Short Summary

At the 25^th Annual Popsicle Stick Bridge Competition held at the University of Alberta in 2013, Civil Engineering Student Tony Dong broke the record of highest weight at an astonishing 746 lbs (338kg). To put this into perspective, this is the approximate weight of a Zebra, being held up entirely by white glue and 100 popsicle sticks. However Tony didn’t stop there, this year he came up with a new and improved design and once again broke his own record, holding a weight of 970 lbs (440kg). After great success, it is time to take the bridge building to the next level. Forming a team of four students all in our final year of study in the Civil Engineering Co-op Program, we would like to represent the University of Alberta Faculty of Engineering and Edmonton itself at the 31^st Annual Troitsky Bridge Building Competition.

The four-day competition is held in Montreal at the Concordia University from March 5th to March 8^th 2015. This is the first time that the University of Alberta has had an opportunity to be involved in the event. The University of Calgary has been very active and has teams of toughly 30 people this year! As this is our first year of involvement, our Engineering Student Society budget is limited and finding funding for materials and to attend the event is a challenge. Events such as this promote engineering, creativity, and teamwork. We want to kick start The University of Alberta’s involvement, hopefully leading to many more years of record breaking popsicle stick bridges, but we need your help!  The $5000 will cover the building materials for the bridge, registration, and the 4 round trip flights and accommodations for the team.

The link to the National Competition:
Troitsky Bridge Building Competition | The Concordia Engineering and Computer Science Association annual competition.

What We Need

Here is a cost breakdown for each person:

Round Trip Air fare: ~$750

Registration and accommodation: $230

Material and Tools: ~$40

Taxi: ~30

Fees for Indiegogo: ~$120

Meals: ~$90

Total: ~$1260 x 4 = ~$5040

We will cover the possible contingencies.

The Impact

This may just be popsicle sticks, but it is a scaled version of a real deal. The concepts learned in class can be applied to this competition in a very practical manner. It's a far better method to apply our knowledge than writing some exam on the topic. This is a great opportunity for us to get some hands on experience, learn and interact with other engineering students and industry professionals. This is also a great opportunity for you to show your company as an attractive and community-friendly business to potential employees. The best previous year record for structural efficiency (weight applied - divided by the self weight of the bridge) was 968, Tony’s bridge this year achieved 2543. Tony has four years of experience competing in the U of A popsicle competitions, and as a team we have no doubt that we will achieve great results at the national competition.

Risks & Challenges

With 4000 popsicle sticks, the design for each member and connections differ from only 100 sticks. The competition also requires that we make each part of the bridge so it will fit in a 500mm x 400mm x 350mm box, and assemble it in two hours after we arrive. It will then be left alone to dry for 24 hours before they are tested for their strength.

Although the design is quite different from building a bridge with 100 sticks, the same design principle applies. We understand exactly what causes the popsicle bridges to fail and the best method to prevent them.

Other Ways You Can Help

If the sponsorship packages are too much, we would really appreciate it if you could spread the word for us and make this happen!  Another valuable way to assist our team would be through the donation of Aeroplan Miles or Air Miles.  The perks on the sidebar are not all encompassing, you may contribute whatever amount you desire.  We greatly appreciate any and all contributions we receive from you.  Thank You!

If we receive more than $5000 during this, the extra fund will go towards the same competition for the teams in the future.