Industrial Engineering is an effective blend of basic engineering knowledge, management techniques, people management skills, and computer technology integrated with applied mathematics and statistics. The industrial engineer can design, implement, control, and manage complex systems in an optimum manner.

Industrial engineers help their organizations save money and stay competitive. They determine how to do things better, safer and more efficiently. They engineer processes and systems that improve performance.

Industrial engineers are trained as productivity and quality improvement specialists. They work with people and equipment and spend most of their time in the operating environment developing scientific approaches to problems.

30-Hour Master's Program

The 30-hour master's degree program in Industrial Engineering is open to students with an undergraduate degree in engineering, the physical sciences or mathematics. The program may be completed in 18 to 24 months. Students with degrees in other areas may be required to take prerequisite course work.

The department offers a unique five-year combined B.S. and M.S. in Industrial Engineering. Undergraduate students begin graduate course work during their senior years and pursue a master's degree in one year. Students can also earn a joint Master of Science in Industrial Engineering and Juris Doctorate degree.

A distinctive aspect of industrial engineering is the flexibility that it offers. Organizations that hire industrial engineers include manufacturers, government, insurance companies, banks, transportation and consulting firms.

Typical job specialties include statistical quality control, reliability, systems analysis, project management, safety, human factors and ergonomics, manufacturing, production, robotics, facilities planning, cost analysis, total quality management and automation.

MSIE 30-hour project option

Required: 15 hours (take all of the following) EG63XX Lean Supply Chain, EG6331 Simulation, EG 6333 Operations Research II, EG6327 CAM and Robotics, EG7306 Sig-Sigma Quality
Required: 15 hours (choose five courses out of the following) EG6301 (Statistics), EG6303 (Lean Production), EG6304 (Reliability), EG6305 (Economic Analysis/Decision Making), EG6307 (Sequencing and Scheduling), EG6308 (Stochastic Processes), EG6309 (Human Factors/Ergo), EG6310 (Nonlinear Optimization), EG6317 (Advanced Quality Control), EG6332 (Operations Research I, EG6338 (Special Topics), EG6340 (Manufacturing Engr.), EG7303 (Safety), EG7307 (Plant/Facilities), EG7355 (Internship). Other courses w/Graduate Program Director approval.
Required: completion of a masters project

MSIE 30-hour thesis option

Required: 18 hours (take all of the following)
EG 6339 Thesis, EG63XX Lean Supply Chain, EG6331 Simulation, EG 6333 Operations Research II, EG6327 CAM and Robotics, EG7306 Six-Sigma Quality
Required: 12 hours (Choose four courses out of the following)
EG6301 (Statistics), EG6303 (Lean Production), EG6304 (Reliability), EG6305 (Economic Analysis/Decision Making), EG6307 (Sequencing and Scheduling), EG6308 (Stochastic Processes), EG6309 (Human Factors/Ergo), EG6310 (Nonlinear Optimization), EG6317 (Advanced Quality Control), EG6332 (Operations Research I, EG6338 (Special Topics), EG6340 (Manufacturing Engr.), EG7303 (Safety), EG7307 (Plant/Facilities), EG7355 (Internship). Other courses with Graduate Program Director approval.

To apply online, click here. For more information about the graduate school, click here.

Contact Information

For further information, please contact Rafael Moras, Ph.D., Graduate Program Director, at (210) 431-2017 or rmoras@stmarytx.edu

Program of Study

The Graduate Program Director will assist the student in designing a degree plan which meets University requirements. All courses must be approved by the Graduate Program Director. Students may select a 30-hour thesis program consisting of 27 hours of course credit and 3 hours of thesis credit. Non-Thesis students must complete 30 hours of course credit and complete a master's project.

MSIE 30-hour project option

Required: 15 hours (take all of the following) EG63XX Lean Supply Chain, EG6331 Simulation, EG 6333 Operations Research II, EG6327 CAM and Robotics, EG7306 Sig-Sigma Quality
Required: 15 hours (choose five courses out of the following) EG6301 (Statistics), EG6303 (Lean Production), EG6304 (Reliability), EG6305 (Economic Analysis/Decision Making), EG6307 (Sequencing and Scheduling), EG6308 (Stochastic Processes), EG6309 (Human Factors/Ergo), EG6310 (Nonlinear Optimization), EG6317 (Advanced Quality Control), EG6332 (Operations Research I, EG6338 (Special Topics), EG6340 (Manufacturing Engr.), EG7303 (Safety), EG7307 (Plant/Facilities), EG7355 (Internship). Other courses w/Graduate Program Director approval.
Required: completion of a masters project

MSIE 30-hour thesis option

Required: 18 hours (take all of the following)
EG 6339 Thesis, EG63XX Lean Supply Chain, EG6331 Simulation, EG 6333 Operations Research II, EG6327 CAM and Robotics, EG7306 Six-Sigma Quality
Required: 12 hours (Choose four courses out of the following)
EG6301 (Statistics), EG6303 (Lean Production), EG6304 (Reliability), EG6305 (Economic Analysis/Decision Making), EG6307 (Sequencing and Scheduling), EG6308 (Stochastic Processes), EG6309 (Human Factors/Ergo), EG6310 (Nonlinear Optimization), EG6317 (Advanced Quality Control), EG6332 (Operations Research I, EG6338 (Special Topics), EG6340 (Manufacturing Engr.), EG7303 (Safety), EG7307 (Plant/Facilities), EG7355 (Internship). Other courses with Graduate Program Director approval.

Course Descriptions

EG 6301 Statistical Data Analysis 3 sem. hours
An applied approach to statistical inference in engineering and scientific work. Tests of hypothesis, regression analysis, analysis of variance and experimental design.

EG 6302 Engineering Management & Decision Systems 3 sem. hours
Philosophy, theory, and practice of management; decision theory and social responsibility; management of research and development; the professional interrelationships of engineering to modern production organizations. Case studies in engineering management.

EG 6303 Lean Production Systems 3 sem. hours
Forecasting. Inventory planning and control. Aggregate planning. Deterministic and stochastic inventory models. Master scheduling. Just-in-time and lean. Theory of constraints. Sequencing and scheduling. Assembly line balancing.

EG 6304 Reliability and Maintainability 3 sem. hours
Statistics of reliability. Reliability estimation and decision making. Reliability models. Redundancy. Experimentation and testing.

EG 6305 Economic Analysis for Managerial Decisions 3 sem. hours
Criteria used for making decisions about proposed capital investments and the implementation of selected criteria in engineering design and investment decisions. Present worth, rate of return, payback period, cost-benefit analysis. Depreciation. Inflation. Taxes.

EG 6307 Sequencing and Scheduling 3 sem. hours
Quantitative analysis of operational problems of production systems with a concentration on operations sequencing and scheduling in job shops, flow lines, and project work.

EG 6308 Random Variables and Stochastic Processes 3 sem. hours
Introduction to the underlying theory of stochastic processes. Topics include: random sequences and convergence; autocorrelation, autocovariance, stationarity, ergodicity; stochastic calculus (continuity, differentiability, integrability); Poisson processes; white-noise processes; Gaussian process; random walk, Brownian motion, Wiener process; Markov chains; Markov processes; linear systems driven by random inputs.

EG 6309 Human Factors and Ergonomics 3 sem. hours
Comprehensive and practical review of basic concepts in the integration of the human component into the design, development and evaluation of human-machine systems. (Same as PS 6309).

EG 6310 Nonlinear Programming 3 sem. hours
Classical optimization, formulation, unconstrained and constrained optimization. Numerical search techniques, including penalty functions, gradient search and quadratic programming. Genetic algorithms.

EG 6327 Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) & Robotics 3 sem. hours
Modem manufacturing systems including automation, computer integrated manufacturing, robotics, and programmable logic controllers. Computer implementation of CAM topics such as computational geometric modeling, dimensioning, and tolerancing. Experiments on programmable logic controllers, computer numerical control (CNC) programming, coordinate measuring machine (CMM) techniques, and computer aided design.

EG 6331 Computer Simulation 3 sem. hours
Modeling of operational aspects of manufacturing and service systems using discrete and continuous simulation techniques. The statistics of simulation

EG 6332 Operations Research I 3 sem. hours
Linear programming, Big-M and two-phase methods, revised simplex, duality theory, sensitivity analysis, transportation and assignment methods. Goal programming.

EG 6333 Operations Research II 3 sem. hours
Network flow programming, dynamic programming, Markov chains, queuing theory, Monte Carlo simulation. May be taken independently of EG 6332, Operations Research I.

EG 6338 Special Topics 3 sem. hours
Course may be repeated for credit if topics vary

EG 6339 Thesis Direction 3 sem. hours
The thesis is a culminating experience that provides a record of a student’s achievement in the program. The thesis requires research leading to the discovery of new knowledge or enhancement of existing knowledge in the field of interest. A project that helps solve a practical problem may also be acceptable. The thesis features a complete documentation of the research study, including the theoretical background, description of the problem, the method used to investigate or solve the problem, presentation of results, interpretation of results, and explanation of the significance of the results.

EG 6340 Manufacturing Engineering 3 sem. hours
An overview of modem manufacturing systems including computer aided manufacturing, computer integrated manufacturing, manufacturing resources planning, lean and just-in-time, and robotics. Economic and ergonomic aspects of product design. Experiments on computer integrated manufacturing and manufacturing processes are conducted.

EG 6354 Management of Computer and Information Systems 3 sem. hours
This course examines a broad range of topics in the management of technology, information systems and organizational issues in exploiting new technology. The course explores concepts of applying computer information systems and communications technology to provide an effective frame work for managing competitiveness in an environment of rapid global change. Managing R&D, systems acquisition, decision-making, and links to other functional areas in the corporation are emphasized.

EG 6376 Neural Networks 3 sem. hours
Neuron model and network architecture; Heb net; perception learning rule; ADALINE and MADAL1NE architectures and algorithms; back propagation algorithm; pattern classification; pattern association competitive neural networks. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

EG 6382 Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing (CAD/CAM) 3 sem. hours
Overview of basic concepts of CAD/CAM. Application of computers for the design and creation of a manufacturing database. Hardware and software considerations in CAD. Modem manufacturing systems including automation, computer integrated manufacturing, robotics, and programmable logic controllers. Computer implementation of CAM topics such as computational geometric modeling, dimensioning, and tolerancing. A term project is required. Experiments on programmable logic controllers, computational modeling, computer numerical control (CNC) programming, and coordinate measuring machine (CMM) techniques are conducted.

EG7303 Safety Engineering 3 sem. hours.
Systems safety; product safety; safety and health related workplace hazards; worker safety; loss prevention principles and regulations; loss assessment and control, theories of accident causation. Safety standards.

EG7306 Six-Sigma Quality Systems 3 sem. hours.
Total quality management philosophy, with emphasis on statistical quality strategies. Statistical process control; supplier certification; benchmarking; simultaneous engineering; re-engineering; quality teams; quality audits; Kaizen; quality function deployment, Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award guidelines.

EG7307 Plant Layout and Facilities Design 3 sem. hours.
Principles and method of analysis and design of service, production, and manufacturing facilities. Location selection. Plant layout. Materials requirement and resource planning. Enterprise resource planning (ERP). Use of computers in facilities planning and control. A term project featuring the design of a production system is required.

EG7351 Systems Engineering 3 sem. hours.
Systems analysis, engineering economics, and systems engineering and their impact on decision making. Systems of systems.

EG7353 Project Management 3 sem. hours.
This course provides a management perspective on managing projects. It examines the basic nature of managing business, public, engineering and information systems projects, including the specific insights and techniques required. Issues such as the selection and management of the project team, project initiation, implementation and termination are addressed. This course is cross-listed with BA 7353. Students who have previously received credit for BA 7311 may not enroll in this course.

EG7155, 7255, 7355 Internship 1,2,3 sem. hours.
An experiential approach to advanced engineering topics through work in a company or organization. Industry/university cooperation is required. Topics vary depending upon the needs of the sponsoring company or organization and the academic needs of the student. Students may start an internship project anytime after enrollment in any engineering program. A minimum of three credit hours is required. Credit hours may be completed in increments of 1, 2, or 3 credit hours per semester. Prerequisite: consent of the graduate program director.

EG8300 Engineering Systems Management 3 sem. hours.
A comprehensive course in the Engineering Systems Management graduate program. An analysis of case studies is conducted to integrate the functional areas studied in the program and engineering ethics. Class activities typically focus on practical applications of engineering systems management concepts.

Admission and Prerequisites

Admission is granted only to those with high promise for success in graduate study. Applicants demonstrate this potential through previous academic records and testing. To be considered for admission to the M.S.I.E. program, an applicant must fulfill the following:

1. Have a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in engineering, the physical sciences or mathematics. Students with a degree in other disciplines may be admitted on a contingency basis provided they complete prerequisite courses including engineering calculus I and II, probability and statistics, and engineering programming.
2. Have
1. a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 (A=4.00) in their B.S. degree; and
2. a minimum quantitative GRE score of 600;
   Applicants who fail to meet any of the above standards may be admitted on a conditional basis. The graduate programs director evaluates these cases on an individual basis.
3. International students must submit minimum TOEFL scores of 213 on the computer-based test, 550 on the paper-based test, or 79 on the Internet-based test. Alternatively, students may submit a minimum ISELS score or 6.5
4. Submit a completed application form, a written statement of purpose indicating the applicant's interests and objectives, two letters of recommendation, and official transcripts of all college level work. Admission is granted only to those with high promise for success in graduate study. Applicants demonstrate this potential through pervious schooling and testing.

To apply online, click here. For more information about the graduate school, click here.

Faculty