SFSU
students recently competed blueprint to blueprint with budding civil
engineers from other universities -- including the U.S. Military
Academy, University of Texas and Virginia Tech -- to emerge as No.
1 in the overall design in a national wooden bridge design contest
sponsored by the American Society of Civil Engineers. Led by senior
Thomas Richardson, the team included Catherine Stout, Jim Chilton,
Bopha Sok, Faris Salfiti and Rana Bayadi.
Wenshen
Pong, associate professor of civil engineering and faculty adviser
on the project, said that two designs by SFSU students made
the final competition between 12 bridges from schools all over the
United States. The finalists were selected from online competition.
Each team designed, constructed and tested their bridge on its home
turf and submitted documentation and results to a panel of judges made
up of professionals from engineering, construction and the U.S.
Department of Agriculture Forest Service.
When
the time came for the finalists to meet over a bridge-to-bridge competition
held in Sacramento, SFSU was the only school represented
by two teams in the top 10. A bridge with a truss structure designed
by an SFSU team advised by engineering Professor Norman Owen took fourth
place in overall design.
Members
of the arch bridge team said their goal was to design a "structure
which combined strength with beauty." While
the arch is one of the oldest design concepts in nature, an arch bridge
made of redwood posed significant challenges.
"We
used a young wood called Clear Heart California redwood and we were
able to cut that into thin strips," Chilton said. Twelve
layers of these strips were placed one on top of the other and held
together by wood screws and adhesive. The layers were bent over an
engineered plywood form and allowed to cure for seven days, after which
the structure was sanded and laminated. The end trusses, decking, curbs,
stringers and floor beams were constructed from Douglas fir. The team
used a composite for the floor beams and steel rods, cables, brackets
and tension fixtures to complete the design.
Each
member of the team brought different skills to the project, ranging
from carpentry
to data management. Team leader Richardson said that
the "construction opportunities made the team very close as a
group."
Salfiti
said the experience was one of "people coming together
from all different walks of life to establish a connection that will
never be forgotten."
Sok said, "To
take a concept and create it physically gave me a great sense of
accomplishment
and inspiration."
Stout
added that she "never felt
so connected and attached to a project ... with only six minds,
we created something that was not only beautiful, but very structurally
sound."
According to Civil
Engineering program head Elahe Enssani, this was the first time SFSU
has placed first in the overall competition which
is sponsored by Weyerhaeuser Company. "We are a small program
compared to most of the other finalists," she said, "but
this honor guarantees that SFSU’s reputation for civil engineering
will continue to grow."
The winning bridge and the fourth place finisher were on exhibit
at the May 6 Science and Engineering Showcase and is now on display
near the quad-side entrance to the Science and Engineering Building.
-- Denize Springer
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