"Fairmont State University"
(20th place overall; 20th in paper; 21st in presentation; 17th in product)

Presentation:

Fairmont State represented the Virginias Conference and made their fifth consecutive national appearance.

Fairmont State relied on 3 men to make their presentation.  The presenters were dressed business casual and the presentation was business oriented.  The team used 1 screen and did not include any videos.

After a brief introduction, the team began with project management.  They explained how they divided their members and highlighted the inspiration underlying their theme.  

The team describes the salient features of their hull and provided the design specifications.  Analyses came next.  

The team modeled the canoe as a simple beam to establish the service loads.  Mix design followed.  

The team outlined the constituents employed and the testing methods employed.  They described their reinforcement scenario and provided details on the mix performance.  

Details on construction were provided along with the casting finishing techniques employed.  Then, they brought their presentation to conclusion by highlighting the specifications of their canoe. 

Questions and Comments:  

• What are some of the things that worked and what would you do differently?
• What management techniques did you employ to keep your project moving?
• How did you insure quality control and what steps would you take to improve it?
• If it were possible next year, would you use more supplementary materials?
• How did you select the amount of the binder used in your mix?
• Who took your scanning electron microscope photo?
• Were you worried about using admixtures provided by different companies from a compatibility standpoint?
• How did you raise the funds to support your effort?

Product:

Fairmont fielded "Black Angel."
Length: 19.81'
Weight: 220 lb
Color: black

Fairmont ’s hull was reinforced using 2 layers of epoxy coated carbon fiber; a coarse stiff mesh was employed toward the inside of the hull while a more flexible mesh was employed toward the outside.  The team included polypropylene fibers for secondary reinforcement.  Matrix materials included glass beads, ceramic spheres, and glass beads.

The team employed rubber guides as spacers for quality control and their canoe featured a round bottom to improve straight line speed.

Vital Statistics