Steel Bridge
What is it?
The ASCE Student Steel Competition challenges students to think outside the box! Bridge making is an intense process that requires all hands on deck and brings out the skillset of everyone involved, from design to aesthetics to construction.
Team members get the chance to learn about bridge design from start to finish. Given the rules, restrictions, and expectations, students must brainstorm clever designs before modelling, testing, and reworking their bridge until it is satisfactory for both production and construction.
The bridge is brought to life by a fabricator, and the construction team takes over. At regional competitions, they must put the bridge together in a time and resource-efficient manner, to see if it can withstand the ultimate test, live loads.
Teams are tasked with modeling a bridge design within restrictions and meeting the demands of that year’s competition. Generally, the goal is to create a lightweight but strong model that is quick and intuitive to construct.
Members will use Autodesk products to create a general, easily modified bridge for analyzing deflection and forces in a full-scale model under competition conditions until the bridge meets expectations.
Once the initial model is approved, it will be modeled in SolidWorks as parts, then assemblies, to make shop drawings for the fabricator.
Structural Design
Team members must create a construction plan, taking into account the number of builders, their location, and their strengths. Elements of construction are assigned values, and so with these in mind, the goal is to deliver the bridge on time, efficiently, and at as low a cost is possible, without sacrificing quality.
Builders practice regularly to ensure proper communication, teamwork, and professionalism are in place for competition, to prevent costly mistakes.
Construction Management
Meet the Team
Team Captain:
Serinda Chek
Design Lead:
Emily Martindale
Design Team:
Sage Parkinson
Dayana Cespedes-Mendoza
Leyla Buendia-Ochoa
Mentor:
Douglas Dunrud
Aesthetics Lead:
Christin Grant
Construction Lead:
Lavetta Ngo
Construction Team:
Anthony Reyes
Brandon Rojas
Ethan Reynolds
Trevor Kramer
- Into Bridge Design? - Into Planning? - Into Construction?
- Into Bridge Design? - Into Planning? - Into Construction?
Interested in joining the Steel Bridge Competition Team?
Contact us at asce@gmu.edu.