Midwest, Again, has Plenty of Quality

From our Eyes and Ears in the World of SBT, Matt reports:

Early in the Mankato chill, Midwestern SBT's gathered in the Myers Field House on the Minnesota State campus to put 7 months of design, planning, and fabrication to the test at the 2007 Midwest Regional ASCE/AISC Steel Bridge Competition. The clear favorite going in had to be the defending NSSBC champs North Dakota State. They did not disappoint, as the Bison were light, quick on their feet, and put in a good time. The bridge performed very well under load, and I believe they've again mastered the Midwest.

1st Efficiency
NDSU Bison

1st Lightness
NDSU Bison

1st Stiffness
Iowa Hawkeyes

1st Speed
Lakehead Thunderwolves

1st Economy
Lakehead Thunderwolves

Aesthetics
Iowa State Cyclones

Overall
1. North Dakota State University Bison
2. Lakehead University Thunderwolves
3. University of Minnesota Golden Gophers
4. Minnesota State University, Mankato Mavericks
5. Iowa State University Cyclones
6. South Dakota State University Jackrabbits
7. University of Wisconsin, Platteville Pioneers
8. University of Iowa Hawkeyes
9. University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux

















*As is custom of this blog, nothing will be posted not already posted on the internet or sent directly to chrome.ollie@gmail.com. Specifics are for those who were there. Any inquiries about a SBT's performance should be addressed directly to the respective captains. note: try not to pretend to be somebody else, it's stupid, oh yeah, muy estupido, or as Mencia would say, "deeit de da." ;-p

Aggie Seismic takes 3rd in Burbank

2006 Chrome Ollie members Tomonori Mori and Gerardo Rocha along with Winnie Leung and Rusian Novik help lead the 2007 UC Davis Seismic Design Competition entry. Third Place Overall! Way to go Aggie SDT!

1. Oregon State
2. San Jo ("You Know!")
3. UC Davis Aggies!

More Information on the 2007 SDC can be found here:
http://peer.berkeley.edu/students/Albums/2007_SeismicCompetition/

Steven's Tech Doc from 2005

Some of you may have already seen this, but it's worth another look. Stevens Tech of the Metropolitan conference did a nice ride along documentary of their trip to Orlando for the 2005 NSSBC.

Can't help but laugh when the fella is swiggin' the cerveza while working the drill. The drunk GT professor was also a highlight. UC Davis Steel Bridge All-Star Jen Walley gets the on camera quote. "43 members, 86 dovetails, and 26 bolts".....ahhhh, those were the days before all these rules started to shackle creativity. Ha! (It was 45 wasn't it?)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAZrCqmnp5E

High Pressure Water Cutting Possibility

Sierra Manufacturing Inc. in Chico may hook us up with some Waterjet cutting. Style prepare to be upgraded.

http://www.sierramfg.com/

Pour Day help

Hey y'all,

Canoe is looking to pour this Sunday. Having additional hands present may help the process.

From Bridgeland:

Still tiggin' the DK's, warping is becoming an issue, so we may need to modify the weld sequence for Side A. Also, Matt scarred the S#@! out of one of the straight DK doves on Side B trying to force it out (did not check for warping first), it will have to be replaced with one of the spares. Aside from that, Side B is almost completely done. OT Dove production will money cut on Friday 3/9. Jessica finished the 32 deg. CD extensions for CD 2/5. DK Slips are done.

Still have: 45 deg. pier bases (w/ holes), and OT Slips to fab.

Matt will travel to Minneapolis/Mankato this weekend, and is taking the camera with him. Debating the trip to see the SE in Knoxville at the moment. When's Picnic Day again?

UConn set for the New England!

The Huskies got their bridge set to roll for the New England Regional. Looks like they may be California Beamin' if they put up a time worthy of Byaaaaaah!















http://www.engr.uconn.edu/soe.php?pId=steelbridge

Camera

Matt's SONY is functional again thanks to the men and women of SONY reparir in Laredo, TX. We're back in business on film, so construction team, after this weekend get ready to watch yoself!

Byaaaaaah!

Chrome Crew Attitude

We are going to yell this at least 5 times during a run. Byaaaaaaaaaaah!

http://video.google.com/videoplay

Practice

Good job today y'all. The faster the beam (or half beam? eh) comes out, the faster we can finish the rest. Keep the speed intensity high, and remember that it's always worth it to take those few extra seconds than drop a nut and/or bolt. Don't rush, keep the hands steady, and move quickly but surely from staging to site.

Steel Bridge for Dummies

For any newcomers out there, here's a good rough guide on getting your steel bridge completed with some decent accuracy this season. A lot of common violations are described here in some detail. This site is a great way to check yourself so that you don't make some common mistakes. Thanks to Dr. Quimby and the gang for putting up this site.

http://www.nssbc.info/HostGuide/07R11_2_4.htm

ETS Montreal Link found again!

Finally found that ETS link from Montreal (need to brush up on French a little eh?)

http://www.ctn.etsmtl.ca/pontacier/

CALL FOR VIDEO

Hello to all the Steel Bridge Teams out there!

If you're like us, we browse way too much on YouTube. Whether it be looking at funny stuff, hot chicks, or whatever you truly need at the moment, YouTube is friggin' sweet. You may have also noticed that the 2006 UC Davis assembly run at Cal is on there, along with a lot of video from Cal State Fullerton aka "Titanium", and UC San Diego put up some good stuff as well.

Lafayette College has also announced that they are making a documentary film on the 2006-2007 Steel Bridge season. Way to go Leopards! This is what we like to see people!

This is hereby a call for anybody out there crazy enough to film their construction practices or competition day runs like we do to post some cool stuff on YouTube, or wherever else you please and send the link on in to chrome.ollie@gmail.com

Thanks a bunch!

Longhorns bringin' the pain!

Word from Tejas (thanks to the UMKC Kangaroos for the link):

February Briefing from the
University of Texas at Austin ASCE Student chapter
By Marco Guzman

We’re going to nationals! On January 13th the UT Austin steel bridge team packed the van and headed for Lubbock to compete in the Texas- Mexico Region steel bridge competition. The top two teams from a field of ten, eight teams from Texas and two from Mexico, would earn a spot in the national competition. We placed first in lightness, stiffness, structural efficiency and second in construction economy and construction time. UT Austin was proud to bring home the second place overall finish. Our bridge weighed in at 156 lb while only deflecting 0.5 of an inch when loaded with 2100 lbs. Our success was made possible by all the companies that pitched in to help sponsor our team.

2100? regardless, Texas-Mexico conference should be given the SBT medal of valor for competing in mid-January.



Just Hook 'em Baby!




http://www.austinasce.org/Newsletters/

A quick hit list of SBT's...

Based on 2006 results, here's some SBT links:

North Dakota State University (Midwest Confernce)
http://www.acm.ndsu.nodak.edu/~amersoci/STEEL%20BRIDGE.htm

SUNY Canton (Upstate New York)
http://www.canton.edu/public_relations/news/bridge_team_finals.html

University of Wisconsin, Madison (Great Lakes)
http://www.engr.wisc.edu/studentorgs/bridge/

Georgia Tech University (Carolinas)
http://asce.ce.gatech.edu/

Lakehead University (Midwest)
http://www.luess.com/
(couldn't find much else)

Clemson University (Carolinas)
http://www.ce.clemson.edu/steelbridge/home.html

University of California, San Diego (Pacific Southwest)
http://scse.ucsd.edu/steel_bridge/index.html

California State University, Chico (Mid-Pacific)
http://chicoasce.googlepages.com/activities.html

University of California, Davis (Mid-Pacific)
http://asce.ucdavis.edu/

Lawrence Technological University (North Central)
http://www.ltu.edu/engineering/civil/.asp
(again, not much here)

University of California, Berkeley (Mid-Pacific)
http://www.ce.berkeley.edu/~steelbridge/new/index.php

Michigan State University (North Central)
http://www.egr.msu.edu/asce/index.html

Gonzaga University (Pacific Northwest)
http://www.gonzaga.edu/

Southern Polytechnic State University (Southeast)
http://asce.spsu.edu/ASCE/Steel%20Bridge.html

University of Missouri, Kansas City (Mid-Continent)
http://www.sce.umkc.edu/cme/ascesteel_cme/default.htm

Virginia Tech (Virginias)
http://www.asce.cee.vt.edu/bridge.html

University of North Florida (Southeast)
http://www.unf.edu/groups/asce/

University of Hawaii, Manoa (Pacific Southwest)
http://www.eng.hawaii.edu/~asce/

New Jersey Institute of Technology (Metropolitan)
http://web.njit.edu/~asce/index_files/Page713.htm

Hudson Valley Community College (Upstate New York)
https://www.hvcc.edu/studentactivities/clubact.html

Texas A & M University, College State (Texas-Mexico)
http://asce.tamu.edu/

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (Pacific Southwest)
http://ceenve.calpoly.edu/sce/

Southern Illinois University, Carbondale (Mid-Continent)
http://civil.engr.siu.edu/ASCE/bridge.htm

Texas A & M University, Kingsville (Texas-Mexico)
http://www.engineer.tamuk.edu/Homepage/

Oregon Institute of Technology (Pacific Northwest)
http://asce.southslopewebdesign.com/bridge.html

Lafayette College (Mid-Atlantic)
http://www.lafayette.edu/news.php/view/9760

The Ohio State University (Ohio Valley)
http://www-ceg.eng.ohio-state.edu/steelbridge/

Kansas State University aka "Steel Willie" (Mid-Continent)
http://www.engg.ksu.edu/ASCE/index_files/Page554.htm

University of Maine (New England)
http://www.civil.umaine.edu/steelbridge/

University of Connecticut (New England)
http://www.engr.uconn.edu/~ceeasce/sb.htm

Utah State University (Rocky Mountain)
http://www.engineering.usu.edu/clubs/asce/

Old Dominion University (Virginias)
http://asce.odu.edu/

Arkansas State University (Deep South)
http://engr.astate.edu/asce/

Colorado School of Mines (Rocky Mountain)
http://www.mines.edu/stu_life/organ/asce/steel/

University of British Columbia (Pacific Northwest)
The Underground is the best student civil engineering publication!
http://www.civil.ubc.ca/civlclub/index2.php?language=english

University of Utah (Rocky Mountain)
http://www.civil.utah.edu/~asce/

Univrersity of Texas, Austin (Texas-Mexico)
http://www.ut-asce.org/

Tennessee Technological University (Southeast)
http://www.tntech.edu/cee/Student_Orgs.html

Youngstown State University (Ohio Valley)
http://www.ysu.edu/stu_org/asce/

Univrersity of Delaware (Mid-Atlantic)
http://www.ce.udel.edu/~asce/index-frames.html

University of Illinois, Chicago (Great Lakes)
http://www2.uic.edu/stud_orgs/prof/asce/main.htm

NYC College of Technology (Metropolitan)
http://www.citytech.cuny.edu/academics/deptsites/

Ecole de Technologie Superieure
http://www.ctn.etsmtl.ca/pontacier/

Louisiana State University (Deep South)
http://www.ceedept.lsu.edu/~asce/

Other Teams of note:

University of Florida (Southeast -- The Gators
will win the Southeast this year)
http://www.ufasce.com/steelbridge/index.html

Penn State (Mid-Atlantic)
http://www.engr.psu.edu/ASCE/Bridge/index.htm

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (Great Lakes)
http://cee.uiuc.edu/groups/asce/projects/default.asp#bridge

University of Alaska, Fairbanks (Pacific Northwest)
http://www.uaf.edu/asce/

California State University, Long Beach (Pacific Southwest)
http://www.csulb.edu/org/asce/mmindex.htm

Illinois Institute of Technology (Great Lakes)
http://asce.iit.edu/

California State University, Northridge (Pacific Southwest - 2007 NSSBC Host)
http://www.csun.edu/~ceam/home.htm

Iowa State University (Midwest)
http://www.stuorg.iastate.edu/asce/steelbridge.htm

University of Michigan (North Central)
http://www.engin.umich.edu/soc/asce/

Oklahoma State University (Mid-Continent)
http://asce.ceat.okstate.edu/

Portland State University (Pacific Northwest)
http://www.asce.pdx.edu/bridgeteam/Home.html

University of South Florida (Southeast)
http://org.eng.usf.edu/ASCE/

Clarkson University (Upstate New York)
http://www.clarkson.edu/projects/asce/Steel%20Bridge%20Page.htm

DK TIGGIN'

Nothin' but DK Tiggin' today and tomorrow. The first pair looks great, let's just get through more of them each hour. This bridge is going to be very efficient if we keep this up guys, really tight stuff, but remember, we gotta be fast, so let's expedite the process these next 20 days.





JUST DO IT
BABY!

State of the Chrome Union

February is almost over, holy schnikies!!!

The LT has been completely precision milled, and the frame 45's are ready to weld, so we can get the total LT frame jigged up and welded for each DK piece. 45 + 45 = 90, so that's real nice to know!!! Phil's gonna MIG the Ojos seeing how the TIG just seems too much of a burden.

Left to do: Plenty of various Doves.
Sheet metal work, caps and such, maybe more for Phil if we finish early.
Finish the OT, cut, prec. mill, weld the last sections up.
Lathework galore, OT and DK.
Gladiator work should be done on the lathe to speed things up.

Keep going Chrome-O's, the finish is nigh!

Chico Face Lift

The Wildcats up north have got an updated site. Looks good!

http://www.csuchico.edu/asce/

Bucky Bridge Ready to Rumble.

2/24/07

Construction commenced in Farmer's Paradise. Mike, Amy, Jessica, CQ and Jeff took a stab at it as the "Chrome Crew" practiced a bit with the 2005 bridge. Captains taught the basics of dovetail treatment and transport first so no unnecessary fractures took place. After that, they went through beam assembly theory and got acquainted with all the crap in the way on the 2007 site. Revetments suck. The 9'-0" river, however, will prove to be a good compromise.

Now looking east:

Hello Wisconsin!

The University of Wisconsin, Madison Steel Bridge Team is all done with their bridge, and ready to hit the construction site. No doubt the blood, sweat, and tears were pouring out at Endres. Keep working hard Badgers, and you'll be California Dreamin' before you know it! A big "sweet jumps" to y'all!

"After weeks of intense work, little sleep, and mysterious sickness, we have a bridge, and boy, is it beautiful. On to construction practice!"

http://www.engr.wisc.edu/studentorgs/bridge/

Quote of the...YEAR!

"Every year, a school comes up with a strategy that couldn’t possibly be done on a real construction project, and we want to keep it realistic,” - Frank Hatfield, head of the NSSBC rules committee.

"Open your mind. The world isn't what it was. We all need to evolve - learn from the student as the student learns from the master. New, fresh ideas are all around us. Listen, observe, think and go forth into the great wide open. We know less than we think." - anonymous

REGIONAL ASCE / STEEL BRIDGE CONFERENCE WEBLINKS 2007

FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE:
TEX-MEX (COMPLETED) - REGIONAL CHAMP: TEXAS A&M AGGIES
HOST: TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY
LOCATION: LUBBOCK, TX
DATES: JANUARY 12-13
http://www.asce.ce.ttu.edu/

MIDWEST (COMPLETED) - REGIONAL CHAMP: NDSU BISON
HOST: MINNESOTA STATE, MANKATO
LOCATION: MANKATO, MN
DATES: MARCH 9-10
http://krypton.mnsu.edu/~asce/Regional%20Conference%2007.htm

NEW ENGLAND (COMPLETED) = REGIONAL CHAMP: MERRIMACK WARRIORS
HOST: UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT
LOCATION: STORRS, CT
DATES: MARCH 15-17
http://nesteelbridge2007.engr.uconn.edu/

DEEP SOUTH
HOST: LOUISIANA TECH - - REGIONAL CHAMP: ASU INDIANS? (MSU)
LOCATION: RUSTON, LA
DATES: MARCH 23-25
http://deepsouthconference.com/default.aspx

SOUTHEAST



HOST: UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE - REGIONAL CHAMP: UF GATORS
LOCATION: KNOXVILLE, TN
DATES: MARCH 29-31
http://conference2007.utkasce.org/

OHIO VALLEY - REGIONAL CHAMP: YOUNGSTOWN PENGUINS
HOST: THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY
LOCATION: COLUMBUS, OH
DATES: MARCH 30-APRIL 1
http://www.ceegs.ohio-state.edu/asce/ovrc.html

NORTH CENTRAL - REGIONAL CHAMP: LAWRENCE TECH BLUE DEVILS
HOST: MICHIGAN TECH UNIVERSITY
LOCATION: HOUGHTON, MI
DATES: MARCH 31-APRIL 2
http://www.cee.mtu.edu/asce/ncc2007/index.htm

PACIFIC SOUTHWEST - REGIONAL CHAMP: CSUN MATADORS






HOST: UC SAN DIEGO
LOCATION: SAN DIEGO, CA
DATES: APRIL 12-14
http://scse.ucsd.edu/Pages/pswrc07/

CAROLINAS - REGIONAL CHAMP: GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS
HOST: GEORGIA TECH
LOCATION: ATLANTA, GA
DATES: APRIL 12-14
http://asce.ce.gatech.edu/conference.html

PACIFIC NORTHWEST - REGIONAL CHAMP: PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS
HOST: UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA, FAIRBANKS
LOCATION: FAIRBANKS, AK
DATES: APRIL 12-14
http://www.alaska.edu/uaf/cem/steelbridge/

METROPOLITAN - REGIONAL CHAMP: NJIT HIGHLANDERS
HOST: NYC COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY
LOCATION: NEW YORK CITY
DATES: APRIL 13-14
http://www.ascemetro2007.com/competitions.html

ROCKY MOUNTAIN - REGIONAL CHAMP: WYOMING COWBOYS
HOST: UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO, BOULDER
LOCATION: BOULDER, CO
DATES: APRIL 13-14
http://asce.colorado.edu/

UPSTATE NEW YORK - REGIONAL CHAMP: SUNY CANTON NORTHSTARS
HOST: CORNELL UNIVERSITY
LOCATION: ITHACA, NY
DATES: APRIL 13-14
http://ceeserver.cee.cornell.edu/asce/Conference/conference.html

VIRGINIAS - REGIONAL CHAMP: VIRGINIA TECH HOKIES






HOST: VIRGINIA MILITARY INSTITUTE
LOCATION: LEXINGTON, VA
DATES: APRIL 13-14
http://www.vmi.edu/asce/

MID-CONTINENT - REGIONAL CHAMP: UMKC KANGAROOS
HOST: UNIVRSITY OF KANSAS
LOCATION: LAWRENCE, KS
DATES: APRIL 26-28
http://kuasce.org/midcon07/

MID-PACIFIC - REGIONAL CHAMP: UC DAVIS AGGIES



HOST: SANTA CLARA UNIVERSITY / SAN JOSE STATE UNIVERSITY
LOCATION: SAN JOSE / SANTA CLARA, CA
DATES: APRIL 26-28
http://asce.engr.scu.edu/index.htm

GREAT LAKES - REGIONAL CHAMP: WISCONSIN BADGERS
HOST: PURDUE UNIVERSITY
LOCATION: WEST LAFAYETTE, IN
DATES: APRIL 27-28
http://cobweb.ecn.purdue.edu/%7Easce/reg07index.htm

MID-ATLANTIC - REGIONAL CHAMP: LAFAYETTE LEOPARDS
HOST: UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND
LOCATION: COLLEGE PARK, MD
DATES: MAY 4-5
http://www.eng.umd.edu/organizations/asce/concrete_canoe.htm

Bison fashions an updated look!

2006 defending Champs pimp their page a little. There's a good article by Lena Singer on the 2006 NSSBC in Salt Lake City here - Ong Bak and Jeremy made the photo section while practicing in the downtown skating rink. Revell gets the quote, an all too true quote regarding the sleep vs. time to competition curve eh?

Awesome stuff! Good Luck in Mankato NDSU!

http://www.acm.ndsu.nodak.edu/%7Eamersoci/STEEL%20BRIDGE.htm

Sabado - 2/24

Bright and early in the Bridge Lab. 9:30

We've got:

1) LAT FRAMES
2) DK DOVE/FRAME PREP FOR NEXT WEEK
3) OT TIGGIN' TO FINISH
4) CONSTRUCTION PRACTICE AND PREPARATION!!!

Get ready to roll y'all! Mid-Pac's knocking on the door and will be here before you know it (and want it).

Random Bursting of Encouragement for the Day to all the SBT's Out There!!!

"We are born with a chance
Rise above
Were gonna rise above!"

Midwest Conference Gearing Up!

The Midwest Regional Steel Bridge Competition is all set to fire on from March 9-10. Matt has decided to kill two birds with one stone by seeing some ole' high school amigos while in Minneapolis and heading down to Mankato for the competition that Saturday. Should be good to see what this very competitive conference comes up with. In the Midwest include the defending 2006 NSSBC Champs in the North Dakota State University Bison, perennial Canadian contender Lakehead University, the always fast assembly of Iowa State, and a slowly emerging University of North Dakota Steel Bridge Team. Others in the contest will include, Iowa, Minnesota State-Mankato, South Dakota State and the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Good Stuff!

The Golden Gophers are on top of things, and have their bridge done ahead of schedule, and apparently in far better shape than typically anticipated. Looks like a solid "Spider Leg Warren", nice design, should show solid numbers with good connections. Note the deeper deck and lateral "diamond" truss alongside it, good for lateral rigidity, and helps reduce the amount of members put on the bridge. Only see maybe 2 or 3 lateral braces over the span, a few up top, and two at the piers of course, looks good!

























































Link to the 2006-2007 Golden Gopher effort:
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~asce/bridge/

Some other Midwest Conference SBT's:
Minnesota State University-Mankato (2007 MW Regional Host)
http://krypton.mnsu.edu/~asce/

North Dakota State University
http://www.acm.ndsu.nodak.edu/~amersoci/STEEL%20BRIDGE.htm

South Dakota State University
http://learn.sdstate.edu/ASCE/Steel%20Bridge/STEELBRIDGE2006.htm

University of Wisconain-Platteville
http://www.uwplatt.edu/org/asce/

University of Iowa
http://css.engineering.uiowa.edu/~asce/steelnews.htm

University of North Dakota
http://www.und.nodak.edu/misc/sem/ce/cestudactivities.html

Lakehead University
http://www.luess.com/

Iowa State University
http://www.stuorg.iastate.edu/asce/steelbridge.htm

Still pluggin' away here, this is bridge has so many details it's hard to keep track of them all, but piece by piece it's starting to really turn into something special. Keep on Aggin' Chrome Ollie!

The knee bone's connected to the...

Oooooooh Lordy!

Alright, Sr. Tomás Bell is on the prowl. The DK doves need to be welded to the DK frames on the Tinius beam. Usually this takes a while, but nobody inserts less heat and gets more strength in Davis, CA then Tom Bell, so thanks for that. Setups will need to be conducted to get Tom in and out as fast as possible. Need to move the Tinius beam within range of the Miller TIG.













Besides the obvious need to start getting the DK's together, we have some joint angles on the OT that need to be TIGged. In the student shop we can cut and finish precision milling just about all the LT stuff, the LAT's, the PIER bases, the PIER DK Frames, and the Chrome Stone atop the whole enchilada.

Construction Team needs to step in and get busy, we don't want the learning curve to be too steep come April. The Assembly stakes for this season will be much higher than the Clan had to deal with, so get busy and get comfortable with it all starting this Saturday.



















"Life is like riding a bike. It is impossible to maintain your balance while standing still." - Linda Brakeall (funny name for such a quote...)

Keep on truckin' Ags, plenty more details to take care of. Multiple DT's need to be finished as well.

DK's in the house

Okay, the DK frames have been welded up and Philthy Phil is just about done burning through the A.G.S. DT's. This means when we get the Tinius beam back from 104L we'll get Sr. Tomas Bell on the payroll Tiggin' some sweet shizzle, hopefully. Minimizing set up time we'll be paramount as we'll try to take advantage of every hour from 8am-noon/1pm-5pm. Cranks will have to be welded to main structural members on top of the A.G.S.ers, so we'll need those ready.

In the meantime we have a ton of structural features to precision mill and we still have to cut/precision mill the OT, which will take a delicate touch due to it's Eulerian geometry.

Hang in the Fab Crew - it's a new dawn it's a new day, second wind's coming around...

Saturday went well

Good turnout yesterday. The welding of the decks seemed to take longer than maybe it should've but 4 more are done regardless. Ole' Miggy though seems to be leaking so on Monday will have Mr. Tom Bell get a look at 'er and hopefully we can get back to business by Monday afternoon.

Lots of pieces still have to be precision milled, and we have plenty of connection work to still complete. Phil and Jessica will work the mills this week, Phil on the DK doves, and Jessica precision milling most likely. Charmine is about a day away from shop certification, so her and Jessica will do the ever so important angled cuts, and the entire OT which will requre some real money cuts. Remember, anything that's angled on one side yet flat on the other can be precision milled just the same, only from one side.

Lots to do, keep at it, no sleep 'til Brooklyn, er San Jo.















"Imagination is more important than knowledge." - Albert Einstein

Tex-Mex and Da Bulls are already ready...

Hey everybody!

Word in from the 2007 Tex-Mex ASCE Regional Conference Steel Bridge Competition hosted by Texas Tech in Lubbock:

1. Texas A & M University, College Station - invited to Northridge
2. U. of Texas, Austin - invited to Northridge
3. Texas A & M University, Kingsville

Link to the Longhorn effort here:
http://www.caee.utexas.edu/newsreader.cfm?articlePK
=359&namedpagePK=1&articleType=externalNews





































Might have been a little controversy, but all things put aside, the A&M Aggies and the Longhorns are headed to Northridge.

Also, the University of South Florida is on a mission to "stay ahead of the game", just like Mr. Cannon would do. They've already got their puente ready for the SE Regional in Knoxville at the University of Tennessee. Good stiffness numbers
reported!

http://groups.google.com/group/usf-ascebridge

Deck Saturday 1/27

Only about 90 days from MidPac now Aggies.

This Saturday, we will push to get the whole deck frame completed. Jess, Phil and Jennifer have been working all day today after the career faire. We'll have plenty to do on Saturday, and we'll find stuff to do we didn't know we had to do no doubt.











(...Watchu lookin' at?)

Sizzle

Welding will commence on Saturday, January 20th, let's work hard and efficiently people.

January 18+

Steel cutting is going down now, most of the straight cuts have been made to the deck and crank connections. We've still got to cut the lightwall chords and the Overtruss which will get double, double checked before we get into it. Work is going on so stick around and see how the bridge gets made everybody. Phil and Jessica in the shop as well, so shadow them and see the money cuts on the mill.

Jessica's going to precision mill two flanges and get some webbing cut so we can make our first beam pieces this Saturday -- so long as we get the Tinius beam in 1203.

Matt will cut some more in 1203 after Fiber Polymer Reinforced Concrete class this afternoon. Say 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. - then go grab a burrito down at Guad.

Vote for your theme!

Chro...............so many possibilities.

Peace.

Make it so number one...

Acero esta aqui. (steel is here)

The January Surge

When the steel gets in we will go to work immediately on the deck. We'll need rough cuts, about 1/8" over, then we will precision mill those lengths in the student shop during open hours. Anything light wall can be wheeled, which we can do in the lab, and even more so if we manage to find an Ellis for our own use. If anybody has a saw capable of cutting steel in a variety of forms, i.e. bar, tube, rod etc. then bring it in so we can get use out of it.

Dovetail programming and production will be the highest priority as they set the standard for our connection stiffness, which in turn equals our bridge stiffness. Deck will come first, the the super stuff, then the LT stuff. While the programming and all that other jazz goes down, we do need to cut a shiteload of blanks and precision mill them down. Lengths to rough cut are +1/8" actual size.

In the meantime, while the major shipment is being waited on -- we need to make special tools for the practice campaign. These tools will mimic our 2007 assembly procedure and hopefully, might even be modifiable for our campaign this year. The practice will help new construction team members get familiar with DT's, the site, etc. etc. Need to use our time wisely, no breaks, we need to work and get it done, quickly and precisely.


Go Ags!