Purdue Executive MBA Program Adds Manufacturing Option

Purdue University has just upped by one the number of reasons manufacturing executives in particular may want to look into its executive programs. For the first time, Purdue's Krannert School of Management will add an area of specialization to its executive MBA programs -- and advanced manufacturing is the target of that focus. The option will be available in the executive MBA programs that kick off in July 2004. "We're responding to a need we've seen expressed at the two advanced manufacturing summits we've held at Purdue and the current proposal to locate an advanced manufacturing institute here," explains Herbert Moskowitz, the Krannert School professor directing the initiative. Moskowitz is a professor of manufacturing management and director of Krannert's Dauch Center for the Management of Manufacturing Enterprises. To get an executive MBA with the advanced manufacturing option, students will take classes in global supply-chain management, design for manufacturing and assembly, and Six Sigma quality. A course called Projects in Manufacturing will allow students and their sponsoring companies to solve actual manufacturing enterprise problems. While the project occurs in a student's final semester, explains Krannert, the program will aim to define the project during the first semester and use it as a criterion for coursework. Purdue is located in West Lafayette, Ind.