STUDENT COMPETITION
Join the Inaugural Canadian National Rock Mechanics Student Design Challenge!
Exciting news! CARMA is delighted to unveil the first-ever Canadian National Rock Mechanics Student Competition, coming this fall 2024!
Our primary goal is to build a stronger and more vibrant rock mechanics and rock engineering community in Canada by providing a unique platform for undergraduate and graduate students to test their knowledge, use their problem-solving skills, and showcase their potential and ingenuity in the field.
About the Competition
CARMA’s student design challenge will provide students with a real-world rock engineering case study. Participants, working in a team, will have one month to address and solve the problem.
Each participant team shall be comprised of up to 4 students who are registered in a Canadian University. This competition is intended for participation from students enrolled in programs related to rock mechanics and rock engineering, such as geological engineering, civil engineering, and mining engineering. A participant team may include undergraduate and/or graduate students, with a maximum of up to two graduate students.
Register your team via the form at the bottom of this page by September 30, 2024, at 12pm ET.
The teams with the best reports will be invited to present their solution to a panel of expert judges, compete for monetary rewards, and gain recognition from industry experts.
1st Prize: $1,500
2nd Prize: $1,000
3rd Prize: $500
The 2024 Design Challenge
A water conveyance tunnel is under construction for a hydroelectric power generating facility in Western Canada. The project contractor encountered complex ground conditions, and you are solicited to design the support for the tunnel.
As a consultant, you are provided with an extensive geotechnical core logging database and the results of a laboratory testing program.
Use this data and design a ground support scheme for this tunnel. Deliver a final report with your findings. Register your team for the competition by September 30, 2024 to receive the full project details on October 1st.
Important Dates (Fall 2024)
| Date | Task |
|---|---|
| September 30, 2024 | Deadline to register your team by 12pm ET via the form at the bottom of this webpage |
| October 1, 2024 | Challenge kick-off at 1pm ET on ZOOM |
| October 1 to 30, 2024 | Time to work on your report! |
| October 30, 2024 | Reports due! Submit via email to aly.abdelaziz[at]mail.utoronto.ca |
| November 1 to 10, 2024 | Expert judges evaluate reports |
| November 12, 2024 | Notification of results and invitation of top teams to prepare a presentation |
| November 21, 2024 | Presentation slides due at 12pm ET |
| November 22, 2024 | Final Presentations and Award Ceremony on ZOOM |
Get Involved and Become a Volunteer
To make this event possible, CARMA is seeking passionate volunteers like you to be a part of our dedicated team. We have exciting volunteer roles available:
Competition Judge (5-10 positions):
As a competition judge, you will play a vital role in evaluating participants’ projects, offering valuable feedback, and helping us recognize the most outstanding contributions. We are looking for judges to review reports and promote the best ones to the final round of presentations.
Expected time commitment: 20 hours (flexible) in November 2024
Let Us Know If You're Interested in Participating in or Judging this Competition!
Questions?
Email questions to aly.abdelaziz[at]mail.utoronto.ca.