AUC Students Win in Mechanical Engineering Competition

Two AUC students won an Elevator Pitch competition at the American Society of Mechanical Engineers EFx (e-fest) Cairo 2023, which took place at the New Cairo campus. Mechanical engineering majors Zahwa Kortam and Abdallah Sabah placed first and second, respectively.

The competition required contestants to imagine themselves as a lead researcher in a prestigious engineering department who needs to convince an investor in less than 90 seconds to fund their project on reducing carbon dioxide emissions. 

“I learned that life really does give you 90 seconds and that’s it,” said Kortam. “No one has time for the 20-minute presentations we would perform in school. We must be able to build our communication skills and technical understanding enough to sell in just two minutes. Through this experience, I got the chance to attempt that firsthand and it definitely won’t be my last time.”

Describing the competition as “exhilarating,” Sabah said, "I had the privilege to connect and network with like-minded individuals from around Egypt and felt proud to be part of the hosting University. It was definitely challenging to have a purely technical pitch in 90 seconds, but the support of the ASME team overall helped me develop this new key skill."

The first in Africa and largest in the MENA region, ASME EFx brought together young and aspiring engineers across Egypt to learn, compete and network with their peers and industry leaders under the theme of "climate crisis and sustainable development." Salah El Haggar, professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, presented a keynote speech on sustainable development. The conference also hosted panel discussions and other competitions, such as the Green Energy Spirit contest, which required teams to design and build remote-controlled vehicles powered by solar and wind energy.