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Two Southern Illinois University Edwardsville School of Engineering construction management competition teams placed in the top three during the Associated Schools of Construction Region III conference held in Downer’s Grove October 14-17. 

“Our students continued their tradition of excellent performance at the regional and national open construction management competitions,” said Chris Gordon, chair of the Department of Construction.  “We see from these and other indicators that our students are highly prepared for success in construction management, thanks to their hard work and the commitment of our faculty.”

Teams completed their competition materials on Thursday and presented their approach to judges on Friday.  

The Concrete Solutions team earned second place in the national open competition. SIUE competed against teams from across the country, including Eastern Illinois University, California State University-Sacramento, Bowling Green State University, Milwaukee School of Engineering, Ohio Northern University and California Polytechnic University at San Luis Obispo. 

Six seniors comprised the Concrete Solutions team: Nathan Elting from Macomb, Stephen Schaab and Andrew Goetz from Belleville, Brian Upchurch from Columbia, Phillip Nzegbuna from Chicago and Jacob Eilers from Breese.  Anne Werner, P.E. PhD and assistant professor of construction, coached the team. 

During the competition, the teams developed a proposal that detailed a schedule, cost estimate, provided design assistance and analyzed concrete forming systems for a challenging site in a remote region with a tight deadline. 

“Judges were impressed by the team’s strong presentation skills and their ability to analyze a complex project and accomplish so much in such a short amount of time,” Werner said.

The Heavy Civil team earned third place in the regional competition. The team competed against teams from Bowling Green State University, University of Cincinnati, Eastern Michigan University, Ferris State University, University of Wisconsin-Stout and Michigan Technical University. 

The team was comprised of seniors Stuarrt Bailey from Waterloo, Triston Baltimore from Decatur, Bryce Schuster from Golden and Michael Branscum from Chicago, along with juniors Josh Wilson from Nashville, Ill., and Zach Kelly from Ballwin, Mo. Mark Grinter, assistant professor of construction, coached the team. 

The team developed a proposal that included a proposed schedule, site logistics plan, safety plan, price estimate and cost savings recommendations for a challenging highway project for a busy metropolitan area.  

“The team effectively used their management skills, creating a comprehensive plan of work,” Grinter said.  “Judges commented that our team’s approach demonstrated sound judgment and an obvious understanding of the challenges posed by heavy civil construction.”