDULE Bring notebook to lab every week since circuit prototyping lab Final notebook due before the oral presentation lab PROJECT SCHEDULE Initial schedule due per course website Bring to lab weekly in notebook