| Summary: | The problem with which this investigation is concerned is that of identifying and prioritizing the competencies required to design and implement manufacturing systems for advanced composite structures. The classical Delphi procedure is the research method used for the conduct of this study. A five-member advisory board developed a list of seventeen categories under which the competencies would reside. In the first-round questionnaire, the seventeen categories were presented to a Delphi panel of experts who provided up to five competencies required in each category. The first-round returns provided two new categories and 973 competency statements. Duplications were eliminated and 366 competency statements remained in nineteen categories. The second, third, and fourth rounds were a reiterative rating process. The panel was asked to rate the items in the questionnaire based on their relative importance to the intent of the study. The importance rating scale included "very important," "important," "slightly important," and "unimportant." The means and interquartile ranges were calculated for each statement and provided as feedback in the successive round. Kendall's coefficient of concordance W for tied ranks was used to validate the panel consensus. The W was significant at the .01 level for each of the three rounds where rating was performed. The data were presented in rank order within categories by importance level. Eighteen percent of the competency statements were rated "very important," 77 percent "important, and 5 percent "slightly important." No statements were rated "unimportant" by the panel. It was concluded that, as indicated by the 19 categories and 366 competencies, the scope of the requirements for designing and implementing manufacturing systems for advanced composite structures represent a broad range of knowledge and skill requirements. The breadth of the range of the requirements indicated the need for the development of areas of specialization within the subject field to adequately address the requirements.
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