Colorado State University’s Construction Management Team Places Second at National Competition

Colorado State University’s construction management commercial team placed second at the Associated Schools of Construction and Contractors national competition held last week in Las Vegas, Nev.

The competition, hosted by the Associated General Contractors and the Centex Corporation, required teams from seven different regions across the country to develop a commercial construction project proposal in 16 hours based on the given background information, plans and specifications. Each team analyzed and produced a construction plan that consisted of various construction management factors, including cost estimate, schedule and site utilization plan. The final component of the competition was an oral presentation of the team proposal to a panel of industry judges.

Colorado State’s team, consisting of six members from the Department of Manufacturing Technology and Construction Management, developed a plan for a four-story, 70,000-square-foot biochemistry research and academic building on a college campus. The team’s cost estimate for the project was just over $16 million.

Bolivar Senior, an assistant professor of manufacturing technology and construction management, who has coached student teams for eight years, noted that this year’s team was exceptional.

"I have never seen a team that had such high spirits," said Senior. "I attribute their success as much to their team spirit as to their technical knowledge. It was an unforgettable experience for everyone, including myself."

In a recent special report published by the Engineering News-Record studying the nation’s construction schools, Colorado State University’s program was listed as having the largest student enrollment in the nation at 630 students.

The report also found that the construction management program at Colorado State has the largest number of women graduates in the country and is listed fourth in the number of organizations that recruit its students.

Colorado State University is the only university in the state to offer a comprehensive, independent undergraduate and graduate degree program in construction management.

The Department of Manufacturing Technology and Construction Management is part of the College of Applied Human Sciences at Colorado State. For more information about the department, visit the Web site at www.cahs.colostate.edu/mtcm.