Kansas State University advances to compete in society-wide Concrete Canoe Contest in June at Louisiana Tech University
Reston, Va. — The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) 2022 Mid-America Symposium took place at Iowa state University April 21–23, 2022. At the event, over 300 civil engineering students from 16 universities in, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota put their academic and project management knowledge to the test participating in the annual society-wide ASCE Concrete Canoe Competition and the AISC (American Institute of Steel Construction)/ASCE Student Steel Bridge Competition. Students also participated in the ASCE Innovation Contest.
University of Missouri-Kansas City placed first in the Concrete Canoe Competition, but because they did not meet all of the eligibility requirements to advance, the second-place finisher, Kansas State University will advance to compete at the 35th Annual ASCE Society-wide Competitions June 3–5 at Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, LA. Missouri University of Science and Technology won the National Student Steel Bridge competition advancing to the finals May 27–28 at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg, VA. William Jewell College won the ASCE Innovation Contest.
The ASCE Concrete Canoe competition requires students to collaborate as teams and use engineering skills to design and construct a seaworthy canoe made entirely of concrete. Each team must compete in multiple categories: Technical Proposal, Technical Presentation, Enhanced Focus Area, Final Product, and several racing events, for a chance to move on to the finals where the winner will compete against 23 other teams from schools around the globe.
The mission of the 2022 ASCE Innovation Contest is to develop an innovation that addresses one (or more) of the UN Sustainability Goals as envisioned fitting into ASCE’s Future World Vision Project, “Infrastructure Reimagined.” Participating teams will develop and pitch their innovation to the judges and at a minimum provide proof of concept for its feasibility and innovative potential.
“Congratulations to all the students who participated in the ASCE Mid-America Student Symposia competitions,” said Dennis D. Truax, President of ASCE. “Students exemplified key attributes to success in the civil engineering field throughout the competitions: civil engineering knowledge, ingenuity, and teamwork. The Society is proud to recognize the work these students have put in throughout the school year.”
In its 35th year, the ASCE Concrete Canoe Competition, the student symposium’s flagship event, challenges civil engineering students to apply the engineering principles learned in the classroom to a real-world task, while utilizing project management and team building skills. The Concrete Canoe program consists of both athletic and academic events. The competition is designed to test the knowledge, creativity and stamina of each team. Over the course of the school year, teams plan, research, and construct a canoe out of concrete. The competition evaluates teams on design and construction, a technical proposal, an enhanced focus area, a formal business presentation, and five different races—men’s and women’s slalom races, men’s and women’s sprint races and a co-ed sprint race.
The Society-wide Concrete Canoe Competition+ is organized by ASCE and hosted annually by a university student chapter, thanks in part to funds provided by the ASCE Foundation.
The following schools participated in the symposium:
- Dordt College
- Iowa State University
- Kansas State University
- Missouri State University
- Missouri University of Science and Technology
- Saint Louis University
- South Dakota State University
- Southern Illinois University Carbondale
- Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
- University of Iowa
- University of Kansas
- University of Missouri-Columbia
- University of Missouri-Kansas City
- University of Nebraska-Lincoln
- University of Nebraska-Lincoln at Omaha
- William Jewell College
About the American Society of Civil Engineers
Founded in 1852, the American Society of Civil Engineers represents more than 150,000 civil engineers worldwide and is America's oldest national engineering society. ASCE works to raise awareness of the need to maintain and modernize the nation's infrastructure using sustainable and resilient practices, advocates for increasing and optimizing investment in infrastructure, and improve engineering knowledge and competency. For more information, visit www.asce.org or www.infrastructurereportcard.org and follow us on Twitter, @ASCETweets and @ASCEGovRel.