Industrial Engineering and Operations Research

The master’s programme combines the disciplines of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research into a single study program. Industrial Engineering (IE) is an engineering domain that deals with analysing, designing and optimising complex operational systems, with the aim of improving their effectiveness and efficiency, and thus increasing their productivity. A unique feature of IE that distinguishes it from other engineering disciplines, is the explicit consideration of the human element as an essential and determining factor of these operational systems. For designing operational systems, an IE engineer often relies on mathematical models, both of deterministic and stochastic nature, that are then subjected to simulation and optimisation techniques. The whole of these mathematical tools is known under the term Operations Research (OR). They comprise mathematical programming, simulation, search algorithms and heuristics, dynamic programming, queueing theory, decision techniques, statistics, stochastic modelling, network analysis, etc. Since many years, the combination of both disciplines forms a crucial engineering domain for companies worldwide. This engineering profile is highly wanted in companies because of the positive impact it has on their operational and organisational structures. Internationally, it is one of the largest engineering domains that effectively prepares students for taking up leading roles by thoroughly training them in the technical principles of the design, planning and control of systems in manufacturing and service industries.