Three learners of the Kimberley Technical High School finished third in the bridge building competition held by the South African Institution of Civil Engineering (Saice), during which they competed against top schools from all over South Africa.
At this recent annual competition at the Midrand Conference Centre in Gauteng, teams of 13 schools, as well as a university team, participated in the grand finale.
Memory Scheepers, Saice project manager for special projects, said the competition showcased how the theory and practice of civil engineering meet.
“The teams consist of three learners each. They build model bridges from dowel sticks, glue and string, according to a technical briefing. This event culminates in a bridge testing ceremony to determine the winners.”
The adjudication team, comprising seven engineers, followed a four-stage judging process in which three stages focused on the bridge design. This involved compression, tension, and correctness in terms of the competition rules, and included minimum height, length, and width requirements. The final ruling focused on the bridge’s aesthetics. The main aim is to test the load that each individual bridge can handle.
