The University of Akron’s Steel Bridge Competition Team placed first out of the 13 teams that competed in the American Society of Civil Engineers/American Institute of Steel Construction Ohio Valley Conference on April 4 at Western Kentucky University. This regional competition included students from colleges and universities in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Kentucky who put their skill, talent and ingenuity to work to design and build a steel bridge. UA’s win qualifies the team to compete in this year’s national competition on May 23-24 at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas.
Led by senior civil engineering student Michael Clements of Willoughby, UA’s 21-member team placed first in six (construction speed, stiffness, aesthetics, construction economy, structural efficiency and overall) out of seven categories, and placed second in the bridge-weight category with its 163-lb. structure. Clements says that the structural efficiency and construction economy of the UA bridge attributed greatly to the team’s success in the competition.
“The steel bridge competition is supposed to embody the design and construction of a real bridge,” explains Clements, adding that UA’s bridge was designed for quick construction, cost and labor efficiency and appropriate material usage.
UA’s 19-foot-long bridge, composed of pieces 3 feet long or smaller, incorporates a “keyhole connection” design, enabling parts to be attached quickly and without a need for bolts, according to Clements. This innovative feature, as well as several others, resulted from the 1,500-plus work hours team members dedicated outside of the classroom (and without receiving credit hours) to fabrication, design and drafting, according to Clements.
The team was led by upper-class engineering students Justin Arnold, Clements, Michael Frabotta and Vince Weisenberger. Other UA team members include: Mike Gray, Timothy Hendrix, James Henry, Jeffery Hershberger, Eric Hilty, Michael Jurcak, India Kaczmarek, Michelle Lazanich, Dan Lorenz, Dean Morningstar, Brian Nixdorf, Ben O'Neill, Rob Pfingsten, Justin Rufener, Kyle Salisbury, Sarah Sullivan and Thomas Weiss.
“What impresses me about these students is their pride in being University of Akron students. The spirit and energy of this group manifested itself in a top-notch engineering project and dominance over such schools as The Ohio State University, the University of Cincinnati and Carnegie Mellon,” says Dr. Chris Miller, UA associate professor of civil engineering and team faculty adviser.
Industrial Tube and Steel of Akron donated all steel used by UA’s teams for the past three competition years, including steel valuing $3,000 this year. Other sponsors are Remcon Waterjets, the Association for Bridge Construction and Design of Northeast Ohio, the American Society of Civil Engineers Akron-Canton section, ABV Contractors Inc. and the Committee for the Future of Civil Engineering.
“The National Student Steel Bridge Competition gives students the opportunity to become involved in the whole process of bridge design,” says Nancy Gavlin, director of education for the American Institute of Steel Construction. “The competition gives students great insight into their futures in steel design and construction, and it helps them to realize what an interesting and fun profession they are entering.”
Frank Hatfield, head of the competition’s Rules Committee, adds that employers prefer graduates who participated in the contest.
“Alumni of the competition, now in positions to hire new graduates, seek out seniors on the bridge team. And once on the job, the former student bridge builders have relevant experience to draw on. They know how to design practical, constructible structures, the remarkable strength and economy of structural steel, how to work with a team and manage a project,” Hatfield says.
Dr. George Haritos, dean of the UA College of Engineering, punctuates the fact that such practical experience is invaluable, and he credits the success of UA engineering students to competitions such as this and to the College of Engineering’s co-op program. The fifth oldest co-op program in the country, UA’s Engineering Cooperative Education Program arranges for undergraduate students to leave the academic setting and work as many as 18 months in private or government firms. Upon graduation, about 50 percent of the university’s engineering students in co-op positions accept full-time employment offers from their co-op companies.
“The co-op experience greatly enhances the marketability and competitive edge of our graduates while it provides employers with a steady flow of qualified talent who bring current technical knowledge to the workplace,” Haritos says.
The UA College of Engineering experienced a 25 percent increase in student enrollment between 2004 and 2007, making it the fourth fastest growing college of engineering in the country (among the 150 largest; data source: American Society for Engineering Education) and the fastest growing in the state. The college’s current 1,926 undergraduate enrollment represents a 39.3 percent increase in enrollment between fall 2004 and fall 2008.