Students at the University of Missouri-Rolla are learning the engineering principles of bridge building by working on a scale model that will be entered in an annual competition sponsored by the American Institute of Steel Construction.         

The UMR Steel Bridge Team will compete against approximately 12 teams from other universities in the regional competition, which will be held April 27 on the campus of the University of Missouri-Columbia. This year, contest specifications call for a 21-foot-long bridge that can support a decking of 42 inches.               

Team members design and fabricate their bridges, which they must be able to reassemble on site. Judges look at construction speed, design aesthetics, lightness, stiffness and structural efficiency. The bridges are “loaded” to test structural performance.         

The top three teams in UMR’s region will advance to the national competition May 26-28 at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. 

“Last year, we didn’t have sufficient lateral bracing,” says Eric Bahr, project manager for the 2006 UMR Steel Bridge Team. “Our strategy is to achieve a balanced design that is structurally efficient but can be put together relatively fast.”                                                      

In anticipation of the regional competition, Bahr says the UMR team has produced computerized 3-D models of its bridge and conducted various tests to see how it performs under possible load combinations.               

The team’s advisor is Dr. Roger LaBoube, Distinguished Teaching Professor of civil engineering. Student members of the 2006 UMR Steel Bridge Team are:

Eric Bahr – a graduate student in civil engineering from St. Joseph, Mo.

Tiffany Benda – a senior in civil engineering from Kimberling City, Mo.

Brian Bloodworth – a senior in civil engineering from Rolla

Nathan Branham – a graduate student in civil engineering from Nevada, Mo.

Jared Brewe – a graduate student in civil engineering from Marthasville, Mo.

Daniel Drury – a senior in architectural engineering from Festus, Mo.

Matt Flint – a junior in civil engineering from Rolla

John Hensley – a senior in civil engineering from DeSoto, Mo.

Travis Hernandez – a junior in civil engineering from Cuba, Mo.

Trevor Hrynyk – a graduate student in civil engineering from Waterloo, Ontario

Mike Lubiewski – a graduate student in civil engineering from St. Louis

Chris Mills – a senior in civil engineering from Rolla

Bryan Newman – a senior in civil engineering from Rolla

Levi Smith – a sophomore in architectural engineering from St. Joseph, Mo.

Laura Stirnemann – a graduate student in civil engineering from St. Louis

Matt Tinsley – a graduate student in civil engineering from Jonesboro, Ark.

Alex Warren – a freshman in mining engineering from St. Joseph, Mo.