department of mechanical engineering

The Department of Mechanical Engineering of the University of West Attica is the successor to the Department of Mechanical Engineering of T.E.I. of Piraeus, the oldest and largest Department of Mechanical Engineering in the country at the level of Higher Technological Education, demonstrating a high level of educational and research activities and appreciating an excellent external evaluation report by the Hellenic Quality Assurance and Accreditation Agency (HQA) in Higher Education.

Currently, the Department has a student population of approximately 3,500 and employs 30 faculty members, Special Teaching Staff (STS) and Special Technical Laboratory Staff (STLS).

The mission of the Department is to provide high level university education through undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral studies, which cover both the traditional and the constantly evolving fields in the broader area of Mechanical Engineering, integrating innovative research and technology by means of modern education methods and tools.

A Mechanical Engineer develops technical systems through the conversion of energy, materials and information, in a way that facilitates problem solving under conflicting requirements and specifications, and generates efficient solutions based on the study, design and manufacturing of a broad range of mechanical engineering products.

Subject areas of a Mechanical Engineer include those of mechanics, machine elements, mechanical structure design, material removal (cutting) processes, additive manufacturing (3D printing) technologies, aerodynamics, materials’ technology, heat transfer, fluid mechanics, thermal engines and turbomachinery, utilization of renewable (soft) energy sources, protection of the environment, heating-cooling-air conditioning, measurements’ technology, operations research and production management.

The Undergraduate Program of the Department corresponds to five (5) academic years, divided into ten (10) academic semesters and corresponds to 300 credits of the European ECTS system.

At the time of successful completion of their studies, the graduates of the Department have acquired the necessary theoretical background with scientific and technological knowledge, competences and skills that allow them to work and act in the capacity of executive Mechanical Engineers in fields of relevance, both in the private and the public sector, either independently or as members of corporations, organizations and agencies oriented to Mechanical Engineering, as well as in educational institutes, and in general, for the exercise of activities falling within the practice area of the Mechanical Engineering profession.

The Department’s curriculum provides its graduates with the necessary skills to:

• Be capable of promptly providing the industrial sector and the society with their services.
• Be able to design new products and services and develop innovation.
• Apply their knowledge to contemporary industrial problems, relevant to their discipline.
• Be familiar with modern techniques and methodologies across the span of technologies they have specialized in.
• Use innovative tools for solving technical and scientific problems, such as the use of information systems, computers and software packages.
• Plan, implement and manage a given project.
• Develop initiatives, communicate effectively both in writing and orally, and perform adequately within a team at the national and international environment.
• Keep up with developments in their discipline and constantly improve their knowledge.

The Department of Mechanical Engineering offers five renowned Postgraduate Programs:

• MSc “Advanced Industrial & Manufacturing Systems” (in collaboration with Kingston University London)
• MSc “Energy Systems” (in collaboration with Heriot – Watt, UK)
• MSc “Energy and Environmental Investments” (autonomous program)
• MSc “Oil and Gas Process Systems Engineering” (autonomous program)
• MSc “Research in Thermofluids” (autonomous program)