The Cooper Union Steel Bridge team placed first in the Metropolitan Regional competition on Saturday, April 29. As the winners of their regional competition, the team will move on to compete in the national competition this summer. The National Student Steel Bridge Competition challenges students to design, fabricate, and build a 21-foot-long bridge using segments no longer than three feet and made entirely of steel. The bridge is judged based on its total weight, how quickly it is assembled, and how much it deflects under the applied load. This year, the Cooper Union team chose a deck cantilever bridge with T slot connections as the final design. The bridge was the stiffest measured on Saturday, deflecting less than half an inch at three separate points, equaling only 1.08 inches total.

Watch the team build the whole thing in under seven minutes!