Building Construction Articles

In what could unsurprisingly become quite a popular event as Finals Week anxiety ramps up each semester, the ConCreate Design Club held its first "Smash House and Grill Out" just off the Carl Building Technologies Center parking lot from noon-5 p.m. Thursday. For a $5 donation, patrons could get a hot dog and one minute to smash the concrete-lab leftovers of their choosing. Among those yearend items were steps that could be smashed for prizes if wire mesh, rebar or a hammer were uncovered within.

Every now and then, we all need someone in our corner to remind us of our value. When Lizeth V. Reyes-Becerra has those moments, her thoughts turn to those who have tangibly shown their confidence in her tomorrow-making abilities. Reyes-Becerra, of Erie, earned an associate degree in May 2022 in building construction technology and is pursuing a bachelor's in residential construction technology & management.

Students in Joseph F. DiBucci's Concrete Construction class poured front and side porches Thursday at a Greater Lycoming Habitat for Humanity home being built at 1616 Scott St. More student involvement is expected as additional houses are built in that neighborhood, and Penn College is partnering with Habitat for a multiyear residential construction project on Fifth Avenue closer to campus.

Instructor Joseph F. DiBucci's Concrete Construction class converged Thursday on The Victorian House, itself a student undertaking more than a quarter-century ago, for a sidewalk improvement project. Aided by Penn College General Services, the crew poured concrete that will be stenciled and colored to look like brickwork.

Students in Matthew A. Francis' Construction Hand & Power Tools course are in the midst of replacing the circular benches around four Zelkova trees in front of the Klump Academic Center. "The years have taken their toll on the wood seating areas, and safety was a concern," said General Services' Chad L. Karstetter, horticulturist/grounds and motorpool manager. "We reached out to Matt and his BTC103 classes with an idea, and they accepted the challenge to revive that area. They are doing an awesome job."

A 2022 graduate of Penn College's two-year concrete science technology major returned to campus Tuesday with four other representatives of this year's PACA Emerging Leaders Academy cohort, meeting with current students about the vast variety of available careers. Madison L. Kistler, a quality control technician at New Enterprise Stone & Lime Co. Inc., is among 19 members of the Pennsylvania Aggregates and Concrete Association's 2023 PELA class.

As job-seekers traveled to and from the Field House for the second day of the Career Fair on Tuesday, two construction students were diligently working behind the building on a new feature for the Athletics Department. Jacob C. Huston, a building construction technology student from Johnstown; and Corbin R. Moore, of Manheim, enrolled in residential construction & management technology, laid several courses of block – the start of a 20-foot-by-10-foot wall that will be used by the lacrosse team and others.

European research into self-monitoring and self-healing concrete was shared Wednesday evening with Penn College students in civil engineering and a variety of construction-related majors. The hourlong seminar was delivered by Andrzej Cwirzen, head of the Building Materials Research Group at Luleå University of Technology in Sweden.

Working under Thursday morning's plentiful sunshine and cooled by a pleasant breeze, construction students could be found in familiar circumstances: once again collaborating with General Services on outdoor improvements to the campus landscape. Three sections of Concrete Construction (BCT238) classes taught by Franklin H. Reber Jr. and Joseph F. DiBucci have been busy since the start of the fall semester, pouring new walkways in several locations.

Johnson Controls, among Pennsylvania College of Technology’s cherished Corporate Tomorrow Makers, has granted a total of $100,000 to support the institution’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning program. Penn College is one of 10 grantees in the 2023-24 cohort of Johnson Controls’ $15 million Community College Partnership Program, now in its third year of inspiring the next generation of workforce leaders.