WHO: Student engineers from 48 top universities, including UNLV, will put their bridge-building skills to the test as they compete for the National Steel Bridge Competition Championship


WHEN: Friday, May 22, 2009
11 a.m. to 3 p.m. – Bridge Construction on T&M Floor
3 p.m. to 5 p.m. – Bridges on Display

Saturday, May 23, 2009
8 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Bridge Competition and Display

WHERE: Thomas & Mack Center at UNLV

DETAILS: The event is free and open to the public. Student engineering teams are given a real world scenario and tasked with building a functional 1/10th scale model of a steel bridge. Teams are judged on speed of assembly (some build in as fast as eight minutes), weight, display and the ability to withstand a more than 2,500 pound load.

Civil engineering students from across the nation compete each year in regional competitions for a chance to compete in the national championship, this year hosted by UNLV’s Howard R. Hughes College of Engineering and the UNLV student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers. The competition gives students practical design and construction experience and allows them to network with peers throughout the country. Steel Bridge is sponsored by the American Society of Civil Engineers and American Institute of Steel Construction

For a complete list of participating universities and additional event information, please visit http://unlv2009nssbc.com or contact Tony Allen at (702)895-0893.

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UNLV is a doctoral-degree-granting institution of 28,000 students and 3,300 faculty and staff. Founded in 1957, the university offers more than 220 undergraduate, master's and doctoral degree programs. UNLV is located on a 332-acre campus in dynamic Southern Nevada and is classified in the category of Research Universities (high research activity) by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.