Student Competitions

ACI's nationally recognized student competitions, offered in cooperation with the ACI Student Activities Committee, give students the opportunity to participate in interesting and educational concrete projects. 

Click Here to see recent competition winners.

Important Messages and Updates

Note (1): All student competitions require that each team that wishes to participate must consist of no less than two and no more than five students currently enrolled in an undergraduate program at any college or university worldwide. Undergraduate students on cooperative or internship work assignment are eligible to compete. Although there are no restrictions on the geographical location of the school, all members of a given team must be from the same school. A student may not be a member of more than one team for any competition.  A faculty member is permitted to advise more than one team. -- Posted 5/2/2005

Note (2): All international students must submit a valid passport number when requesting invitation letters from ACI.  Final participation is only allowed pending FBI clearing and verification. Only preregistered teams with accurate passport numbers will receive an invitation letter. Do not submit your advance registration form unless you know the accurate spelling of all team members' names as well as your faculty advisor's name. Visa letters will only be created once and the information is taken directly off the advance registration form. Please note that invitation letters will be sent via email only and that we are not at liberty to fax anything to the U.S. embassies or to air mail them to you. If you do not provide accurate email addresses for your faculty advisor, your team will be disqualified and you will not receive an invitation letter.  Registration and requests for invitation letters MUST be done by the faculty advisor for each student team.  All registrations that are submitted by students will be deemed null and void.  
 -- Posted 5/2/2005

Note (3): ACI will not accept specimens in advance.  All teams wishing to participate in student competitions must hand deliver their specimens directly to the competition location.  The individual bringing the specimen does not have to be a team member.  
-- Posted 5/2/2005

Note (4): The United States Treasury Department enforces through its Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) regulations regarding transactions between U.S. and Iranian companies, universities, and individuals.  Based on ACI's review of these regulations, it appears that Iranian students are not eligible to participate in the ACI Student Competitions at this time.  Unfortunately, these regulations are ambiguous and ACI sent two letters to the appropriate government agencies requesting expedited clarification of the regulations.  As of September 23, 2005, the Department of Treasury has not made a determination on ACI's inquiry.  Since ACI could be assessed substantial financial penalties for violating these regulations unless a favorable ruling is received, Iranian students will not be eligible to participate in ACI student competitions held at ACI conventions pending resolution of this inquiry.  We sincerely regret having to take this position and will post more information to this page immediately if anything changes.  It is our hope that the U.S. Treasury Department will issue a favorable interpretation and that Iranian teams will be eligible to participate in future ACI student competitions. 
-- Updated 09/30/2005

Verification of Team Member and/or Advisor

Team members must provide proof of their student status. A statement on the team student status and the advisor should be provided by one of the school officials on university/school letterhead. The letter must be faxed to ACI Headquarters (to the attention of Jessie Bournay) on/or before the advanced registration deadline. The original copy of the letter must be included with the Official Registration and the entries. Failure to abide by this rule will automatically disqualify the team.

Response to Inquiries

Before sending any inquiries related to the competition, students are asked to: 1) carefully read and study the rules; and 2) discuss any questions with his/her team advisor. Questions should be sent to students@concrete.org.  These questions will then be answered and posted weekly on the web. The questions will not be addressed if found that answers either reside in the competition rules or their answers are already posted on ACI website. To be fair to all teams, there will be no individual responses to technical questions.  If you have asked a technical question regarding a competition, visit the FAQ page of that competition one week after you send the question for replies. 

Supplemental Compensation, Recognition and Awards

In an effort to maintain a level "playing field" and in the spirit of the ACI student competitions, no supplemental compensation outside of the ACI monetary and certificate awards received at the competition may be received by the faculty advisor, team members or university of any team participating in the student competitions. This includes both monetary and non-monetary compensation or perks. Examples include but are not limited to faculty bonus or stipends, student scholarships or fellowships, or waivers for military duty. A meal or banquet to recognize the student chapter at the home university is not considered supplemental compensation. If it is determined that a faculty advisor, team member, student chapter or university has received any supplemental compensation directly or indirectly related to the ACI student competitions, the university will be banned from competing in ACI student competitions for 10 years. If you have a specific question regarding what is or is not considered supplementary compensation, the specific case should be directed to the chair of ACI E801 for review and clarification.

Upcoming Student Competitions

ACI FRC Bowling Ball Competition
The object is to design and construct a fiber-reinforced concrete bowling ball to achieve optimal performance under specified failure criteria and to develop a fabrication process that produces a radial uniform density while maximizing volume. This competition is scheduled to be held on Sunday, November 5, 2006 in Denver, CO.  Registration is now open for this competition.

ACI Concrete Cylinder Competition
This competition is scheduled to be held on Sunday, November 5, 2006 in Denver, CO.  The objective is to produce concrete cylinders with an average compressive strength of 3,500 psi (24.1 Mpa) and a saturated surface-dry density of 145 lb/ft³  (2.32 kg/l) with the highest cementitious efficiency and the lowest cost, and to write a report explaining the design and production process.

ACI Concrete Projects Competition
Entries for the Concrete Projects Competition are due June 1, 2006. Virtually any project that focuses on concrete design, materials, and/or construction is eligible. These projects can include computer programs, term papers, student activities, senior design projects, or special projects.

ACI FRP Composites Competition 
Students design, construct, and test a concrete structure reinforced with fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) bars to achieve the optimal load-to-weight ratio, predict the ultimate load, and predict the load that will result in a piston deflection of 2.5 mm (0.1 inch). This competition is scheduled to be held on Sunday, April 22, 2007 in Atlanta, GA.    

ACI Concrete Cube Competition
Students produce a concrete cube that achieves, as closely as possible, a target design strength of 35 MPa and a target mass of 205 grams per cube (moderately lightweight concrete). 

ACI Egg Protection Device Competition 
Students design and build the highest-impact-load resistant plain or reinforced concrete Egg Protection Device. 

Competitions: