At a glance
“Our students made an impressive showing,” said Tim Piotrowski, an Alfred State associate professor of civil engineering technology, who accompanied the students on their trip. “These were real-world simulations with real-world deadlines and all the associated stress. But our students excel at those types of challenges.”
For the past 25 years, top design and construction students from colleges across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic have gathered to showcase their skills to potential future employers at the annual Associated Schools of Construction Region 1 Student Competition.
This year, 16 schools and more than 220 bright minds vied for placement, and Alfred State students walked away with honors in two categories — a second place in design-build, and a third place in commercial building.
“Our students made an impressive showing,” said Tim Piotrowski, an Alfred State associate professor of civil engineering technology, who accompanied the students on their trip. “These were real-world simulations with real-world deadlines and all the associated stress. But our students excel at those types of challenges.”
Alfred State students traveled to Morristown, NJ, for the two-day event from Nov. 14-15, with teams entering each of the competition categories: design-build, heavy/civil construction, and commercial building. Design-build teams had to create a plan for a college athletic center, commercial building squads were tasked with renovating a hospital, and heavy/civil construction teams had to devise methods for rebuilding two railroad bridges.
On the first day, teams were provided with actual contract documents and given 15 hours to create a cost estimate, construction schedule, site-specific safety plan, logistical plan for using the site, and a strategy to execute the project. The following day, each team gave a 30-minute oral presentation to the judges, describing their proposal and why they were the best team to build the project.
Teams were then judged on the quality of both their proposal and their oral presentation.
“This is a capstone to our students’ educational careers,” Piotrowski said. “They were judged by the very industry professionals who built the projects used in the competition.”
Derrick Clark, a construction management engineering technology major from Alfred, said the competition exceeded his expectations and provided a glimpse of the type of work he’ll be doing after graduation.
“It was a great experience and I am looking forward to doing it again next year,” Clark said.
Thomas Parmenter, a construction management engineering technology major from Pavilion, said, "It is unbelievable what six people working together can get done in the course of 24 hours. Through teamwork, and a lack of sleep, we were able to complete these tasks and were able to place third in a field of 15 prestigious universities.After completing a proposal and presentation in that time, no project seems like it can't be completed in one day with the right team."
Although the competition was fierce, students who attended had an unprecedented opportunity to network with their peers and potential future employers during the accompanying job fair. Employers received access to 37 teams of self-motivated students from top programs.
“It was a real, first-hand look at the construction industry for our students,” Piotrowski said. “They got to experience the level of effort it takes to be successful.”
Pictured is the design-build team, from left, clockwise, Ryan Grace, of Syracuse; Michael Goddard, of Honeoye; Derrick Clark, of Alfred; Trentin Reese, of Red Creek; Brian Williamson, of Oneida; and Kristin Szkolnik, of Liverpool. Williamson, Goddard, and Clark are construction management engineering technology majors, while Szkolnik and Grace are architectural technology students, and Reese is a Bachelor of Architecture (BArch) major.
Shown here is the commercial building team, from left, Christopher Marron, of Greece; Thomas Parmenter, of Pavilion; James Hammond, of Collins; Shawn Lorraine, of Irondequoit; Ryan Ortiz, of Brockport; and Justin Skretny, of Delevan. These students are all construction management engineering technology majors.
From left to right are members of the heavy/civil construction team, Zach Metcalfe, of Sodus; Andrew Hydock, of Lyndonville; Mackenzie Delaney, of Mayfield; Autin Leri, of Endicott; Tyler Smith, of Horseheads; and Dan Christoffersen, of Binghamton. These students are all construction management engineering technology majors.