1. General Information

School	School of Industrial and Information Engineering
Code Reference Law	355
Name	Automation Engineering
Reference Law	Ordinamento 270/04
Class of degree (¹)	L-8 - Information Technology L-9 - Industrial Engineering
Degree level	Laurea (Equivalent To Bachelor Of Science)
First year of activation	2008/2009
Official length of the programme	3
Years of the programme already activated	1,2,3
Official language(s)	Italian
Campus	Milano
Dean of the School	Antonio Capone
Coordinator of the Study programme	Maria Prandini
Website of the School	http://www.ingindinf.polimi.it
Website of the Study programme	http://www.ccsatm.polimi.it

(¹) The student belongs to one or the other Degree class depending on the education chose.

Central Student Office - Milano Leonardo

Address

VIA C. GOLGI, 42 (MI)

2. General presentation of the study programme

The role of Automation Engineering is to design, develop, and manage, equipment that makes  the operation of machines, processes, plants, and networks for the distribution of goods and the deployment of services, independent, as far as possible, from the direct intervention of the human. These activities require creativity and experience in dealing with the integration problems deriving from the combination of traditional engineering technologies (mechanical, electrical, etc.) with information technologies (control and automation, electronics, computer science, and telecommunications). Above all, they require a special attitude to relate the characteristics of each single element to a persistent system vision.  Increasingly complex automation systems are common in all industrial and tertiary fields and are used both to automate the processes, and to improve the quality and technological content of products. The presence of diverse technologies in the products and in the typical applications of the Automation Engineering is reflected in the strong interdisciplinary nature of the programme.  The demand for graduates in Automation Engineering from the job market is in fact steadily increasing, thanks to their versatility and to the breadth of their background.

This programme has been established in Politecnico di Milano in the Academic Year 2001/02 with the goal to train highly skilled technicians in the area of automation, to fulfill the needs of a local context characterized by an extraordinary concentration of companies operating in the process industry, in the manufacturing systems, and in the services. Since then, the programme has been succesful in terms of enrolment of both students coming from the Lombardy region and students coming from other regions in Italy. The graduates in Automation Engineering have easily found job opportunities in all the sectors of production and services.

3. Learning objectives

The first cycle, resulting in a Bachelor of Science, aims at providing the students with an adequate background of methods and general scientific contents, as well as with the knowledge of the main tools needed to practice the job of engineer. For this, a solid background in fundamental scientific disciplines, such as mathematics and physics, is required together with specific skills in the traditional engineering subjects, such as mechanics, thermodynamics, and electrical machines, and in the information technology subjects, i.e. computer science, electronics, telecommunications, and control.

The fundamental subjects (mathematics, physics, basic circuit theory, thermodynamics, etc.) are studied mainly during the first three semesters, together with introductory notions on the information technology area (computer science, telecommunications). In the fourth semester these topics are integrated with fundamentals of electronics, while specific topics of the automation engineering are introduced (mechanics, automatic control). Finally, in the last year, other specific topics are studied (electrical machines and drives) as well as automation systems in specific industrial sectors (process industry, manufacturing plants, robotic systems). The background is completed with courses on measurement instrumentation and production systems.

Thanks to the strong interdisciplinary nature of the curriculum, graduates have all the necessary skills to design or manage systems resulting from the integration of highly different technologies. This flexibility, both in the attitude and in the competences, is a significant asset of the Automation Engineer, in view of the wide range of possible applications, of the continuous and rapid evolution of technology and of the dynamics of the job market.

4. Organization of the study programme and further studies

4.1 Structure of the study programme and Qualifications

Automation Engineering is a three-year programme leading to a Bachelor of Science degree. Graduates can apply for a two-year Master of Science programme, possibly followed by three-year doctoral studies, as shown in the diagram below.

Further information can be obtained from the web site of the School of Industrial and Information Engineering http://www.ingindinf.polimi.it

 

Flow diagram of the programme.

4.2 Further Studies

The qualification grants access to "Laurea Magistrale" (2nd degree), "Corso di Specializzazione di primo livello" (1st level Specialization Course) and "Master Universitario di primo livello" (1st level University Master)

The degree in Automation Engineering grants access to a Laurea Magistrale Study Programme at Politecnico di Milano, subject to the admission criteria specified in the relevant Educational Rules.

 

Students who decide to enroll in a Laurea Magistrale Study Programme other than Automation and Control Engineering will be able to include in their study plan of the third year up to 15 credits of educational activities that are preparatory to the chosen Study Programme, as explained in section 7.3.  

5. Professional opportunities and work market

5.1 Professional status of the degree

The graduate in Automation Engineering can take an examination to get an engineering license and join the Italian professional register of industrial or information engineers. There exist different registers for graduates holding a Bachelor of Science degree and graduates holding a Master of Science degree. However, in general it is not necessary to belong to the national register of engineers in order to practice, either in industry or in public administration.

5.2 Careers options and profiles

The automation market  covers, increasingly, all sectors of industrial production and services:

• industry producing  automatic machines, robots and more generally mechatronic systems, resulting from the integrated design of mechanics and control;
• process industry (chemical and petrochemical, pulp and paper, plastic, energy production and conversion, etc.);
• transportation systems (land, sea and air) concerning both the development of vehicles (cars, boats, aircrafts, etc.) and the design, management and control of infrastructures (railway, motorway, underground, etc.);
• industry and companies producing and operating plants and systems for both traditional and renewable energy generation, storage, and distribution;
• transportation and distribution networks (water, gas, electric power, etc.);
• food industry;
• electrical appliances and domotics;
• environmental resources.

 

In all these areas, the automation engineer typically operates in:

• companies producing and selling automation systems (both hardware and software);
• companies that use automated production plants or that manage highly complex services;
• engineering and consulting firms that design and project complex, economically challenging and technologically advanced plants and systems.

 

5.3 Qualification profile

Automation engineer

Profile in a work context:

 

The Automation Engineer is an expert technician able to design, create and manage automation and control systems for different applications resulting from the integration of components and technologies which can be very different. The natural flexibility acquired in the three years of study allows him/her to move easily and quickly among the application sectors in which automation plays an important role. These characteristics are very important in view of the wide range of possible applications, the continuous and fast evolution of technologies and the dynamics of the job market.

The Regulation of the Study Programme in Automation Engineering is compatible both with the Information Engineering Class (Class 8) and with the Industrial Engineering Class (Class 9). During the third year, the student must choose the class in which s/he wishes to obtain the qualification at the end of the study programme. The Class of
the Study programme is important if, after qualification, you want to take the State professional examination to register in Section B of the Register of Engineers and carry out - with the title of Junior Engineer, a profession for which such registration is required. However, at today, registration in the Register is not generally required to carry out the professions related to automation, neither in the private field nor in the public field.

Skills of this profile:

 

Graduate student in Automation Engineering have specific skills:

• good command of general scientific methods and contents, with a wide knowledge of the main tools necessary for the profession;
• design and create automation systems of medium complexity;
• collaborate in the design of complex automation systems in specific industrial sectors (continuous processes, manufacturing plants, robotic systems);
• provide for maintenance and necessary updating of the essential components of the system and the interfaces with local operators and with company management;
• create or manage measuring instruments.

 
Job opportunities:

 

The job opportunities of automation engineers show the pervasive nature of a technological development that can reach not only all the traditional engineering sectors, but also other sectors, such as equipment for biomedical applications or systems for decision support for management of natural resource or protection against pollution.  

The automation engineer can find employment not only in the industries that produce, or use in their products, tools and systems for automation, but also in all companies and institutions in which automation systems perform technically and economically significant duties.

6. Enrolment

6.1 Access requirements

Italian secondary school leaving qualification or other comparable foreign qualification (level 4 EQF)

6.2 Requested knowledge

To be admitted in the Bachelor of Science, an adequate background is required in mathematics, physics, besides advanced verbal comprehension skills. An adequate knowledge of English is also required. Skills deemed essential are indicated each year in the public notices and in the Enrolment Guide by describing the subjects that will be part of the admission test. Should it emerge that students do not possess these skills, they are assigned specific learning obligations to be fulfilled before being able to register for any exam session. The way these provisions are implemented is established every year by the Academic Senate.

6.3 Deadlines for admission and number of places available

Students enrolled in some different Study Programme at the Politecnico di Milano or at another University who wish to move to the Automation and Control Engineering Bachelor Degree Study Programme can request an evaluation of their academic career and the acknowledgement of their previously earned ECTS.

 

Requests from Politecnico di Milano students are accepted only if the student has reached, by August 15th, a number of registered ECTS greater or equal to 20, including supplementary courses in the student's study plan.

Requests from students enrolled at other Universities are subject to the admission rules that are applied to all Engineering Study Programmes of the Politecnico di Milano, which can be found at https://www.polimi.it/en/international-prospective-students

 

Admissible transfer requests are then possibly accepted by a committee of the Automation and Control Engineering Study Programme, based on the number of available seats and the assessment of the academic career of the student. Finally, this same committee decides which of the ECTS already earned by the student can be acknowledged as valid for attaining the Bachelor Degree in Automation and Control Engineering.

6.4 Tutoring and students support

The School of Industrial and Information Engineering offers a series of activities aimed at making university studies more efficient and productive, with the assistance of both professor-tutors and student-tutors, the latter being selected by way of notice of competitions published by the University every year. The tutoring is for both first year students, for whom meetings with Mathematics, Physics and Information Technology professors are foreseen, and students from other years, for whom activities exploring specific subjects that are defined every year are foreseen.

For further information on the activities carried out, please see the website of the School http://www.ingindinf.polimi.it

7. Contents of the study Program

7.1 Programme requirements

To graduate (Bachelor of Science) acquisition of 180 credits is required, as specified in the academic regulations. In particular, for the foundation subjects (mathematics, physics, computer science), at least 45 CFU credits are allocated, for the subject-specific courses (control and automation, convertors, electrical machinery and operations, mechanics) 55 CFU credits are required, for the integrative and similar activities (electronics, telecommunications, measurements, economic-management engineering) at least 20 CFU credits are allocated. It is possible to complete preparation by taking further academic activities or via a traineeship to be carried out at an external company (industry, engineering company). 3 CFU credits are foreseen for the final examination.

7.2 Mode of study

This Course requires a full time attendance and involves classroom and laboratory activities.

7.3 Detailed learning objectives

The Automation Engineering Bachelor of Science has just one track, the same for all students, that proposes different choices only in the second semester of the third year. An internship is recommended to students who intend to go straight into employment after graduating; while students who intend on continuing with their studies in the Master of Science programme are recommended to attend additional courses. For more information on how to start this internship and how it works, please see the relevant service put in place by the programme (http://www.ccsatm.polimi.it).

Studies are organised on a semester basis: approximately halfway into the semesters there is a one week-long break in which students can take interim examinations. For information on how classes and exams are distributed in the year please see the academic calendar. More specific information on the organisation of each individual course is provided with the detailed programme of the course itself. The academic calendar and detailed programme of all courses are available in the website of the School of Industrial and Information Engineering (http://www.ingindinf.polimi.it).

As detailed below, courses in the first year are shared with the students of the Programs in Computer Science and Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Electronic Engineering. This allows the organization of classes of even size and a simplified transfer of students from one Program to another one, for those who are interested and submit an application on time and with the procedure prescribed by the rules.

1 Year courses - Track: A1A - Non diversificato

Code	Educational activities	SSD	Course Title		Language	Sem	CFU	CFU Group
082740	A	MAT/05	ANALISI MATEMATICA 1			1	10,0	10,0
082746	A,B,C	ING-INF/05	FONDAMENTI DI INFORMATICA			1	10,0	10,0
082747	A	MAT/03	GEOMETRIA E ALGEBRA LINEARE			1	8,0	8,0
051124	A	FIS/01	FISICA			2	12,0	12,0
082741	C	ING-IND/35	ECONOMIA E ORGANIZZAZIONE AZIENDALE			2	10,0	10,0
082748	B	ING-IND/31	ELETTROTECNICA			2	10,0	10,0

Courses of Analisi matematica 1, Fondamenti di informatica, Geometria e algebra lineare, and Fisica will be offered to the students of the Automation Engineering Program together with the students of the Programs in Computer Science and Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Electronic Engineering, the course of Economia e organizzazione aziendale together with the students of the Electronic Engineering Program, and the course of Elettrotecnica together with the students of the Computer Science and Engineering Program.

2 Year courses - Track: A1A - Non diversificato

Code	Educational activities	SSD	Course Title		Language	Sem	CFU	CFU Group
052348	A	MAT/05	ANALISI MATEMATICA 2 (PER L'AUTOMAZIONE)			1	8,0 [1,0]	8,0
093279	C	ING-IND/09 ING-IND/10	FISICA TECNICA E MACCHINE			1	8,0	8,0
085743	A,B,C	ING-INF/05	SISTEMI INFORMATICI			1	8,0	8,0
085744	B,C	ING-INF/03	RETI DI TELECOMUNICAZIONE			1	5,0	5,0
085745	B	ING-INF/04	FONDAMENTI DI AUTOMATICA			2	10,0	10,0
085796	B	ING-IND/13	MODELLISTICA DEI SISTEMI MECCANICI			2	10,0	10,0
085746	B,C	ING-INF/01	FONDAMENTI DI ELETTRONICA			2	10,0	10,0

One credit of the course Analisi matematica 2 (per l'automazione) will be offered in an innovative teaching mode (flipped mode based on a MOOC in Italian having as a subject the solution of differential equations).

3 Year courses - Track: A1A - Non diversificato

Code	Educational activities	SSD	Course Title		Language	Sem	CFU	CFU Group
085742	B	ING-IND/32		MACCHINE ELETTRICHE E AZIONAMENTI		1	9,0	10,0
088689	--	--		PROVA FINALE (MACCHINE ELETTRICHE E AZIONAMENTI)		1	1,0
052347	B	ING-INF/07	MISURE E STRUMENTAZIONE			1	8,0 [1,0]	8,0
088691	B	ING-INF/04	SISTEMI A EVENTI DISCRETI			1	5,0	5,0
088692	B	ING-INF/04		CONTROLLO DEI PROCESSI		2	7,0	8,0
088693	--	--		PROVA FINALE (CONTROLLO DEI PROCESSI)		2	1,0
088694	C	ING-IND/17		IMPIANTI INDUSTRIALI E GESTIONE DELLA PRODUZIONE		2	9,0	10,0
088695	--	--		PROVA FINALE (IMPIANTI INDUSTRIALI E GESTIONE DELLA PRODUZIONE)		2	1,0
085754	B	ING-INF/04	FONDAMENTI DI ROBOTICA			2	5,0	5,0
088696	--	--	INTERNSHIP		--	1	15,0	15,0
085887	A,B,C	ING-INF/05	BASI DI DATI 1			1	5,0
088697	A	MAT/06	CALCOLO DELLE PROBABILITÀ E STATISTICA			1	10,0
085900	A	CHIM/07	CHIMICA GENERALE			1	5,0
099318	C	ING-INF/02	ONDE ELETTROMAGNETICHE E MEZZI TRASMISSIVI			1	5,0
088696	--	--	INTERNSHIP		--	2	15,0
086000	A	MAT/05	ELEMENTI DI ANALISI FUNZIONALE E TRASFORMATE			2	5,0
088698	C	MAT/09	FONDAMENTI DI RICERCA OPERATIVA			2	5,0

One credit of the course Misure e strumentazione will be offered in an innovative teaching mode (flipped mode having as a subject temperature sensors).

In the third year all students can freely include education activities in their study plan for 15 credits, as long as they are consistent with the educational project. The Automation Engineering study Programme board must check that the proposal is consistent with such educational project. Consistency is assured for the courses reported in the previous table. In particular, the courses "Calcolo delle probabilità e statistica" and "Fondamenti di ricerca operativa" are suggested to students who intend on continuing with their studies in the Master of Science programme.

Those students who intend to continue with a Laurea Magistrale Study Programme of the Politecnico di Milano other than Automation and Control Engineering can propose in the 15 free-to-choose credits educational activities that facilitate the transition. These activities should be agreed with the referents for admission to the Laurea Magistrale of the chosen Study Programme and will be evaluated by the Automation Engineering study Programme board.   

7.4 Foreign language

Knowledge of the English language must be documented by the successful participation in the English section of the admission "Test On Line", or by certificates, as detailed in the "Guide on English language requirements".

7.5 Degree examination

The final examination consists in an exam of the subjects Macchine elettriche e azionamenti, Controllo dei processi, Impianti industriali e gestione della produzione, each of which will dedicate one of the assigned credits to its preparation.

In the website of the School of Industrial and Information Engineering (http://www.ingindinf.polimi.it) the rules for the final exam of the BSc and of the MSc Programmes are published, along with the special rules for the Automation and Control Engineering Programme.

8. Academic calendar

9. Faculty

The names of professors for each Course, together with their subject, will be available on the degree programme starting from the month of September.
The degree programme is annually published on the website of Politecnico di Milano.

10. Infrastructures and laboratories

Automation Engineering students will have access to all of the Politecnico di Milano facilities (computer-equipped rooms, libraries, studios, canteens, sports facilities). Several courses include laboratory activities that will be carried out in computer-equipped rooms or experimental laboratories.

Further information concerning this topic is available on the degree programme, which is annually published on the website of Politecnico di Milano.

11. International context

Research at the Politecnico di Milano proceeds alongside the extensive network of cooperative relationships and connections with other Italian and foreign universities, with public and private research centres and with the industrial system. The quality and effect of research carried out at the Politecnico have been confirmed in recent years by the increase in connections with the international scientific community. Testimony to this is the large number of research projects and programmes that have recently been undertaken with the best European and worldwide universities, from North America to South-East Asia.

 

In the 2022 QS Ranking, in the Engineering and Technology category, Politecnico di Milano ranked 13th among the Universities at the world level, 7th at European level, and 1st at Italian level. In particular, Politecnico di Milano ranks first in Italy and in the top 50 universities in the world for the areas Computer Science & Information Systems, Electrical & Electronic Engineering, Mechanical Aeronautical & Manufacturing Engineering, all of which of interest for the BSc Programme in Automation Engineering.  

12. Internationalization

Students on the Automation Engineering programme can access international study programmes, based on the agreements held with numerous foreign institutions. Every year various students, both Italian and foreign, take part in international exchanges. Students chosen for a specific programme can enrich their profiles by studying abroad and earning credits that are fully acknowledged by Politecnico di Milano.

 

There are multiple opportunities on offer. Among them:

• study periods abroad with the Erasmus programme, or other non-EU special programmes;
• double degree programmes (that foresee awarding of a double master of science degree over a 3 year period, of which two are spent in a partner institution abroad);
• traineeship in companies or foreign university laboratories;
• writing the final thesis abroad.

 

In the website of the School (http://www.ingindinf.polimi.it) a document is available that reports information for students willing to have an experience abroad, in addition to the rules and guidelines of the University.

 

A dedicated section of the website of the programme (http://www.ccsatm.polimi.it) reports specific information on international mobility for the Automation Engineering students, integrating the document of the School.

 

Students are invited to see such documentation before considering the possibility to access the international mobility programmes.

13. Quantitative data

The Didactic Observation Unit and the Evaluation Nucleus perform periodic analysis on the overall results analysing the teaching activities and the integration of graduates into the work world. Reports and studies are available on the website of the Politecnico di MIlano.

14. Further information

Further information on the Automation Engineering programme at the Politecnico di Milano can be found on the website:

http://www.ccsatm.polimi.it

All the e-mail addresses available to ask questions related to specific topics are indicated.

15. Errata corrige