Release Date: April 14, 2026
To thoroughly implement the national strategy for cultivating elite engineers, test and showcase the training outcomes of the first "Digital Engineering Design Pilot Class", and promote the transformation of students’ comprehensive capabilities and innovative achievements in digital design, simulation analysis, intelligent manufacturing, system integration and other fields, the National Graduate College for Elite Engineers, Central South University successfully held the First "Pilot" Digital Engineering Design Competition on April 8, 2026.
At the competition venue, 21 participating teams took turns to present in two separate venues. The projects covered a wide range of fields, including process simulation and optimization, AI analysis and computation, robot design, wastewater treatment engineering design, etc. Based on their selected topics, the contestants integrated solid professional knowledge with digital engineering design capabilities and engaged in fierce competition. In the defense session, relying on detailed data and elaborate designs, they elaborated on the project innovations, engineering solutions and technical application prospects, fully demonstrating the diligent, rigorous and realistic spirit of CSU students.
The panel of judges consisted of experienced experts and professors in engineering design: Zhihong Peng, Qinggang Li,Yongming Chen, Lejun Zhou, Jiangtao Li and Yilin Wang from the School of Metallurgy and Environment, and Yuqian Zhao from the School of Automation. Adhering to the principle of fairness and impartiality, the judges conducted a comprehensive and meticulous review of the works of the 21 teams from multiple dimensions, including innovation, engineering practicability, commercial feasibility and market prospect. In addition, based on their profound industrial experience, the judges put forward targeted suggestions for each project, helping the teams solve development dilemmas and providing professional guidance for project implementation.
The successful launch of the first "Digital Engineering Design Pilot Class" and the smooth holding of this competition mark that the College has made substantial progress in making up for the "design shortcomings" in engineering education and exploring a new mechanism for school-enterprise collaborative education. It also provides a replicable and promotable "CSU Model" for the continuous cultivation of high-level engineering talents to meet the needs of future industries.
Looking ahead, the College will always adhere to the mission of educating people for the Party and the country, strive to explore and form an engineer training system with Chinese characteristics and world-class standards, and make "CSU Contributions" to building a strong country in education, science and technology, and talent.