Beyond the Capstone: National Competition and Community Engagement in a Timber Bridge Senior Project

Bin (brenda) Zhou; Sylwia Tanski

Download Paper | Permalink

Conference: 2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access
Location: Virtual On line
Publication Date: June 22, 2020
Start Date: June 22, 2020
End Date: June 26, 2021
Conference Session: Beyond the Capstone: Integrating Authentic Experiences that Promote Learning and Excitement
Tagged Division: Civil Engineering
Page Count: 15
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--34214
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/34214
Download Count: 452

Paper Authors

biography

Bin (brenda) Zhou P.E. Central Connecticut State University

visit author page

Dr. Zhou is an Associate professor in the Engineering Department at Central Connecticut State University (CCSU). Her research enthusiasm lies in quantitative analyses and modeling techniques, and her field of expertise is transportation planning and engineering. After joining CCSU, she expanded her work into STEM education, student outreach, and community engagement.

visit author page

biography

Sylwia Tanski Fuss & O'Neill, Inc.

visit author page

Sylwia is a Civil Engineer working in the Comunity Development Department at Fuss & O'Neill. Equipped with a Bachelor's degree in civil engineering and Master's degree in land and real estate management, she plans to focus her professional career on sustainable and human-scaled urban design.

visit author page

Download Paper | Permalink

Abstract

Capstone is an integral part of Civil Engineering (CE) undergraduate education. It requires graduating students to apply knowledge and skills gained from courses in the CE curriculum in a design that mimics the 'real world' projects. The scopes and level of details in senior design projects can vary noticeably. This paper presents a senior design project in which a group of five CE students participated in the 2019 National Timber Bridge Design Competition and built a timber bridge for a local community to enjoy.

The timber bridge is designed to comply with rules and requirements set by the national competition, the American Disability Act (ADA), the International Building Code (IBC), and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). Following both the competition rules and design manuals certainly causes challenges and constraints in the design phase. The team developed the final structure through an iterative design process over the course of two months. The final design is based on two trusses distributing loads through different beams, and the trusses also serve as guardrails that are required for pedestrian bridges in public parks.

In this capstone project, the team first tested their bridge using competition-specified test load and duration, and measured the maximum vertical bridge deflection and the maximum vertical net deck deflection. Digital photographs, drawings, and a technical report were later submitted to attend the national competition. The timber bridge was then disassembled and transported to a local park to be resembled and placed over a brook in the park.

This capstone project is a great way for the team to be exposed to different facets of the Civil Engineering discipline. In addition, they interacted with various stakeholders, including a software vendor, a project mentor, a Town Engineer, the Director of Community, Recreation and Park Services, the Town Council, and the Mayor. The team also wrote a faculty-student research proposal in order to apply for an internal grant from the University Foundation. Among all the efforts in research, design, construction, testing, and national competition, the most important element is community engagement. The team gained a sense of achievements when their bridge is open to the public and continues to serve the local community in many years to come.

This capstone project won the team a second place in one of the multiple categories of the 2019 National Timber Bridge Design Competition. Town residents and officials were very impressed by the structurally solid and aesthetically appealing bridge donated by the team, and they graciously requested more bridges. This capstone project certainly initiated a mutually beneficial collaboration between the university and a local community and offered future students ideas to complete their degrees with a meaningful and memorable capstone project.

Citation
Format

Zhou, B. B., & Tanski, S. (2020, June), Beyond the Capstone: National Competition and Community Engagement in a Timber Bridge Senior Project Paper presented at 2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access, Virtual On line . 10.18260/1-2--34214

TY - CPAPER
AB - Capstone is an integral part of Civil Engineering (CE) undergraduate education. It requires graduating students to apply knowledge and skills gained from courses in the CE curriculum in a design that mimics the &#39;real world&#39; projects. The scopes and level of details in senior design projects can vary noticeably. This paper presents a senior design project in which a group of five CE students participated in the 2019 National Timber Bridge Design Competition and built a timber bridge for a local community to enjoy.

The timber bridge is designed to comply with rules and requirements set by the national competition, the American Disability Act (ADA), the International Building Code (IBC), and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). Following both the competition rules and design manuals certainly causes challenges and constraints in the design phase. The team developed the final structure through an iterative design process over the course of two months. The final design is based on two trusses distributing loads through different beams, and the trusses also serve as guardrails that are required for pedestrian bridges in public parks.

In this capstone project, the team first tested their bridge using competition-specified test load and duration, and measured the maximum vertical bridge deflection and the maximum vertical net deck deflection. Digital photographs, drawings, and a technical report were later submitted to attend the national competition. The timber bridge was then disassembled and transported to a local park to be resembled and placed over a brook in the park.

This capstone project is a great way for the team to be exposed to different facets of the Civil Engineering discipline. In addition, they interacted with various stakeholders, including a software vendor, a project mentor, a Town Engineer, the Director of Community, Recreation and Park Services, the Town Council, and the Mayor. The team also wrote a faculty-student research proposal in order to apply for an internal grant from the University Foundation. Among all the efforts in research, design, construction, testing, and national competition, the most important element is community engagement. The team gained a sense of achievements when their bridge is open to the public and continues to serve the local community in many years to come.

This capstone project won the team a second place in one of the multiple categories of the 2019 National Timber Bridge Design Competition. Town residents and officials were very impressed by the structurally solid and aesthetically appealing bridge donated by the team, and they graciously requested more bridges. This capstone project certainly initiated a mutually beneficial collaboration between the university and a local community and offered future students ideas to complete their degrees with a meaningful and memorable capstone project.
AU - Bin (brenda) Zhou P.E.
AU - Sylwia Tanski
CY - Virtual On line
DA - 2020/06/22
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Beyond the Capstone: National Competition and Community Engagement in a Timber Bridge Senior Project
UR - https://peer.asee.org/34214
DO - 10.18260/1-2--34214
ER -