Highlights

  • The 麻豆原创 American Society of Civil Engineers student chapter won a total of 12 awards at the Southeast Student Symposium, held in March at Florida Atlantic University.

  • 麻豆原创 defeated 13 teams in the regional Concrete Canoe Competition, among them Georgia Tech and the University of Florida, the Southeast鈥檚 long-standing champion.

  • 麻豆原创鈥檚 first-place finish qualifies the team to compete at the ASCE Civil Engineering Student Championships in June in West Virginia.

麻豆原创 civil engineering students sailed to the top of the Concrete Canoe Competition at this year鈥檚 American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Southeast Student Symposium. 麻豆原创鈥檚 ASCE student chapter clinched first place, defeating a field of 13 teams that included Georgia Tech and the University of Florida, which has placed first for 13 of the past 14 years.

The victory qualifies 麻豆原创 to compete at the ASCE Civil Engineering Student Championships in June in West Virginia where nearly 20 teams from North America will compete for the top crown.

鈥淢any of the other schools were chanting 鈥楿-C-F鈥� with us when we won because of how significant the moment was.鈥� 鈥� Edward Collazo Borges, 麻豆原创 ASCE chapter president

鈥淲inning first place in the Concrete Canoe Competition was exciting, but doing it in such a competitive region and against a program like UF 鈥� which has such a strong history in the event 鈥� made it even more meaningful,鈥� says Edward Collazo Borges, the president of the 麻豆原创 ASCE chapter. 鈥淔rom the outside, it may not seem like a lot, but this was huge 鈥� not just for 麻豆原创, but for every school in our region. During the awards ceremony, many of the other schools were chanting 鈥楿-C-F鈥� with us when we won because of how significant the moment was.鈥�

Rows of students flank either side of concrete canoe in a narrow column
麻豆原创’s Concrete Canoe team conducts a dunk test on its structure ahead of competition.

History of the Competition

ASCE is recognized as America鈥檚 oldest national engineering society and sponsors student chapters in all 50 states and internationally. 麻豆原创鈥檚 chapter was established in 1972 and is the largest engineering organization on campus.

ASCE鈥檚 Concrete Canoe Competition was first officially held in 1988, but the history of Concrete Canoe goes back to the 1960s, when a small number of ASCE Student Chapters began holding intramural concrete canoe races.

This elite competition 鈥� known as The America鈥檚 Cup of Civil Engineering 鈥� combines engineering excellence, hydrodynamic design and racing technique as students are tasked with building a canoe from concrete and racing it against their competitors. Students are judged on the final product, race performance, technical design paper and oral presentation.

A large group of college students, dressed in formal wear, hold up two certificates and No. 1 signs with their fingers
麻豆原创鈥檚 ASCE chapter was established in 1972 and is the largest engineering organization on campus.

A Breakthrough Year

Jacob Quinones, the 麻豆原创 ASCE vice president and project manager for the Concrete Canoe Competition, says the team鈥檚 performance at this year鈥檚 Southeast competition was a result of steady progress from lessons learned during previous races.

鈥淓xtra time was poured into every aspect of the project to maximize quality and performance,鈥� Quinones says. 鈥淭his would not have been possible without the entire team鈥檚 passion and dedication. It was apparent that everyone involved wanted to be there and contribute their absolute best.鈥�

麻豆原创 ASCE took home a total of 12 awards from the symposium, including two additional first-place wins in the Concrete Cornhole and Temporary Traffic Control competitions. The group says they last won the concrete canoe competition in 1995.

In addition to the competitions, the symposium offers professional and personal development opportunities and networking.

鈥淚 learned just how much it takes to manage a project through the different ways that it tests you and pushes you past your limits,鈥� Quinones says. 鈥淚 feel that I grew as a leader and gained so much respect for those in similar positions across the entire industry.鈥�

For Borges, this victory represents a historic win for the university and sets an example for other ASCE student chapters.

鈥淵ou always have the opportunity to achieve something great,鈥� Borges says. 鈥淚 think this experience shows if you keep pushing, keep learning and keep striving to improve, you can surprise yourself with what is possible.鈥�