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ASCE Student Conference Highlights

The UT American Society of Civil Engineers Student Chapter recently competed in a three-day competition with more than 1,000 students from 25 universities across the Southeast. The ASCE Student Conference is the most anticipated event for ASCE students all year because of the intense planning, especially in two categories, the steel bridge and concrete canoe construction. There are a total of 35 different categories of competition, as well as an overall ranking by school. This year, the team at UT placed 4th overall. Click here for more results from the competition.

The captains of the steel bridge and concrete canoe teams offer a few highlights from the event.

Concrete Canoe Team

Morgan Jenkins – “One such event involves designing, building, and racing a concrete canoe. This competition focuses on materials and mixture design which we tested to find a suitable concrete mix throughout the fall semester. Early in the spring semester, we ran structural calculations and cast the canoe. At the conference the most exciting day for the canoe team was racing day where we got to compete with universities from throughout the South. We were extremely proud to showcase our canoe in this year’s conference in Boca Raton, Florida!”

Sydney Reeder – “Concrete canoe was an exciting, challenging experience that allowed for a unique application of skills from classroom and professional engineering practices.  I found it to be a valuable experience because it allowed me to gain experience in properly managing a project while working alongside my peers to produce a successful project.  This opportunity helped me feel a sense of community in the Civil and Environmental Engineering department as well as with companies and other entities within the greater Knoxville community.  I have also gained valuable memories and experiences that I can learn from and pass on to others.  Overall, this experience was a great way to represent the Tickle College of Engineering, the Civil Department, and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.”

Steel Bridge Team

Matt Lyons – “After months of hard work it was an amazing feeling to be able to compete. Although it was a nerve-racking couple hours of constructing and then load testing, it made it all worth it when we saw the results and how well we placed. I am extremely proud of my team and hope we can compete once more at nationals.”

Will King – “The Steel Bridge Completion consists of students designing and fabricating a 20’ bridge. The teams are judged weight and stiffness of the bridge. The students also have to construct the bridge on site at the competition.  The entire event is based off of a score composed of a monetary cost assigned to your stiffness, weight, and construction speed results.  Our design was built to optimize the construction speed and stiffness portions, while our weight was a little high. After competing against 22 other top southeastern schools we placed 4th. We are very proud of our performance and cannot wait to show out again next year!”