Students from Colorado State University’s Department of Construction Management participated in annual national and regional competitions early in the 2022 spring semester. CM fielded teams at the regional Colorado Contractors Association student competition, January 27-28, in Denver, Colorado; the national Roofing Alliance Student Competition at the National Roofing Contractors Association International Roofing Expo on January 30-February 3, held in New Orleans, Louisiana; the 35th Annual Associated Schools of Construction (ASC) student competition, Regions 6 and 7, February 9-12, in Sparks, Nevada; and the Associated Builders and Contractors student competition, March 15-17, in San Antonio, Texas.
Colorado Contractors Association student competition – CM maintains first place position
Heavy Civil teams from Colorado universities competed by preparing mock proposals that were submitted and judged prior to the CCA conference. The teams then presented their proposals and fielded questions from a panel of judges in front of conference attendees during one of the afternoon conference work sessions.
These heavy civil teams competed for scholarship awards, exposure to the heavy civil/infrastructure community, and of course bragging rights. This event affords hiring managers the opportunity to meet some of the best talent in the state.
In 2020, the CM CCA Ram Team won first place in the competition. Then, due to the COVID-19 pandemic the competition was suspended in 2021. This year, the CM CCA team consisting of Haylee Sutton, Bryan Nelson, Carson Oldemeyer, and Nathan Maloney placed first and maintained the CSU CM department winning streak.
Commercial team and two alternates place in ASC competition
The CM department sent more than 50 students and faculty advisers to the ASC event, which brought together nearly 1,300 students on 181 teams representing 54 universities. CM students showcased their knowledge, creativity and presentation skills, fielding teams in seven categories: Commercial, Concrete, Heavy Civil, Integrated Project Design, Mechanical, Mixed Use, and Virtual Design and Construction.
CM’s Commercial team earned first place honors. Team members include (standing L-R): Lesley Munson, Conor Citrino, Tanner Gerstberger, Toby Mielke, Daxton Tonn, Mackenzie Adams-McDaniel, and Brett Brown – faculty coach. Seated: Jesse Thuerk – team captain, Holly Hutcheson, and Mackenzie Welch.
The commercial problem sponsor was Mortenson Construction with a Design Build project in the Performing Arts category for commercial construction.
Each team’s experience, approach to the pre-construction and construction phases of the project, and ability to accurately respond to the deliverables were critical in the scoring process.
“It was a pleasure to serve as captain for the commercial team this year,” Thuerk said. “We couldn’t have taken home first place if it weren’t for the amazing support we had from our department, coach, and industry professionals who helped us prepare. I am very thankful that we had the opportunity to compete again this year, and can’t wait to see how CSU does in the future.”
Taking individual awards were the following:
ASC Alternate – Chase Jones, Second Place, left photo, top right
ASC Alternate – Lesley Munson, Third Place, right photo, front center
National competitions
Associated Builders and Contractors hosted its annual Construction Management Competition at the ABC Convention 2022 in San Antonio, March 15-17. Fourteen teams of undergraduate students from colleges and universities nationwide competed this year, and Colorado State University was named the overall winner of the 2022 competition, with the highest cumulative points in the five competition categories. CSU’s CM team placed 1st in project management, 2nd in estimating, 2nd in quality control, 3rd in safety, and 1st overall.
CM’s ABC winning team members: Emilio Montano, Edward Harris, Ashley Matthews, and Cayden Fish. Not pictured is faculty coach, Jon Elliott.
The CSU Roofing Team competed at the Roofing Alliance Construction Management student competition. The competition is sponsored by the National Roofing Contractors Association to introduce students to the roofing industry. The competition was held during the NRCA national conference January 30-February 3 in New Orleans, LA.
Team members included: Mackenzie Voshage, Kendall Carter, Dylan Smithwick, Jackson Wathen, and faculty coach, Nick Rubino.
Expressing appreciation for the support of individuals and companies for our competition teams
Financial support through donations: Scott Baumgardner, Bruce & Marty Ferguson, Holland Construction, and the Ralph C. Wilson Foundation.
The following companies provided either mentorship and/or materials for preparation or mocks:
- Commercial Team: Jenner Van Kleunen, Wyatt Formo, and Jamie Vidales from Chasse Building Team; Travis Warner from Saunders Heath; Dohn Construction, and Ryan Construction
- Heavy Civil Team: Kiewit
- Mixed Use Team: Andrew Ortenzio, Ben Haselden, and Layton Construction
- Virtual Design & Construction Team: Mark Austin from Swinerton; Scott Carlson from Holder Construction; doctoral student, Shantanu Kumar
- Roofing Team: Kent Nelson from Front Range Roofing
The Department of Construction Management is part of CSU’s College of Health and Human Sciences.
