The national finals of the 2^nd “Kede Cup” China Mechanical Industry-Education Integration Innovation Teaching Competition recently took place at Guangdong University of Technology (GDUT).

A project led by the Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering at the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech), in collaboration with Shenzhen Shokz Co., Ltd., won first prize in the South China regional competition and second prize in the Undergraduate Course category at the national finals.

The project focuses on cultivating systems thinking through a project-based curriculum that integrates real-world industrial challenges, interdisciplinary collaboration, and joint supervision from both academic and industry mentors. This model enhances students’ ability to solve complex problems in real-world industrial environments, bridges the gap between academic training and industry needs, and promotes an open, practice-oriented ecosystem for deep integration of education and industry.

The “Kede Cup,” organized by the Chinese Mechanical Engineering Society and co-hosted by the China Machinery Industry Outstanding Engineers Education Alliance and GDUT, aims to identify and showcase best practices and innovative models of industry-education integration in the machinery field. It serves as a platform to advance mechanical engineering education and talent development.

This year’s competition adopted a two-tier format comprising regional and national rounds, with undergraduate, postgraduate, and enterprise categories. A total of 331 entries were submitted by more than 140 universities and over 400 enterprises.

Following expert evaluations by 139 specialists, 143 projects advanced to the national finals, where 68 experts conducted two rounds of on-site evaluations to determine the final prize winners.