WMU engineers take steel bridge, concrete canoe to competition

Photo of members of the WMU bridge build team.
Members of the bridge build team focus on their work.

KALAMAZOO, Mich.— After months of hard work and fabrication, Western Michigan University’s steel bridge and concrete canoe teams will head to East Lansing April 7-9, where they will vie against schools from two states to earn best design honors.

WMU engineering students participate each year in the American Society of Civil Engineers North Central Regional Competition and this year hope to advance to the national competition. Universities from Michigan and Ohio will attend the conference at Michigan State University, with some nine concrete canoe teams and at least seven steel bridge teams planning to compete.

The steel bridge team designs, fabricates and constructs a scale-model bridge based on criteria established by the American Society of Civil Engineers and the American Institute of Steel Construction. The competition involves building a 1:10-scale bridge that is evaluated on lightness, stiffness, construction speed, economy, efficiency and display. WMU's 20.5-foot-long steel bridge must have a 1.5-foot clearance, be able to hold 2,500 pounds and be assembled quickly from pieces no longer than 3 feet.

Tom Palumbo, steel bridge team captain and a fifth-year senior from Hudsonville, says after months of designing, cutting and welding, the team is ready to show off its final product.

"Our program has come a long way over the last few years," he says. “I'm excited for conference because we have a fantastic team this year and we'll be bringing a very competitive bridge."

Members of WMU's concrete canoe team.
Members of the concrete canoe team put the finishing touches on their entry.

WMU's entry in this year’s concrete canoe competition is named "Italian Stallion," and was produced using a "female" mold rather than the typical "male" mold. Troweling of the concrete occurred on the inside of the Styrofoam mold, rather than the outside. The canoe will be judged in categories such as hull design and aesthetics as well as its performance in a number of different races.

The concrete canoe team recently concluded paddling practice and hope this year's model will perform well in the water.

"We’ve designed and built it—now we’re ready to take it and race it," says Bryan McDowell, team captain and a senior from St. Clair.

The competitions also involve a display and presentation of the concrete canoe, as well as a separate technical paper written by one of Western's ASCE members. The teams will compete and be judged by industry professionals.

For more information about the steel bridge effort, contact Tom Palumbo at thomas.a.palumbo@wmich.edu. To learn more about the concrete canoe work, contact Bryan McDowell at bryan.a.mcdowell@wmich.edu.

For more news, arts and events, visit wmich.edu/news.