From August 14 to 16, 2026, the final round of the 2nd National College Student Intelligent Construction Competition was held at Kunming University of Science and Technology. Guided by the Teaching Guidance Committees for Civil Engineering, Water Resources and Transportation of the Ministry of Education, and organized by the National College Student Intelligent Construction Competition Committee, the competition was hosted by Kunming University of Science and Technology and Yunnan Vocational and Technical University of Transport. Under the theme “Technology-Enabled Urban Renewal, Low-Carbon Engine for Green Energy in Yunnan,” the competition embraced the concept of “Digital Empowerment, Virtual-Physical Integration, and Collaborative Evolution,” bringing together 249 teams from 155 universities across China, including two international student teams.

The “Shan·Jiupin” team from Hefei University of Technology, consisting of international students MUSSA ALVES MATHE and AGOSTINHO DE FATIMA BRAIMO from Mozambique and MAURA PATRICIA DOMINGOS JOSÉ from Angola, performed exceptionally well in the final and won the National First Prize in the Civil Engineering category. The achievement fully demonstrates the outstanding capabilities and spirit of international students at Hefei University of Technology.

During the preparation period, under the continuous guidance of a faculty team led by Associate Professors Jiali Jia and Bo Wang, the three international students worked collaboratively on competition requirements, technical solutions, and prototype development. They tackled key tasks including field surveying, algorithm development, hardware integration, and model construction. Faced with tight schedules, multiple technical tasks, and demanding coordination requirements during the final competition, the team promptly optimized its solutions and repeatedly verified their results. They successfully completed data acquisition, point-cloud registration, semantic modeling, sensor data integration, digital twin platform development, and extreme-condition simulations, while presenting their engineering solutions and technical approaches to the expert panel and responding to questions concerning engineering challenges, technical pathways, and project outcomes.

The award represents a vivid achievement of Hefei University of Technology’s continued efforts to advance international education through the principles of “promoting learning, teaching, and innovation through competitions.” It also demonstrates the university’s progress in interdisciplinary integration in intelligent construction and practice-oriented education for international students. Looking ahead, the university will continue to develop intelligent construction competition training and international student project-based learning platforms in support of the national “dual-carbon” goals, new infrastructure development, and urban renewal. By encouraging more international students to transform classroom knowledge into practical engineering solutions and develop their capabilities in intelligent, green, and integrated development scenarios, the university aims to cultivate globally minded professionals with strong engineering expertise and intercultural communication skills, contributing to the development of a strong transportation sector and the high-quality advancement of civil engineering.

Text: Wang Bo, Wang Yongwei

Photos: Jia Lili, Wang Bo

Reviewed by: Gao Peng, Hu Mengjie