A Goldsmith Bet His Savings on Them. Now They Build Egypt's Machines

In 2013 a goldsmith in Egypt took his savings and bought a machine from two young engineers nobody had heard of. It was their first sale.

The machine worked. He later came back for a second one, and had the first upgraded.

That goldsmith was the first customer of Simplex. Thirteen years later, the company runs two factories, thousands of customers and machines stamped "Proudly Made in Egypt".

Hardware when everyone wanted apps

Ahmed Shaaban started Simplex in 2013 with Mohamed Mansour and Amr Osman. The company grew out of a university graduation project, and its first home was a workshop of about 50 square metres.

They picked a hard road. Most young Egyptian companies at the time were writing software. Simplex wanted to build heavy machines. In the Flat6Labs accelerator that took them in, they were known as "the startup of the 50's", the one still making hardware.

They were fresh graduates with no business training. And customers did not believe them. Imported machines were the standard, and a young local firm had to prove it belonged in the same room. As Mansour told WAYA in 2019: "The hardest point starting out was convincing clients that we were selling Egyptian made machines."

What Simplex makes

Simplex builds CNC machines. CNC means computer numerical control: a computer drives the cutting head, so the machine follows a digital design exactly, time after time.

Its core product is the CNC router. A router like this cuts and engraves wood, acrylic, aluminium, plastic and even marble with the same accuracy every time.

Simplex designs, assembles and builds the machines in Egypt. It adapts them to each industry's needs and backs them with technical support and maintenance close to home. For a workshop in Egypt or the region, that means the people who built the machine are the ones who service it.

Like most industrial machines, they are priced on request.

From one goldsmith to a factory floor

After that first sale, word travelled. A 2016 profile counted buyers in 11 Egyptian governorates by the end of year one.

Furniture makers became key customers. Shaaban argued the machines helped them sell more abroad. Among the bigger names that bought in were Mobica and Hanimex, furniture and appliance makers in the Middle East.

By 2019 the company had built more than 700 machines in a 3,500 square metre factory and was exporting to countries including Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and South Africa.

Shaaban's advice to other founders back then was plain. "The most important goal for you should be sustainability," he said in a 2016 Egypt Innovate profile.

Where Simplex stands now

Simplex now counts more than 4,500 customers in 34 countries, across Africa, Europe and the Middle East. About 15% of what it makes leaves Egypt. By its own figures it employs more than 400 people and has sold over 100 million dollars' worth of machines.

The growth has needed space and money. In January 2025 a round led by Saudi Arabia's National Industrial Development Centre brought in 13 million dollars. In July 2026 the newest machines, wearing a "Proudly Made in Egypt" label, were shown at the opening of a second factory: 40,000 square metres in 10th of Ramadan City, east of Cairo, which the company values at about 50 million dollars. Work on a third factory began the same day, with Egypt's finance minister among the guests.

In August 2026 Shaaban was named one of the ten finalists of Africa's Business Heroes, chosen from more than 24,000 applicants. The winners will be chosen in Kigali in December.

How to order

Simplex machines are priced on request. Contact the company through LinkedIn.

• LinkedIn: Simplex CNC

What's next

The third factory is the next step. So are partnership and agency agreements in Jordan and Kuwait, signed in July 2026.

The goal behind it has not moved since the goldsmith's order: fewer imported machines on Egyptian factory floors, and more Egyptian machines on factory floors abroad.

Key Takeaways

Simplex shows that African hardware can win buyers who start out doubtful, one working machine at a time.

• The first customer is the proof. A goldsmith who bet his savings, came back for more and upgraded did more for trust than any sales pitch.
• Service sells machines. Building in Egypt lets Simplex adapt each machine and keep support close, which matters as much to a factory as the price.