Integrated Business & Engineering (IBE)

IBE 010 Integrated Business and Engineering Seminar 1 Credit

Introduction to the various business and engineering professions through a series of presentations and demonstrations. Emphasis is on the diversity of business and engineering career opportunities and the associated curricular choices. Students also create their web page with four-year curriculum plan and an updated resume, learn Cad-Cam and presentation software, and explore career opportunities. Open only to first-year students in the Integrated Business and Engineering Honors Program.

IBE 050 Integrated Business and Engineering Workshop 3 Credits

The course introduces students to the interaction and interdependence of business planning and engineering design in the context of entrepreneurial new product development. Students develop skills in communication, teamwork and critical thinking while working in such areas as competitive strategy, financial modeling, marketing mix, prototyping, product testing, and the development of technical specifications. Open only to students in the Integrated Business & Engineering Honors Program.

IBE 150 Integrated Business and Engineering Sophomore Laboratory 1 Credit

A series of cases that integrate elements of business and engineering. Example topics include, but are not limited to, introduction to cost benefit analysis, introduction to modeling and optimization, team dynamics, and international negotiation and joint ventures. Oral presentations and written reports. Open only to students in the Integrated Business and Engineering Honors Program.

IBE 171 Integrated Business and Engineering Independent Study 1 Credit

Students address a technical issue in a business context from an entrepreneurial focus. Students pursue their own business start-up idea, either a product or a service, and develop a business plan that includes prototypes and testing (engineering) as well as a marketing plan and a base case financial model (business). The goal of the course is for students to enter a business plan or entrepreneurial competition in a local, regional or national level. Open only to students in the Integrated Business and Engineering Honors Program.
Prerequisites: IBE 050

IBE 250 Integrated Business and Engineering Junior Laboratory 1 Credit

A semester-long simulation game in which interdisciplinary teams of IBE students compete against each other. Topics include market analysis, working capital management, capital budgeting, raising long-term capital, plant location, and inventory control. Oral presentations and written reports. Open only to students in the Integrated Business and Engineering Honors Program.

IBE 271 Independent Study 1 Credit

IBE 380 Integrated Business and Engineering Capstone Project I 3 Credits

IBE students work in cross-disciplinary teams of 5 to 6 business and engineering majors with a faculty mentor on the marketing, financial and economic planning, and technical and economic feasibility of actual new product concepts initiated by the course’s corporate sponsors. These sponsors are incubator start-up firms to ensure that the projects have both business and engineering elements. Written reports and oral presentations to sponsors and invited venture capitalists are required. Open only to students in the Integrated Business and Engineering Honors Program.

IBE 385 Integrated Business and Engineering Capstone Project II 3 Credits

IBE students continue to work with the detailed design including the fabrication and testing of working prototypes of their new products designed in IBE Capstone Project I course. In addition to the technical design of the products, detailed financial and marketing plans are required. Written reports and oral presentations to sponsors and invited venture capitalists are required. Open only to students in the Integrated Business and Engineering Honors Program.