RANDOLPH CENTER, Vt.-- Three students in Vermont Technical College’s Architectural Engineering Technology program placed third recently in the Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) national Student Structural Design Competition.

Anthony Belloir, Caleb Leland, and Ryan Ward, all seniors, graduated from the college’s bachelor degree in Architectural Engineering Technology program in May 2010.

As part of their senior capstone engineering project, the students designed a multi-story medical facility known as The Ginsburg Tower in Orlando, Florida. The design, a combination of structural steel framing and a pre-stressed concrete flooring system, had to accommodate Florida’s sizeable wind loads as well as support heavy medical equipment. The students determined appropriate loads, developed a method to frame the building, and produced design drawings. Their competition submission documented their work.

Scott Sabol, a structural engineer and professor in the Architectural Engineering Technology Program, and Mark Vincello, a principal with WV Engineering Associates in Keene, New Hampshire, supervised the project. Professor Sabol commented, “Although Mark and I mentor the students, they deserve all the credit for their outstanding performance. Their hard work and ability to synthesize what they’d learned in class resulted in a solid, innovative design.”

The students have been invited to accept their award and present their project at the 2011 ASCE Structures Congress in Las Vegas, Nevada, in April 2011.

Vermont Tech’s bachelor degree program in Architectural Engineering Technology educates students in all facets of building engineering. Graduates often pursue careers as structural engineers, heating/cooling engineers, electrical/ lighting engineers, and construction or facilities managers.