The Missouri S&T Steel Bridge Design Team placed fifth in the nation at the Student Steel Bridge Competition, held May 31 in Ames, Iowa.
The fifth-place finish is a record for the S&T team, with a previous best result of 12th place in 2004.
The Steel Bridge competition requires students to design a scale model of a bridge, spanning around 20 feet and capable of holding 2,500 pounds. The assembly of the bridge is timed, and the completed bridges are load-tested, weighed, and judged on aesthetics and cost estimates. The bridges are designed to solve a real-world problem; this year’s challenge was to design a bridge over the South Skunk River in Iowa to connect walking trails in a park.
