Application
The Galvanize the Future: A Richard L. Brooks Memorial essay contest was developed to help future specifiers with the rising cost of a college education. The scholarship aims to teach these specifiers a little about hot-dip galvanizing while providing them with funding for their education.
To apply, please fill out the form below and attach your essay. Your essay must answer one of the following two questions in 1,000-2,000 words and be in Word, Rich Text Format, or Adobe Acrobat PDF format.
Prompt #1: Design for Deconstruction: Building a Circular Future with Hot-Dip Galvanized Steel.
Scenario: Your firm (or owner’s team) has been asked to design a new campus or community facility with a goal of minimizing long-term waste and maximizing the potential to reuse materials at the end of the building’s life.
In your essay, address the following:
Define circular construction in your own words and explain why “design for reuse” is becoming important for AEC projects.
Explain how hot-dip galvanized steel can support circularity through long service life, reduced maintenance/recoating, and end-of-life recovery (reuse and recycling).
Select a real project type (examples: canopy, pedestrian bridge, exterior stairs/ramps, outdoor structural frames, rooftop equipment supports) and describe how durability and maintenance requirements influence whether parts can be reused later.
Compare galvanized steel to at least one alternative protection strategy (e.g., paint system, weathering steel, stainless) specifically in terms of maintenance cycles, disruption, and likelihood the component remains reusable.
Conclude with a short “owner recommendation” paragraph: what policy/spec language would you suggest a university or municipality adopt to encourage circularity through durability?
Prompt #2: Hardening Critical Facilities: Corrosion Protection for the Places Communities Depend On.
Scenario: A city, university, or private owner is upgrading critical facilities that must stay operational (or be quickly repairable) during disruptive events (severe weather, supply chain delays, staffing shortages, etc.). Corrosion and maintenance downtime are identified as avoidable risks.
In your essay, address the following:
Identify one category of critical facility near you (examples: water/wastewater plant, transit hub, emergency services facility, hospital support infrastructure, campus utility plant, data center/industrial facility) and describe the exposure conditions that make corrosion a meaningful risk.
Explain how corrosion-related maintenance can create operational risk (closures, access constraints, safety exposure, downtime, cost escalation).
Make a materials/protection recommendation: when and why hot-dip galvanized steel should be specified for exposed steel elements in that facility type.
Provide a lifecycle-focused comparison to at least one alternative (painted steel, stainless, aluminum, weathering steel, etc.), emphasizing maintenance frequency, access challenges, and total cost of ownership.
Close with a “decision-maker summary” (5–7 sentences) written for a facilities director who cares about uptime, safety, and budget predictability.