糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock construction team garners accolades at regional competition
A team of University of Arkansas at Little Rock students recently took third place at an international organization鈥檚 construction competition.
The 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock squad 鈥� made up of students from the Department of Construction Management and Civil and Construction Engineering 鈥� participated in the Heavy Civil category of the Region 5 International Student Construction Competition.
Students had to prepare a project cost estimate, develop a schedule, answer questions dealing with contracts and specification issues, and fill out and submit a complete bid package. Any form that was not completed properly would lead to disqualification.
鈥淭he Heavy Civil competition is as close to real world as the contractors can get without the students actually building the project,鈥� said Michael Tramel, professor and chair of the 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock Department of Construction Management and Civil and Construction Engineering.
Region 5 includes colleges and universities offering two- and four-year construction management, science, and technology degrees in the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas.
During the 16-hour estimating and bidding process portion of the competition Saturday, Feb. 18, in the College of Engineering and Information Technology building, the 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock team was confined to a room and could not have outside contact except to order and receive food.
Team members then traveled to Dallas, Texas, on Sunday, Feb. 19, presented to the judges on Monday, Feb. 20, and returned on Tuesday, Feb. 21.
糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock鈥檚 team consisted of Casey Baker, Joseph Eggburn, Julie Sanders, Shannon Shields, Dylan Singleton, and Drew Potter. 聽The team was coached by Instructor Larry Blackmon.
Baker was recognized as one of the best presenters for the Heavy Civil Division, taking a second-place award out of 48 presenters.
鈥淭he team and Larry Blackmon represented Arkansas, 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock, EIT, and the Construction Management and Civil and Construction Engineering Department at the exceptional level and are a testimony to the Arkansas Construction Industry,鈥� Tramel said.
Personnel from provided the competition鈥檚 construction problem 鈥� a half-mile section of an I-30 聽interchange in Fort Worth, Texas 鈥� and conducted the judging.
The competition required participants to develop a plan to tunnel underneath I-30, while working with an active railway.
Teams had to bid and schedule work for storm drains, utilities, retaining walls, sidewalks, concrete paving, and drill shafts.
Soil conditions were among the greatest challenges, with a total excavation of more than 50,000 cubic yards that needed to be removed, at a depth of 7 feet. There also were restrictive working hours and air pollution limits.
The Highway Division of the Arkansas Associated General Contractors donated the cost of the 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock team鈥檚 travel expenses, and Rogers Group Inc. donated the team鈥檚 shirts.
In addition to 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock, participating universities included John Brown, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, Texas A&M Commerce, Texas Tech, North Texas, and Texas State.
