ABC Congratulates National Craft Championships Winners

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) today announced the winners in its 2012 National Craft Championships competition, held at the association’s EdCon & Expo, April 24-27 in San Antonio.

“ABC is honored to recognize the winners of the National Craft Championships for their high-quality workmanship, technical knowledge and safe work practices,” said 2012 ABC National Chairman Eric Regelin, president of Granix, LLC, Ellicott City, Md. “These craft trainees are the best of the best and show us that there is a bright future ahead for ABC and the U.S. construction industry.”

A field of 127 craft trainees competed for top honors in 12 competitions representing 10 crafts. Competitors first took an intense, two-hour written exam and then competed in daylong hands-on practical performance tests in: residential/commercial carpentry; residential/commercial electrical; commercial/industrial electrical; fire sprinkler; HVAC; insulation; millwright/industrial maintenance mechanic; pipefitting; plumbing; sheet metal; pipe welding; and structural welding.

The 2012 winners are:

Electrical: Commercial/Industrial   
Gold: William Macknight Plough
Training Sponsor: ABC Virginia Chapter
Employer: Beckstrom Electric
 
Silver: Lajos Nyiri
Training Sponsor: ABC Illinois Chapter
Employer: Power Tech Systems, Inc.
 
Bronze: Stephen Folkers
Training Sponsor: ABC Iowa Chapter
Employer: Jacobs Field Services North America, Inc.
 
Electrical: Residential/Commercial
Gold: Mark Patrick Wolschleger    
Training Sponsor: ABC Carolinas Chapter
Employer: Watson Electrical Construction Co. LLC
 
Silver: Timothy Reedy
Training Sponsor: ABC Chesapeake Shores Chapter
Employer: Reedy Electrical Services, Inc.
 
Bronze: Wenceslado Morales
Training Sponsor: ABC Southern California Chapter
Employer: Sunwest Electric, Inc.
 
Fire Sprinkler            
Gold: David Leon
Training Sponsor: ABC Florida Gulf Coast Chapter
Employer: Wayne Automatic Fire Sprinklers
 
Silver: Daniel Steven Cessna
Training Sponsor: ABC Baltimore Metro Chapter
Employer: Wolf Fire Protection, Inc.
 
Bronze: Tory Nathaniel Bousum     
Training Sponsor: American Fire Sprinkler Association
Employer: U.S. Automatic Fire & Security
 
HVAC            
Gold: Scott David Thomas
Training Sponsor: ABC Indiana Chapter
Employer: Swift Air Mechanical, Inc.
 
Silver: John Pelnar
Training Sponsor: ABC of Wisconsin Apprenticeship & Training Trust
Employer: Schaus Roofing & Mechanical Contractors, Inc.
 
Bronze: Rusty Allen Thompson
Training Sponsor: ABC Iowa Chapter
Employer: Heartland Heating & Cooling, LLC
 
Pipefitting
Gold: Steven D. Rogers II
Training Sponsor: ABC Heart of America Chapter    
Employer: Lee Mechanical Contractors
 
Silver: Donald J. Simmons
Training Sponsor: ABC Pelican Chapter
Employer: Turner Industries Group, LLC
 
Bronze: Ryan Laney
Training Sponsor: ABC Maine Chapter/Cianbro Corporation
Employer: Cianbro Corporation
 
Plumbing
Gold: Joshua D. Bean
Training Sponsor: ABC Alaska Chapter
Employer: Klebs Mechanical
 
Silver: Matthew J. Woodcraft
Training Sponsor: ABC Keystone Chapter
Employer: Haller Enterprises, Inc.
 
Bronze: Alan Strong
Training Sponsor: ABC of Wisconsin Apprenticeship & Training Trust
Employer: Dave Jones, Inc.
 
Sheet Metal
Gold: Daniel Francis Dooley
Training Sponsor: ABC Iowa Chapter
Employer: A-C Contractors
 
Silver: Micah J. McCarthy
Training Sponsor: ABC New Mexico Chapter
Employer: Mechanical Concepts Ltd. Co.
 
Bronze: Jason D. McElveny
Training Sponsor: ABC San Diego Apprenticeship Training Trust
Employer: West Coast Air Conditioning Co., Inc.
 
Welding: Pipe            
Gold: Seth Lunsford
Training Sponsor: The Robins & Morton Group
Employer: The Robins & Morton Group
 
Silver: Kaleb Gallagher        
Training Sponsor: ABC Maine Chapter/Cianbro Corporation
Employer: Cianbro Corporation
 
Bronze: Mason Samuel Lea
Training Sponsor: ABC Pelican Chapter
Employer: Performance Contractors, Inc.
 
The National Craft Championships was developed in 1987 to help celebrate and recognize craft training in construction careers. Each year, the competition draws some of the nation’s most talented craftspeople and highlights the important role that craft skills training plays in the construction industry. The National Craft Championships Committee, which is composed of leading merit shop construction firms, plans all year for the two-day competition.