A TEAM from Ateneo de Manila Senior High School emerged as champion in the senior high school division of the Industrial Engineering Expo Praxis Case Competition held last month at the University of the Philippines Diliman.

Team IExengenium outperformed competing schools, including UP Integrated School, De La Salle Zobel, and Mapúa University, after presenting an innovative proposal designed to address challenges faced by urban farmers.

The group, composed of students from different Grade 11 sections, secured first place for “Torre Kubo,” a cost-efficient and mechanically simplified concept inspired by vertical farming towers aimed at helping small-scale growers operate sustainably in urban settings.

Organized annually by Industrial Engineering students of UP Diliman, the competition brings together senior high school teams to apply systems thinking, feasibility studies, and sustainability models to real-world socio-economic concerns. Preliminary rounds were conducted online before the onsite finals.

This year’s case focused on issues confronting urban farmers in selected areas of Quezon City, including land insecurity and unstable income. Participants were challenged to craft implementable, data-driven solutions, with the most viable proposal receiving a cash prize of P10,000.

Selected by their school’s Mathematics and Applied Sciences District to represent ASHS, the winning team expressed appreciation for the opportunity to present their ideas before academic and industry evaluators and to contribute solutions with potential community impact.