The Capstone Expo, a highly anticipated event for Faculty of Engineering students, showcases the culmination of their hard work and dedication. Soon-to-be graduates present their team projects, which they have been developing since the fall. These projects are displayed through prototypes, video demonstrations and posters that explain the engineering concepts behind them.
The expo is open to friends and family of the students, current students eager to get a glimpse of their future Mac Eng experience, alumni, industry guests and prospective students. Regardless of their familiarity with engineering principles, guests can easily appreciate the potential impact of each project.
“My capstone experience was incredibly rewarding, offering opportunities to connect with professors and peers across multiple disciplines,” says Joanne Lee, Integrated Biomedical Engineering and Health Sciences (Engineering Physics) student and member of Team Eye-Conic Minions who created a portal, smartphone-based retinal imaging system. “The entire journey for Capstone was filled with many challenges and milestones but ultimately resulted in an expo experience that was brimming with creativity, teamwork and a true sense of bringing all our engineering efforts to life.”
The variety of projects on display is impressive, ranging from a self-sustaining greenhouse and a new chess variant called Pentachess to a firefighting robot, a posture-perfecting sensor system, a motorized cart for golf clubs, an automated smoothie machine and a cost-saving mini membrane bioreactor design.
Capstone projects are guided by faculty members and often involve collaboration with industry partners, including MDA Space, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories and Stelco.
Capstone Expo by the numbers
What guests had to say about Capstone Expo 2025
“Seeing the results of the work of my daughter and her teammates after months of having her head down in her room working is so nice. I am so impressed and proud!” – Nancy Vieira-Sousa, mother of a Mechatronics Engineering student Sabrina Sousa, whose team created a wearable device to help people who are blind and visually impaired navigate heat hazards in the kitchen.
“The quality of projects continues to elevate each year. I was genuinely impressed by the innovative solutions the students showcased.” – John Preston, strategic advisor on nuclear enterprise, McMaster University
“These kinds of moments are the best reminders that learning doesn’t just happen in a classroom—it happens in conversation, in curiosity, and in seeing what’s possible when you follow an idea all the way through.” – Anneliese Lawton, family member of Mechanical Engineering student Luciano Jakubczyk, whose team developed a robotic to fight fires.
“Such a variety of fun and intricate projects on display, the future of engineering is bright!” – Linda Preece, Campus Lead, MDA Space
