By David Fleet

Editor

On May 23 the Brandon Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) freshmen team, “The Suspension is Killing Me” will represent Brandon High School as one of the top six teams nationwide in bridge building competition.

The Brandon team of Sarah Pesta, 14, Kyra Burger, 14, and Haley Solo, 15, qualified `for the national event held in Portland, Maine at the state competition in Grand Rapids on April 18.

The three-member teams design and build balsa wood cantilever truss bridges. This project tests their ability to work as a team, their attention to detail, their time management skills, and their problem solving skills. To qualify for the competition, teams are required to prepare a written bridge proposal and a bridge design, using Michigan Department Of Transportation drafting software. The freshmen have been working on the project since last October.

“We chose the cantilever truss bridge through a computer program Model Smart,” said Pesta. “We used the computer application rather than just guessing what truss design to use.”

In total, 23 Brandon teams submitted documents for consideration. Sixteen team entries were accepted and competed in the 9th and 10th grade division in Grand Rapids on April 18, against teams statewide.

“We are really excited to represent Brandon High School in this national competition,” she said. “It’s the first time our school has made it this far. I enjoy math and science and integrating the two subjects into the real world situation. I’m looking toward biomedical engineering, I want to help people and design prosthetics.”

Half of their score was determined by their bridge model performance. MDOT engineers inspect the bridges for compliance to design criteria and then weigh and strength test them. Their strength to weight ratios will be calculated and compared to other competitors. The other portion of their score was based on a 7-10 minute oral presentation, again to MDOT engineers. In this presentation, teams must share their overall experience including their research, engineering design process application, and their design, construction, and teamwork challenges.

The MDOT Bridge Challenge is in its 16th year. It is a part of MDOT’s Transportation and Civil Engineering (TRAC) Program, a hands-on educational program designed for integration into science, math, and engineering classes. Brandon STEM students have entered this competition every year since the STEM program began in the 2010-2011 school year.

The team is coached by Pauline Bandlow, Lesley Hildebrand and Jamey Logan from Brandon High School.