Are you ready?

Unfortunately, due to the continued disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we have made the hard decision to cancel the 2021 competition. We look forward to seeing you in 2022.

Careers Bridge Building Competition Competition Locations Sydney

New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory Competition Details

Welcome to the Aurecon Bridge Building Competition New South Wales / Australian Capital Territory, being held in Sydney! Everything you need to participate in the competition, including important documents, you’ll find below.

Getting students involved

Each school may enter up to one team of three students.

To involve as many students as possible from your school, we suggest that an internal school competition be held. The winning team can then represent your school in our competition. Download the internal competition guidelines or visit our resources page for tips on how to run this activity at minimum cost.

Aurecon will supply bridge building kits in June each year to all schools registered for the competition. In the meantime, guidelines containing mandatory construction specifications can be downloaded below.

Judging day information

Eligibility: Year 8 and 9 students
Date: TBC
Location: TBC

Key dates

Registration deadline
– TBC 2022 –
Bridge building kits delivered to registered schools
– TBC 2022 –
Digital component due (optional)
– TBC 2022 –
School team and student names finalised
– TBC 2022 –
Judging Day
– TBC 2022 –

Digital component

The optional digital design component reflects the increasing role virtual environments and programs play in the engineering and testing of bridges and gives students a chance to try out the tools used by engineers. Participants are encouraged to plan out their bridge using digital tools before construction to help them build a stronger bridge.

Competition checklist

Make sure you have completed the following before the day:

Check out the new guidelines for the updated kit information
Submit school team and student names by Monday 10 August 2020 (an email will be sent in August prompting you to fill in these details on an online form)
Every student must bring a signed photography and video consent form to be eligible to participate on Judging Day
If you’re submitting an entry to the Digital Award, make sure you send the wireframe to bridgebuildingcompetition@aurecongroup.com

Frequently asked questions

What are the costs involved?
When will our kit arrive?
Can we enter more than one team?

Girl asking a question at Aurecon Bridge Building Competition

Sydney prizes

Along with a fun-filled competition day, students and schools have a chance to win great prizes across five award categories.

	All-Rounder Award The All-Rounder Award is won by the team with the highest combined score (strength-to-weight and judges score) – see guidelines for more information. Winners will receive: $1000 prize to school, $100 each to students.
	Efficiency Award The Efficiency Award is given to the team whose bridge design has the best strength-to-weight ratio, that is, the maximum amount of weight it can carry/support without collapsing compared to the weight of the structure. Winners will receive: $500 prize to school, $50 each to students.
	Strength Award The Strength Award is offered to team whose bridge reach the maximum mass recorded on the day. Winners will receive: $500 prize to school, $50 each to students.
	Innovation Award The Innovation Award will be assigned by the judging panel on the day of the competition. This is a combination of creativity and innovation – how do you stand out from the crowd? Winners will receive: $500 prize to school, $50 each to students.
	Digital Award Teams have the option to submit the digital wireframe design of their bridge drafted in AutoCAD or SketchUp to Aurecon via email. After the bridge wireframes have been submitted, Aurecon will select the three best digital bridge wireframe designs per location and will virtually test these using bridge analysis programs to determine which bridge supports the highest load. Winners will receive: $50 each to students.

*All student prizes are issued in Coles Group & Myer Gift Cards on the day of competition. Coles Group & Myer Gift Cards can be redeemed at Myer, Coles, Kmart, Target and Officeworks, which sell a wide range of electrical and sporting goods, clothing, stationery, entertainment and more.