University of Florida Wins 2025 Student Steel Bridge Competition, Sets Record

CHICAGO – For a record-breaking fifth consecutive year, student engineers at the University of Florida were crowned the John M. Parucki National Champions in the 2025 Student Steel Bridge Competition, placing in five categories and taking home $8,000 in scholarships.

This year’s national finals at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, brought together 43 qualifying teams from colleges and universities across North America. The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) offer the Student Steel Bridge Competition to give future engineers hands-on steel design knowledge beyond the classroom.

Participants took on the challenge of designing, fabricating, and constructing a scale-model steel bridge that would span a river corridor passing through a wildlife conservation area—with the additional obstacle of constructing around a protected sandbar. Competitors found innovative ways to navigate new rules and challenging assembly constraints, including a height restriction to minimize impact on the surrounding landscape and a minimum clearance to ensure the safety of paddlers passing underneath the bridge.

“These students brought serious technical talent and an undeniable excitement for the competition,” said AISC University Education Manager Kristi Sattler. “It was impressive to see that level of dedication and creativity come to life in their designs and construction strategies.”

Two teams competed in the national finals for the first time in their school’s history: Tecnológico de Monterrey, who placed 27th overall, and Lincoln Memorial University, who placed 32nd overall and received the Robert E. Shaw Jr. Spirit of the Competition Award, named for SSBC founder Bob Shaw.

“The Rules Committee selected Lincoln Memorial University for their positivity and encouragement to each other and for their professionalism and appreciation to volunteers,” said AISC Senior Director of Education Christina Harber. “It was clear that this group of students truly soaked in the experience as first time competitors.”

For the Frank J. Hatfield Ingenuity Award, the Rules Committee selected Kennesaw State University for their innovative construction plan which included how assembled portions of the bridge were supported, joined, and moved.

In addition to winning the overall prize, the University of Florida placed first in stiffness and efficiency, placed second in lightness and economy, and came in third for cost estimate. They pulled off a 9:37 assembly time with only two builders on the floor.

“We were all really excited about the challenge of having the big river and working through that, and I think we came up with a pretty good solution,” said Florida senior Damian Blanco, the team’s project manager and one of its builders. “We took what we learned last year, incorporated it into this bridge, and a lot of our experienced members returned. I’m proud of how much work the team has put in.”

Lafayette College came in second overall, winning first place in economy and taking home $6,000 in scholarship funds.

Virginia Tech won third place overall, earning them $4,000 in scholarships. They placed first in aesthetics, second in efficiency, and third in lightness and stiffness.

The SSBC planning committee also announced that University of Texas at El Paso is the official host of the 2026 SSBC National Finals (May 22 and 23 in El Paso, Texas).

The final results of the 2025 competition are as follows:

Overall

University of Florida
Lafayette College
Virginia Tech

Construction Speed

Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg
University of California, Davis
University of Alaska, Fairbanks

Lightness

Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México
University of Florida
Virginia Tech

Aesthetics

Virginia Tech
Université Laval
Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México

Stiffness

University of Florida
University of Wisconsin-Platteville
Virginia Tech

Cost Estimate

Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Kennesaw State University
University of Florida

Economy

Lafayette College
University of Florida
Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg

Efficiency

University of Florida
Virginia Tech
University of Alaska, Fairbanks

Team Engagement Award

University of California, San Diego

Robert E. Shaw Jr. Spirit of the Competition Award

Lincoln Memorial University

Frank J. Hatfield Ingenuity Award

Kennesaw State University

John M. Yadlosky Most Improved Team Award

Clemson University

Video Award

New York University
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
University of British Columbia