Students from Missouri University of Science and Technology won second place at the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Mid-Continent Student Conference.
The conference was held Thursday, April 4, through Saturday, April 6, at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville in Edwardsville, Ill. Missouri S&T’s Steel Bridge Team competed with other regional collegiate teams to construct its bridge as fast as possible. Their build time was 11 minutes, 6 seconds, with 2 minutes, 30 seconds of penalties.
The group was judged on bridge weight, construction speed and rigidity. Penalties are assessed for infractions ranging from dropping bolts, holding two pieces of the bridge at once and stepping over designated lines.
The S&T Steel Bridge Team was first in construction speed, first in construction economy and second in structural efficiency, which gave the team a second place finish overall. The team will next head for the national competition, which will be held the last week of May in Seattle at the University of Washington.
This year, the team’s bridge weighs 155 pounds and has 44 pieces. The back span is 12 feet long and the cantilever is 3.5 feet long. The group spent all of the fall semester designing the bridge. This spring, leading up to the competition, they have been fabricating the bridge in the Student Design and Experiential Learning Center on the S&T campus, spending approximately 750 hours total in the shop.
Dr. Timothy Philpot, associate professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering at S&T, is the Steel Bridge Team faculty advisor. Sarah Padgett, a junior in civil engineering from Topeka, Kan., is the 2013 team leader.
The following students are part of the 2013 Steel Bridge Team:
Sermad Amir, a junior in civil engineering from Ballwin, Mo.
Takota Anderson, a senior in mechanical engineering from Stark City, Mo.
Zachary Bardot, a senior in architectural engineering from Luebbering, Mo.
Natalie Bouxsein, a senior in civil engineering from Sugar Hill, Ga.
Joel Cates, a sophomore in mechanical engineering from Pawnee, Ill.
Michael Ishmael, a junior in mechanical engineering from Grain Valley, Mo.
Jermy Jamison, a junior in mechanical engineering from Lone Jack, Mo.
Micah Johnson, a senior in mechanical engineering from Warrenton, Mo.
Samuel Johnson, a senior in engineering management from Maryland Heights, Mo.
Nicholas Kaesik, a senior in civil engineering from Freeburg, Mo.
Matthew Klegseth, a freshman in civil engineering from Kansas City, Mo.
Lynsey Lahey, a senior in civil engineering from Kirkwood, Mo.
Sheryl Mattox, a senior in architectural engineering from Archie, Mo.
Cameron McCormick, a senior in civil engineering from Lee’s Summit, Mo.
Francis McCoy, a sophomore in civil engineering from Kansas City, Mo.
David Muller, a senior in architectural engineering from Ballwin, Mo.
Holly Olson, a junior in mechanical engineering from Nanjemoy, Md.
Sarah Padgett, a junior in civil engineering from Topeka, Kan.
Kyle Roberts, a senior in civil engineering from New London, Mo.
Samuel Rothove, a senior in metallurgical engineering from Westphalia, Mo.
Austin Shull, a junior in architectural engineering from La Monte, Mo.
Samantha Smith, a senior in civil engineering from Washington, Ill.
Zachary Smith, a junior in civil engineering from St. Peters, Mo.
Sonya Snyder, a sophomore in metallurgical engineering from Las Vegas, Nev.
Charles Stankovic, a sophomore in civil engineering from Saline, Mich.
Nicholas Traub, a sophomore in civil engineering from Green Bay, Wis.
Darrell Wallace, a senior in civil engineering from Lee’s Summit, Mo.
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