TUT: Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment

02/10/2026

That look says: “Please read the instructions carefully.” 😭

Main examinations start on 2 November, exactly one month from today. Prepare adequately, read those instructions carefully and make the remaining assessments count.

All the best! 📚

01/10/2026

Two teams, two wins!

Congratulations to our final-year Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering students who came out on top in two challenges at the Cars4Mars Mars Stage Final, competing alongside university teams from South Africa and other African countries at the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) Space Operations facility in Hartebeesthoek.

Cars4Mars challenges university students to design and build robotic vehicles capable of completing missions in a simulated Mars environment.

TUT’s teams won Best Traversal Mission and Best AI Mission, taking on challenging terrain in the Mars Yard and putting their robots’ autonomous capabilities to the test.

The Best AI Mission win was an exciting demonstration of how our students are applying artificial intelligence to real engineering challenges, while the Traversal Mission win showcased their design, engineering and problem-solving skills.

Congratulations to both teams and their lecturer and supervisor Johan Benade who guided them through the journey.

30/09/2026

Final year Electrical Engineering student Samukelisiwe Phiri was part of a team that took first place at the GirlCode Johannesburg Hackathon.

The team developed Imbewu Learn, a digital platform designed to preserve and share indigenous and generational knowledge. Elders and knowledge holders can record or type their knowledge on the platform, while young people can use Imbewu Ask, an AI powered feature, to ask questions about traditions, languages, recipes and cultural practices. The team also incorporated Microsoft Azure AI into the solution.

After presenting their idea to the judges and receiving feedback on the design, user experience, functionality and use of AI, the team is now working on improvements to the platform.

Their next stop is the Pan African GirlCode Hackathon, where they will meet and collaborate with participants from other African countries while continuing to develop Imbewu Learn and exploring how it can cater to the diversity of cultures across the continent.

Samukelisiwe Phiri is pictured with Kgothatso Makgalemane from FNB App Academy.

Well done, Samukelisiwe and the team!







Final year Electrical Engineering student Samukelisiwe Phiri was part of a team that took first place at the GirlCode Johannesburg Hackathon.

The team developed Imbewu Learn, a digital platform designed to preserve and share indigenous and generational knowledge. Elders and knowledge holders can record or type their knowledge on the platform, while young people can use Imbewu Ask, an AI powered feature, to ask questions about traditions, languages, recipes and cultural practices. The team also incorporated Microsoft Azure AI into the solution.

After presenting their idea to the judges and receiving feedback on the design, user experience, functionality and use of AI, the team is now working on improvements to the platform.

From left: Yanele Bhengu from WeThinkCode, Kgothatso Makgalemane from FNB App Academy, Samukelisiwe Phiri from TUT and Reanetse Kekana from the University of the Witwatersrand.

Well done, Samukelisiwe and the team!





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30/09/2026

30/09/2026

If you could become an engineer, what would you create or solve?

We asked learners at Schools Competition Day to think beyond the classroom and imagine the problems they would one day like to solve.

Their answers reminded us why young minds need opportunities to explore STEM, dream big and see themselves as the engineers and problem-solvers of the future.

29/09/2026

Behind every learner who showed up ready to build, compete and learn was a teacher who helped get them there.

Some of our teachers have been part of Schools Competition Day for years. Others joined us for the first time this year. And some have been in touch with us since the beginning of the year, asking questions, sharing information, preparing their learners and making sure they were ready for the day.

That support matters.

Thank you for making the trip, for encouraging your learners to participate and for continuing to create opportunities for them beyond the classroom.

We loved having you at the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment’s Schools Competition Day. We hope to welcome you and your learners back again next year.

29/09/2026

It takes courage to try. To put yourself out there. To take on something unfamiliar. To build, test, get it wrong, figure out why and try again.

That was at the heart of the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment’s Schools Competition Day on 23 September.

Learners came ready to compete, but also to discover what the world of science, technology, engineering and mathematics has to offer.

As Executive Dean Prof Mxolisi Shongwe reminded them, when something does not work, you do not panic. You figure out why, adapt and try again. You lean on your team, use each other’s strengths and keep going.

To every learner who joined us, thank you for showing up, getting involved and giving it a go. Keep asking questions, keep challenging yourself and remember: you are meant for greatness.

Thank you for spending the day with us. We hope to see some of you back at FEBE one day, this time as our students.

28/09/2026

Engineering starts with a challenge. Then you build the solution.

Learners put that into practice with the 4WD Smart Robot Car challenge, assembling, testing and problem-solving until their robots were on the move, during Schools Competition Day held on 23 September.

This is engineering in action.