ABC’s Construction Management Competition Provides Opportunities to Learn and Connect

By Smartbuild, Main

Far more than just a two-day competition, ABC’s Construction Management Competition gives aspiring construction managers meaningful experience, connections, and the chance to shine in front of their industry peers and partners.

As an integral part of ABC’s National Convention, students from around the country have a chance to compete to build a project estimate, schedule, quality control plan, safety plan and a project management plan for a project that is currently in construction by a member company.

For competitors, the experience starts well before the countrywide competition. To qualify for the national CMC, a competitor must already be an ABC National Student Chapter Network member. Participating teams receive a request for proposal (RFP) about two months before the competition begins. That is when they begin to build a complete proposal for their ‘client’ (a panel of judges with thorough knowledge of the project).

Teams then must create a complete estimate, project management plan, and safety and quality control plan. All proposals must be submitted electronically two days prior to the ABC National Convention, with the hard copy being submitted the morning of the Convention.

During the first day of the national CMC, teams are presented a change of direction the project must take. Teams must amend their original submission to reflect the change and resubmit during the sixhour competition, all in the company of over 20 other groups working on the same thing.

Judges then select top teams to compete in a second round of competition, during which teams are grilled on every detail of the project to demonstrate their understanding.

Chris Lonas, a mentor, and previous competitor in the CMC, explained that judges are looking for a particular set of skills and awareness around project management. “Judges understand that students aren’t construction professionals, that they haven’t been around for a long time,” Lonas said. “What they’re really looking for is the students’ attention to detail.”

As an engineering student, Lonas said the competition brought him a long way in understanding what happens during real construction projects. “It is a massive tool to prepare us for the industry. Had I not done this competition, had I not continued to be involved as a student and then as an industry professional, I don’t believe I’d be in the position that I am today.”

As captain of his CMC team during the 2022 competition, IsaacJoshua Barton understood the challenge presented by keeping all elements of project management straight. “I discovered quickly just how difficult it is to set up a directory for all the information that comes with the competition so that everyone can access and edit things,” Barton said. “When you’re working in a bunch of PDFs, Google Drive just doesn’t cut it.”

Barton competed in the CMC again in 2023, but with added support that allowed him and his team to really use and understand the construction tech solutions they were offered. “We were able to ask many questions - and more nuanced questions,” Barton said, which helped immensely since the skills they used in the competition are not taught in class.

“The technology definitely helped to siphon through information. It’s very valuable because was just me on the estimate. The technology enabled me to get my quantities and numbers whole lot quicker than versus if I was doing it by hand or doing it by ruler. If I was doing it by hand, I know for a fact I would not have had enough time to do it all.”

Beyond the competition, Barton said construction tech should be introduced in classes. “Technology is the key tool that will need to be utilized for successful construction projects because otherwise it’s just too many moving parts,” he said.

Besides the experience competitors gain in construction management, the CMC also exposes students to a lot of industry connections that can boost a career after graduation. Team members participating in the CMC are paired with mentors to help students understand various components of preparing an RFP. These types of one-to-one interactions expand students’ networks to connect them with current industry professionals and these connections could lead to more opportunities.

After competing in last year’s CMC, Barton’s performance won him an internship with ABC Central Florida member Brasfield & Gorrie. There, he gained more experience in project management, which will help as he leads his team in another CMC and launches his postgraduate career.

“This competition is by far the most valuable education and information we can gain to prepare ourselves for the real world and to be a part of the construction industry,” Lonas said.

As ABC Central Florida’s student chapter main sponsor, SMARTBUILD supported this year’s CMC competitors with the technology they needed to organize project documents and communications to complete better submissions.

We would like to congratulate the University of Central Florida ABC Student Chapter for receiving first place in the quality control category. Their hard work and dedication have truly paid off.