Canadian piping trades hosts national apprenticeship competition in Toronto

Canadian piping trades hosts national apprenticeship competition in Toronto A recent competition in Toronto for apprentices in plumbing, steamfitting, welding, sprinkler fitting and refrigeration and air conditioning helps ensure that United Association (UA) members provide valuable work for their contractors, a union official suggests. The UA's competition partners included Lincoln Electric and Milwaukee Tools. The winners - three in each trade - will compete against entrants from other UA districts in North America in the UA competition at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor this August. It also included displays from sponsors. This year's winner in the steamfitting trade was Reid Percy, a fifth-year apprentice from Whitby, east of Toronto. The building also includes administrative offices and a recreation area for retired union members. Four years ago, the UA spent $5 million to buy the 20,000-square-foot training facility at 929 Warden Avenue, Kacaba said. "We're looking at becoming a stronger partner with Skills Canada competitions and try to promote the trades," he said, adding the UA aims to promote the trades it represents to parents and high school counselors. "If you want to go work overtime in Alberta, you could probably double that. UA Local 46 hosted the National United Association Apprenticeship Competition the first week of June at its training centre in the Golden Mile area of Scarborough. "It's quite a complicated project," Percy said. The UA Local 46 headquarters, at 936 Warden Avenue on the west side, includes welding stations, plus an area designed to simulate a home, where competitors worked on washrooms. You'd need to be a real good lawyer, by the time you cover all of your costs, to make the same money. Included in the plumbing training area are sinks and toilets with transparent pipes so apprentices can ensure the wastewater flows properly. In addition to Percy, the winners of this year's national competition were: Ben Wagner in plumbing; Dennis Cowan in HVACR; Brandon Edgar in sprinkler fitting; and Mike Purdy in welding. In an interview at his workstation, Percy said he was building a UA logo out of pipe and fabricating the fittings himself. Annapolis, Maryland-based UA has more than 300,000 members in more than 300 locals in the U. The 15 contestants came from across Canada and were judged the very best at previous competitions. "We develop courses for members of the United Association and other associate member groups - hoisting, rigging, medical gas, foremancourses, supervision and shop steward training," Kacaba said. The competition will probably cost the UA $100,000 to $115,000, he said, some of which was covered by sponsors. Canadian piping trades hosts national apprenticeship competition in Toronto Trade News selected by Local Linkup on 13/06/2012