Structuring Success: How Cal Poly’s Team Designed Victory in the 2024 Timber-Strong Design Build™ Competition

Nick Mackechnie, a senior at Cal Poly majoring in civil engineering and minoring in mathematics, recounts his project management role on his Timber-Strong Design Build team, which won at the 2024 Pacific Southwest Symposium. This event challenges engineering students to design and construct a two-story wood-framed building, providing practical experience in structural engineering and project management. Nick discusses navigating the complexities of design, team dynamics, and unique collaboration while sharing valuable lessons and insights.

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From Intern to Aspiring Engineer — My Internship at Simpson Strong-Tie

Meet Anthony Fung, a lab intern at the Karen Colonias Research Lab in Pleasanton, who joined Simpson Strong-Tie this summer to explore the world of testing and research. Throughout his internship, Anthony gained valuable hands-on experience in the lab, deepening his understanding of structural engineering. Additionally, he had the opportunity to engage in activities hosted at our Pleasanton office, providing him with insights into our company culture and the people behind our endeavors. 

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Empowering Future Engineers: Cal Poly Students’ Journey in the Timber-Strong Design Build Competition

The Timber-Strong Design Build℠ (TSDB℠) Competition is an annual event sponsored by the the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) in partnership with the American Wood Council (AWC), APA (the Engineered Wood Association), and Simpson Strong-Tie in which student teams design and build an artistically creative two-story wood light-framed buildings that are sustainable, aesthetically pleasing, and structurally durable. The competition enables students to gain experience in common structural engineering design as well as the business management and building practices used in construction environments. The authors of this article are graduating civil engineering students in the Civil Engineering program at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, CA. 

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Touring Tye Gilb Lab: An Architectural Engineering Student’s Perspective

Addie Albro is an architectural engineering student at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. She’s working on completing her senior project while learning how to design with steel, timber, masonry, and concrete. We recently had the opportunity to host Addie and other Cal Poly undergrads at our Tyrell Gilb Lab in Stockton, California. She shared her experience visiting the lab and what inspired her to enter the engineering field.  

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