Siemens announces largest ever software grant in Egypt to support education

Siemens has announced its largest ever software grant in Egypt worth dlrs 120 million to be allocated for industrial digitalization software.

The grant will be used to support training, education and higher degrees of research in Cairo, Ain Shams and Alexandria, the largest among the Egyptian universities, according to a statement released by the company on Tuesday.

The grant was announced at a signing ceremony hosted by Siemens, in partnership with the three universities, and in the attendance of Joe Kaeser, President and CEO of Siemens AG, as well as other business leaders and academia experts.

“Education is one of the surest ways to drive long-term economic growth, and our country’s future relies on companies working with key educational and research institutions to get our youth ready for the markets of the future” said Dr Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

“The Siemens grant will make it possible for our engineering students to be trained on the same technology that companies worldwide depend on to design some of today’s most sophisticated products. The world is changing rapidly through technology, and we need to equip our future generations with the necessary capabilities and tools to make things faster, cheaper and better – ultimately this is about job creation and global competitiveness,” he said.

Siemens’ product lifecycle management (PLM) software tools are used in everything from Ben Ainslie Racing in the America’s Cup, Firewire surfboard design, Red Bull Racing F1 and even the Mars Rover. Siemens PLM Software solutions include digital product development, digital manufacturing and product data management.

“Siemens has been a committed partner to Egypt since 1859, and we want to further develop this longstanding partnership going forward,” said Joe Kaeser. “At Siemens, we believe that education and youth empowerment are key to a sustainable future. This is why we are proud to work with Egypt’s largest universities to educate the country’s future leaders in industry, so they can support its vision to create a more diversified, knowledge-based economy.”

At the three universities, the PLM software will be an integral component of the engineering programs. Over 35,000 Egyptian students will use the software for their Computer-Integrated Manufacturing, Robotics, Industrial Design, Work Design, Ergonomics, Material Science and Materials Processing courses and projects. Additionally, it will enable them to create digital twins (simulated versions) of their final products as a more efficient alternative to creating a physical prototype.

Emad Ghaly, CEO of Siemens in Egypt, added, “Imagine creating a digital twin, not only of the product, but of the entire manufacturing process, so you don’t need to have costly and time-consuming physical prototypes. Everything from the assembly lines to tooling and resources can be completely digitally simulated. This is exactly what our software grant can help students achieve in Egypt’s factories in the future.”

This grant is part of the company’s ongoing support for education initiatives in Egypt to develop the next generation of innovators. Just recently, the company announced joining forces with Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development to establish and operate a joint technical training center in Ain Sokhna and modernize Ameriya technical institute.(MENA)