Short Span Steel Bridges 
University of Florida Wins 2024 Student Bridge Competition
June 4, 2024
Article and images provided by the National Steel Bridge Alliance
Student engineers from the University of Florida secured their fourth straight first-place overall win in the 2024 Student Steel Bridge Competition (SSBC) National Finals on June 1, breaking the consecutive titles record they set themselves in 2023.
Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, La. served as the host school for the 2024 competition.
This year’s SSBC participants were challenged to design, fabricate, and quickly construct a scale-model steel bridge that would span a man-made river in a large disc golf course. Competitors had to find innovative ways to navigate new rules and challenging assembly constraints, including one of the widest conceptual rivers in the competition’s history.
“The competition weekend was a huge success,” said Christina Harber, SE, PE, AISC’s senior director of education. “There were so many excellent bridges, and I was really impressed with the high level of competition. These students worked all year on design, fabrication, and construction and competed with the best of the best. AISC is proud of all of them, and they should be proud of themselves, too.”
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The Student Steel Bridge Competition is a partnership between the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).
Does the SSSBA offer educational opportunities?
Yes! The SSSBA offers educational opportunities to students and professionals:
Professionals: The SSSBA provides complimentary half-day or full-day workshops on short span steel bridge design to states, counties, and design firms. Topics covered include practical and cost-effective steel bridge design and fabrication with eSPAN140, press-brake-formed steel tub girders, steel buried bridge design, galvanized coating solutions, and economical design with case studies, and more. The workshops can take place virtually or in-person, compliments of the steel industry. Learn more.
Students: The University of Wyoming and the Short Span Steel Bridge Alliance created a free 6-part live-lecture educational series to cover the many aspects of designing, fabricating, and constructing steel bridges. All students who successfully complete the education series will receive a Certificate of Completion from the University of Wyoming. Learn more.
Speakers: The SSSBA provides expert speakers to present topics of interest on the cost-effective design and construction of short span steel bridges. If you need a speaker for your next event, contact the SSSBA.
Events
SSSBA to Present on Accelerated Steel Bridge Design at Mid Atlantic Quality Assurance Workshop (Feb. 9-11)
The SSSBA will participate in the 2026 Mid-Atlantic Quality Assurance Workshop in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Don’t miss Dr. Michael Barker’s presentation on Feb. 10, 3:00–3:40 p.m. ET, highlighting practical approaches for cost-efficient, accelerated short span steel bridges.
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State DOT Leaders Share Perspectives on Reauthorization at TRB
A roundtable at the 2026 Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting highlighted state DOT priorities for reauthorization, including formula funding, safety, and faster project delivery.
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Help Provide an Amazing Competition for Student Bridge Engineers!
AISC/NSBA is seeking volunteers to support the Student Steel Bridge Competition, helping teams from more than 200 colleges and universities—no experience required.