Matthew Graziano advances to final round of national design-build student competition

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MSOE students advance to final round of National Design-Build Student Competition. Left to right: Blake Gleason, Meghan Scanlan, Matthew Graziano and Evan Crayford.

MILWAUKEE, WI (10/17/2012)(readMedia)-- MSOE was one of only three universities to advance to the final round of the National Design-Build Student Competition, sponsored by the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA). Congratulations to Matthew Graziano, from Elmhurst. Graziano is working toward a bachelor's degree in architectural engineering and a master's degree in structural engineering at Milwaukee School of Engineering. Other team members include Evan Crayford, Blake Gleason and Meghan Scanlan. Associate professor Robert O. Lemke is their faculty advisor.

The three teams that will move on to the final phase of the competition are Milwaukee School of Engineering's "Atlas Design & Construction," Washington State University's "Northwest Affinity Constructors" and Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo's "IS&D."

The winners were selected from nine teams that emerged as frontrunners at the regional level. The other teams were "Foresight Building" of Arizona of State University, "Cal Summit" of California State University, Chico, "DB Performance Partners" of University of Missouri, Kansas City, "Paulson Pittman Group" of Georgia Southern University, "Colorado Builders" of Colorado State University and "iBuild" of Penn State University.

Phase 1 of the competition, the request for qualifications phase, was conducted in late September when a general project description was issued for a hypothetical Performing Arts Center on a college campus in the United States. Teams of four students were required to provide their qualifications as well as a broad-based response to the statement, outlining their approach to meeting the owner's goals which included performance and office spaces, screening rooms, lecture areas and classrooms and an aesthetic that incorporates the historical, cultural and architecture of the college and community. Regional judges reviewed the submissions and moved the most responsive teams forward to the national competition. Following DBIA best practices, the National Design-Build Student Competition jury shortlisted just the three teams above to respond to the request for proposals (RFP).

Phase 2 began Oct. 15 when Atlas Design & Construction, Northwest Affinity Constructors and IS&D received the complete RFP from the national jury. These three shortlisted teams will have just one week to respond in full to the RFP. The teams will present their complete packages in person to the National Jury on Nov. 8. This 45-minute oral presentation/interview session will take place during the 2012 Design-Build Conference and Expo in New Orleans.

About DBIA

Established in 1993, the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) is the only organization that defines, teaches and promotes best practices in design-build project delivery. Design-build is an integrated approach that delivers design and construction services under one contract with a single point of responsibility. Owners select design-build to achieve best value while meeting schedule, cost and quality goals. Learn more about design-build, and DBIA's certification and other programs at www.DBIA.org.

About MSOE

MSOE is an independent, non-profit university with about 2,500 students. MSOE offers 18 bachelor's degrees and nine master's degrees in the engineering, engineering technology, building and infrastructure engineering, health-related engineering, computer, business and nursing fields. The university has a national academic reputation; longstanding ties to business and industry; dedicated professors with real-world experience; extremely high placement rates; and the highest starting and mid-career salaries of any Wisconsin university according to PayScale Inc. MSOE graduates are well-rounded, technologically experienced and highly productive professionals and leaders. www.msoe.edu