A large crowd of contractors, tool suppliers and family members of competitors watched on December 5th as three construction craft champions were selected to represent San Diego Associated Builders and Contractors at the ABC National Convention & Craft Championship on February 3-7, 2010. The national competition brings together the top apprentices and trainees in the country who vie for honors and to be deemed “the best of the best.” San Diego has an excellent record at the nationals have won nine medals in the last five competitions.
Competitors are challenged to complete a trade-related hands-on project in a specified period of time. They are scored on categories such as safety, sequence of construction, and the quality of their craftsmanship, among other things. Those proficiency scores are then combined with their written test score to determine the top competitors.
The local ABC winners were selected from a group of 20 apprentices and Craft Trainees representing 3 different trades: Electrical, Plumbing, and Sheet Metal. All competitors received a tool bag and assortment of tools. In addition, top winners received cash awards.
The winners are as follows:
Electrical:
Plumbing:
Sheet Metal:
The local hands-on competition took place at the ABC Training Facility in Poway, CA from 8am to noon. A BBQ Lunch was provided by Bergelectric, and raffle prizes including a 32” flat screen LCD TV, a Nintendo Wii Game system, and a Gateway laptop computer were awarded throughout the morning.
This event takes place annually on the first Saturday in December. For more information on Associated Builders and Contractors, San Diego Apprenticeship Training Trust, please contact Sherry Yarbrough at 858-513-4700.
Prestigious Award recognizes Innovation in Education and Workforce Development
Creating a contiguous transition from high school into post-secondary education/training in the skilled trades is both an ongoing goal and a challenge for construction trade apprenticeship programs throughout the country.
Associated Builders and Contractors of San Diego and Vista-based North County Trade Tech High School are attempting to meet that challenge head on, by partnering in the development of a charter high school, now in its second year, that is bringing career technical education into the 21st century and back into the high school classroom.
With news of high school drop-out rates and unemployment escalating almost hand-in-hand, and limited job opportunities for those who are entering the construction workforce, having a well-rounded education – including technical and practical experience – provides distinct advantages for both employee and employer.
So in 2005, when Sherry Yarbrough, Executive Director of San Diego’s ABC Apprenticeship Training Trust was approached by Doreen Quinn, Chairman of the Board for North County Trade Tech High School to partner in the development of an integrated, charter high school for students seeking careers in architecture, engineering and construction trades, the answer was a resounding “yes!”
Currently in its second year with nearly a hundred 9th and 10th graders, the school is focused on graduating students who will have a high level of proficiency and be able to enter into high skill, high wage professions in the building and construction industry. It is expected that many Trade Tech graduates will chose to continue their education in traditional college and university programs and/or complete trades-based apprenticeship programs. Most will likely seek interim positions with companies in their chosen fields of study while continuing in post secondary education.
Trade Tech students will be successful in academic performance, and significantly advanced over traditional entry level workers through hands-on and project-based learning applications of the career technical instruction. Due to the success of this charter school project, Trade Tech has received a replication grant to assist with the replication of the school and its Apprenticeship Partnership Program across the country.
The efforts of those involved in the Trade Tech concept caught the attention of a major national construction group earlier this year. And on November 17 in Orlando, FL, at the Construction Innovation Forum’s international NOVA Award Dinner, “developed in 1989 to recognize and advance significant innovation in all areas of the construction industry around the world,” ABC and Trade Tech were presented with special honors and a Construction Users Round Table award recognizing their contributions to “Innovation in Education and Workforce Development.” “It is an honor to receive this recognition on behalf of Trade Tech and the ABC Apprenticeship Training Trust,” notes Yarbrough. “Many individuals, including a number of ABC members, have given their time and support to insure the success of Trade Tech. This award is for all of our industry partners, without whom we wouldn’t be standing here today.”
For more information, visit www.TradeTechHigh.org or www.abcsd.org, or call 760.598.0782 for Trade Tech or 858.513.4700 for ABC.
On December 6, 2008, Associated Builders and Contractors, San Diego Training Trust, selected three Craft Champions to represent them at the ABC National Craft Championships. They were Vong Moua (Electrical), Bret Wagner (Plumbing), and Bryan Hammack (Sheet Metal.) All three local winners received cash, tools and an all expenses paid trip for two to the national competition.
This year, Bryan Hammack has brought home the Bronze Medal in Sheet Metal from the ABC National Craft Championship competition held in Honolulu, Hawaii, February 25 – March 1, 2009! Bryan works for RJ Lanthier Co., Inc. and has been an apprentice with ABC since February 2005. The competition pits apprentices and trainees from across the nation against one another in various trades such as Carpentry, Metal Building, Electrical, Millwright, Fire Sprinkler, Pipefitting, HVAC, Plumbing, Instrumentation Fitting, Sheet metal, Insulation, Pipe Welding, Masonry, and Structural Welding. Each competition includes a written exam and practical performance testing. Medals and cash prizes are then awarded to the top finishers within each competition. The distinguished competition emphasizes the important role craft skills training plays in construction, by evaluating contestants' knowledge of their craft as well as their skill and talent.
ABC San Diego considers all three local competitors winners, as each produced excellent projects. In 1987, National ABC launched a nationwide construction crafts competition, and encouraged apprentices from around the country to compete against other seasoned apprentices. Both the national and the local competitions highlight the important role that craft skills training plays in the construction industry, and both evaluate the contestants' knowledge of the craft as well as their skill and talent.
San Diego’s Craft Championships take place the first Saturday in December every year.