Engineering students shine at annual CEAS EXPO
The 2026 event is the largest yet, featuring 250+ capstone projects
Every spring, the College of Engineering and Applied Science hosts a large-scale capstone showcase for graduating seniors to show off their final projects as a culmination of their five years at the University of Cincinnati.
The 2026 CEAS EXPO, presented by DRT Holdings, marks the largest event yet, featuring more than 250 student projects ranging from student-built vehicles and innovative devices to interdisciplinary research.
The CEAS EXPO is a showcase of the talented engineering pipeline that UC is creating.
Robert Cohen, CEO of DRT Holdings
The Crowd Favorite Award was voted on by attendees and sponsored by DRT Holdings. Photo/Corrie Mayer/CEAS Marketing
"The CEAS EXPO is a showcase of the talented engineering pipeline that UC is creating," said Robert Cohen, CEO of DRT Holdings. "DRT has a strong belief in UC's approach of developing world-class engineers that will thrive and transform businesses and the world."
University of Cincinnati engineering and applied students are uniquely prepared for postgraduate life thanks to the top-ranked cooperative education (co-op) program, in which they alternate semesters in the classroom with semesters working full-time in their field.
The CEAS EXPO gives these graduating students the chance to show the university and Cincinnati community all they've learned and accomplished during their five years at UC. As their final year commences, the annual EXPO is at the forefront of students' minds. They spend two semesters researching, developing, and fine-tuning their projects to display at the event.
CEAS Tribunal, the college's student government, plans the annual event, in partnership with the CEAS Office of the Dean. Tribunal's involvement has been pivotal in ensuring representation of every undergraduate department, and overall senior presenter participation has grown by more than 150% since Tribunal expanded their focus on the event. Tribunal also helped spearhead the effort to bring EXPO back to campus, which has made the event more engaging for the community as a whole. This is the second year the event has been held at Fifth Third Arena.
"It's awesome being right here on campus so everyone can come visit the EXPO," said Elina Bishoyi, 2026 EXPO co-chair. "It's great to be part of seeing the CEAS image grow and show everyone all the cool work that seniors are putting into their capstone."
More than 200 volunteer judges served at this year's CEAS EXPO. Photo/Corrie Mayer/CEAS Marketing
At the event, more than 200 industry professionals and CEAS faculty, staff, graduate students, and alumni volunteered their time to evaluate and judge projects across seven categories.
"I am continually amazed at the capstone projects that CEAS students create," said Robbie Schaad, CEAS alumnus and EXPO judge. "Returning as a judge each year makes me extremely proud at how strongly my own CEAS experience has underpinned the early years of my career."
For student presenters, judging not only gives them exposure to industry partners and accomplished alumni, but also offers them the chance to earn an award in their respective category. The seven categories were: Human-Centered Research and Design, Innovation, Creativity, and Entrepreneurship, Interdisciplinary Collaboration, Real World Systems, Solutions, or Process Design, Student Organization Project, Sustainability and Environmental Responsibility, and Technical Excellence. UC's 1819 Innovation Hub also gathered a slate of judges to select an additional award that represents innovative design. This year's category awards were sponsored by Marmon Holdings.
Attendees voted on their favorite project, which received the DRT Holdings Crowd Favorite Award. Local Cincinnati restaurant Lucius Q was the exclusive student presenter and judge lunch sponsor, and they sponsored the Cincinnatus Excellence in Engineering Award Presented by Lucius Q. Award winners are below.
| Award | Project Name |
|---|---|
| 1st Place | Optical Laryngoscope |
| 2nd Place | Emergency Detachable Gynecological Stirrups |
| 3rd Place | HAIRrison: The Pony Pal |
| Award | Project Name |
|---|---|
| 1st Place | PackingPal |
| 2nd Place | Grassroots Motorsports |
| 3rd Place | Airlift Pro DJ Stand |
| Award | Project Name |
|---|---|
| 1st Place | BiblioBot - The Library Inventory Robot |
| 2nd Place | Pinball Machine Learning |
| 3rd Place | Studio 513 - Student Wellness Center |
| Award | Project Name |
|---|---|
| 1st Place | Universal Tester Station |
| 2nd Place | KYOCERA-SENCO - Semi-Automated Drive Tester |
| 3rd Place | Retrofitting of an existing Biodiesel Plant |
| Award | Project Name |
|---|---|
| 1st Place | Bearcats Electric Racing - Manufacturing Team |
| 2nd Place | UC AeroCats |
| 3rd Place | Bearcats Motorsports |
| Award | Project Name |
|---|---|
| 1st Place | Crowd Sourced Litter Pickup |
| 2nd Place | UC Clermont Geothermal Energy System |
| 3rd Place | Zero Waste Fiber Boards |
| Award | Project Name |
|---|---|
| 1st Place | UAV Fault Detection |
| 2nd Place | Measuring Droplet Evaluation Rates |
| 3rd Place | GE Low Pressure Turbine Capstone |
| Award | Project Name |
|---|---|
| 1819 Innovation Award | Kromico - Integrated Multispectral Camera |
| Cincinnatus Excellence in Engineering Award Presented by Lucius Q | UC APOP Engine Design |
| Crowd Favorite Award, Presented by DRT Holdings | Grassroots Motorsports |
Featured image at top: The 2026 CEAS EXPO at Fifth Third Arena was the largest yet. Photo/Corrie Mayer/CEAS Marketing
Tags
- 1819 Innovation Hub
- Chemical and Environmental Engineering
- Biomedical Engineering
- Civil and Architectural Engineering and Construction Management
- Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Student Experience
- Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics
- College of Engineering and Applied Science
- Mechanical and Materials Engineering
- Computer Science
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