From egg protection devices in California to paper walls in Florida, students at the University of Minnesota Duluth travelled the country to put their knowledge to unconventional tests. This year students involved in ACI and ASCE participated in regional and national conferences. Students who chose to stay close to home can participate in chapter events that build community and promote professional development. Whether close to home or across the country, UMD's students invest in education beyond the walls of the classroom.
ASCE General Student Chapter
Professionals continue to pay a visit to ASCE's student chapter at UMD to talk about their experiences in the profession. Biweekly meetings offer students a chance to build community and promote professional development. One of the highlights of the year's meetings was a tour of the new building on campus. Working with the Duluth's ASCE chapter, the group toured the Heikkila Chemistry & Advanced Materials Science Building. To give back to the community, the club continues to participate in Adopt-a-Highway and SCSE outreach events such as Science and Engineering Days and Science on Tap.
ACI
Travelling to both Anaheim, CA and Salt Lake City, UT, the ACI team made appearance at both of the ACI Convention student competitions. Last fall, ACI traveled to the convention in Anaheim to compete in the EPD (Egg Protection Device) competition. A protection device designed to withstand drop loads carried an egg dropped from varying heights. In Salt Lake City, the team competed in the FRC Concrete Bowling Ball competition where the concrete balls were tested in compression. An unusual bowling tournament judges the team's ability to put their ball to use. After four gutter balls, the team successfully managed to score a strike.
Concrete Canoe
Named in honor of the Northland's legacy of fur-trading and the spirit of the North Woods, Voyageur was ready to take to the lake this April for ASCE's Concrete Canoe competition. Modeled after a traditional Boundary Waters canoe, the inside is pigmented tan while the outside is green with a black edging. Freshmen to seniors and everyone in between, contributed to the effort to float concrete. Despite having plans to travel to Mankato for the regional competition, a snowstorm stopped the team from traveling. Instead, they competed virtually (through video and paper reports) with the hopes of going to San Diego for the national competition.
GeoWall
Constructing a wall of paper scraps to hold 40 pounds of sand seems near impossible to most, but UMD's GeoWall team continues to succeed. This year 3 teams competed at the regional competition in Mankato. Placing second, the team of four seniors qualified for nationals, spending their Spring Break in Orlando, FL.
Steel Bridge
Led by grad student Colton Moore, the club is proud to announce the inaugural year of the UMD Steel Bridge team. Steel Bridge is a competition where Students design, fabricate, construct and test a steel bridge for a regional competition. The winning bridge is decided on economic analysis load capacity, constructability, and aesthetics from the pool of succeeding bridge teams.
