Educating Construction Engineering and Management Students Through Real University Projects

Abstract

Educating Construction Engineering and Management Students Through Real University ProjectsIn recent years there has been an increased concern over the insufficiency of funds to adequately maintain campus infrastructure. The funding requirements needed to remodel existing campus buildings and build new facilities are not keeping pace with the number of students enrolled in public universities and their needs. In order to satisfy the demand and provide educational facilities to create an environment that is conducive to learning, universities are having to search for innovative solutions for their campuses. This paper explores the involvement of Construction Engineering and Management (CEM) graduate students to assist in the pre-construction phase of university projects. The pre-construction phase includes all the work required to develop construction documents starting at the conceptual phase and ending at the point where the construction contract can be awarded. Having graduate CEM students working in real university projects benefits the university by lowering the costs that they would ordinarily incur by either having their architecture/engineering team and facilities maintenance staff or outside consultants working in the pre-construction phase of a project. It benefits CEM faculty who supervise the graduate students because it provides them relevant and current experience working on projects and an opportunity to interact with campus administrators and personnel outside their department. Finally and arguably most important, it benefits CEM graduate students by providing them a meaningful experience to participate in projects that have the potential to be built on their campus. This paper presents two solutions that were developed by CEM graduate students to address specific infrastructure needs at a land-grant university. The first solution involves a feasibility study to determine the amount that university students would be willing to pay to build a parking garage through a Public-Private-Partnership. This solution also includes a conceptual design of a solar energy sculpture that aims to blend art and technology to raise awareness about renewable energy. The second solution involves a conceptual design of a new space for a Building Information Modeling (BIM) lab. This paper contributes to the body of knowledge by highlighting specific projects that have benefited from CEM graduate student involvement and discussing ways to make student involvement in university projects more efficient and beneficial for all parties involved while managing risk.