Our Mission
Develop a culture of learning excellence by using the philosophy of design and the mechanism of cases.
Our Group
Waterloo Cases in Design Engineering (WCDE) is a group at the University of Waterloo that enhances the engineering curriculum through the development and implementation of case studies. Engineering case studies (cases) are an exciting resource that can be used to actively engage students in their learning. Cases complement traditional lectures and problems in engineering with a practical context, showing the real-world applications of engineering science principles and design.
WCDE was formed by Professor Steve Lambert through the NSERC – Waterloo Chair in Design Engineering (Formerly the NSERC – General Motors of Canada Chair in Collaborative Design) in 2005.
Our cases are written to demonstrate engineering analysis and design, across all engineering disciplines. A formal case development process is used to ensure the relevance and accuracy of our cases, and to provide stakeholders with the opportunity to review and approve the release of all case material. The majority of our case material comes from our own students’ experience, on work terms or final year projects. We also provide guidance on effective teaching with cases and provide teaching resources for instructors that often includes presentations, simulations and multimedia material. Our goal is to offer the largest and most up-to-date collection of engineering case studies in the world.