As Associated Builders and Contractors‘ Pacific Northwest chapter prepares to hold its 10th annual Craft Championships, president and CEO Laurie Kendall knows this one will be a bit different. The event will be her swan song; she announced her resignation in late August, and it will take effect Nov. 22.

In 20 years as the chapter’s president, Kendall said her greatest achievement was bringing ABC’s National Craft Championships – an event in which apprentices compete in their trade – to a local forum.

“The first time I saw it, it was one of the most amazing experiences because the young men and women competitors, as they were going out onto the floor, all of the ABC members were applauding them,” Kendall said of the national event.

Kendall first served ABC as director of member services. Seven years later, the Pacific Northwest chapter’s board of directors asked her to serve as president. But now Kendall wants to try something different, she said, even though she doesn’t know yet what that will be.

The chapter’s board will select a new president; it’s working with ABC National in the search. Kendall will work with the chapter on the transition. The board is utilizing multiple avenues, both locally and nationally, to find a replacement, chairperson Stephanie Cannon stated in an email.

The chapter’s board has been generous, Kendall said, in developing her skill set over the years. She asked that the chapter become an accredited sponsor of the National Center for Construction Education & Research (NCCER), a nonprofit that provides credentials for construction industry professionals. High schools must have a sponsor to teach the curriculum, she explained. Kendall became a master trainer to certify high school teachers to teach the curriculum. Now students can start apprenticeships immediately after high school.

“ABC is with you throughout your entire career,” Kendall said.

This year, ABC started a Young Professionals program for people younger than age 40 who want to advance higher in their career or even start their own company.

One of the persistent challenges facing ABC and the construction industry is the skilled labor shortage. Too few young people are entering the industry, Kendall said. She wants to ensure that teenagers know that there are career paths aside from attaining a four-year degree from a university.

The Pacific Northwest chapter’s Craft Championships is an opportunity for students to see the trades in action. The event was structured to spotlight sheet metal and HVAC apprentices. Like in the national competition, the apprentices take a written test. Those with the highest scores are eligible to enter the local competition.

Several years ago, the local chapter started inviting high school students to attend the event. In addition to watching the competitions, they can try using heavy equipment from the Northwest College of Construction and cutting glass from Salem-based Dallas Glass. Students also are informed of available apprenticeship programs. Last year, 1,000 high school students attended, Kendall said.

This year’s local Craft Championships will take place Thursday at the Kliever Armory in Portland.

ABC’s Pacific Northwest chapter provides local winners of the HVAC and sheet metal competitions with paid trips to the national event in the spring. Next year, it will be featured with the ABC national convention on March 18-20 in Salt Lake City.

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A group of 10 apprentices gathered at Camp Withycombe in Clackamas on Friday to put their skills to test in the seventh annual ABC Craft Championships. The event was hosted by Associated Builders and Contractors‘ Pacific Northwest chapter.

Three teams of two HVAC apprentices battled to build functioning heating and air conditioning systems, while four sheet metal apprentices competed individually to construct heating and air conditioning ductwork from scratch.

Tyler Poundstone, an employee of Portland-based Protemp Associates, won the sheet metal competition. Tyler Meyers of Tualatin-based Reitmeier took first in the HVAC division.

Poundstone was the only sheet metal competitor to complete the ductwork installation. Eric Belikov of Direct Mechanical was closest to matching Poundstone but bowed out in the competition’s final 20 minutes or so because he was unable to finish the last section by hand.

With automation and mass production of sheet metal parts now prevalent, fewer tradespeople can construct ductwork from scratch, said Sam Burnett, of P&L Johnson Mechanical, a judge for the HVAC competition.

“Which is sad,” he added, “because it is a bit of an art.”

The two other sheet metal apprentices were eliminated from the competition early, according to Ralph Merkel, a sheet metal judge. One constructed the wrong size of fittings for the ductwork, leading to improper installation, and the other withdrew due to an ailing hand injury suffered previously.

Poundstone and Meyers each received a $500 cash prize and an all-expenses-paid trip to Kissimmee, Florida, in March 2023 to compete in the ABC National Craft Championships.

ABC’s Pacific Northwest chapter has a history of shining at the National Craft Championships. Earlier this year in San Antonio, for instance, Wayne Lathrop of American Heating won the Gold Award in the HVAC event and Bernard Bartling of American Heating received the Silver Award in the sheet metal competition.

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A group of apprentices gathered at Camp Withycombe in Clackamas last week for battles in craftsmanship. Three participants triumphed in their event and qualified for the national competition next year.

Associated Building and Contractors’ Pacific Northwest chapter on Friday hosted the sixth annual Craft Championships, which included competitions for third- and four-year apprentices in HVAC, sheet metal and sprinkler fitter. The latter was a new addition for 2021.

Wayne Lathrop of American Heating Inc. won the HVAC competition, Aaron Bruce of American Heating Inc. won the sheet metal competition and Cesar Avilez Carbajal of Firestop Company won the sprinkler fitter competition. Each winner earned a $500 cash prize and a trip to San Antonio in March 2022 for the ABC National Craft Championships.

In 2019, local tradespeople took home gold for safety and sheet metal and silver in HVAC at the national event.

“We were so incredibly proud as our competitors competed against the best in the country,” said Laurie Kendall, president and CEO of ABC’s Pacific Northwest chapter.

But the event is more than a competition. It was started in 2015 to show construction in action to high school students as well as the general public. Prior to the pandemic, the Craft Championships drew more than 400 students, Kendall said.

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Associated Builders and Contractors‘ Pacific Northwest chapter recently hosted its annual Craft Championships at its headquarters in Northeast Portland.

Third-year and fourth-year HVAC and sheet metal apprentices took part in contests that tested their skills. In the sheet metal event, apprentices were tasked with constructing ductwork and then assembling the pieces into a functional system. In the HVAC event, apprentices were tasked with connecting a heat pump and furnace to create a functional heating and air conditioning unit.

“Sheet metal was the tightest race we’ve ever seen,” said Kimberly Farris, apprenticeship and administrative coordinator for the chapter.

Fourth-year apprentice Nick O’Donnell of American Heating Inc. won that individual competition to earn a trip to Nashville for the ABC National Craft Championships on March 24-27, 2020. Brittany Heacock and Cody Addis, both HVAC Inc. employees, were the other two sheet metal competitors.

Holly “Saffron” Peters, a third-year apprentice with American Heating Inc., won the HVAC team competition to also receive a trip to Nashville. Bryce Lewis of Hunter-Davisson, Hayden Schultz of Reitmeier Inc., John Carmichael of Protemp Associates, Cory Butler of Reitmeier Inc. and Michael Gardner of American Heating Inc. also participated.

In addition to competition, ABC held a career fair for high school students. More than 400 from Oregon and Southwest Washington were on hand to check out equipment demonstrations and career booths managed by participating contractors.

“We have such joy putting on this event, and it is so inspiring to see our community come together to celebrate the industry, apprenticeship and workforce development,” Farris said.

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Brazing torches flashed and the sounds of sheet metal being drilled into place filled the air Friday in Northeast Portland, as the Associated Builders and Contractors‘ Pacific Northwest chapter hosted its annual Craft Championships for third- and fourth-year sheet metal and HVAC apprentices.

Three teams of two HVAC apprentices squared off to build functioning heating and air conditioning systems, while sheet metal apprentices competed individually to build heating and air conditioning ductwork from scratch in the shortest amount of time and with the fewest mistakes.

In the sheet metal competition, the winner was third-year apprentice Matthew Brunner, an employee of Portland-based ProTemp Associates, while third-year apprentice Calvin Nail, an employee of Hybrid Heating & Cooling in Cornelius, took home top honors in the HVAC division. Both Brunner and Nail next March will travel to Long Beach, California, to compete in the ABC national Craft Championships. There, they will take on other regional winners from around the United States.

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