Each summer for the past half dozen, AGC of Maine has helped sponsor what one newspaper article called

AGC of Maine member firms brought excavators, trucks, a crane, vacuum truck, boom truck, loader, underground directional drill; and of course, dozers. One of the biggest draws of the daylong event was the heavy equipment simulator provided by United Technology Center.

The local chapter of the National Association of Women in Construction also held its Block Kids competition. Each competitor is provided 100 interlocking building blocks and only has a limited amount of time for their projects. The two winners — one each for the morning and afternoon session — built a “crane with walkway and a protector” to “move stuff” and a “full construction site” including a crane, dump truck, loader, bulldozer, skyscraper, and a foundation under construction.  The winners of these two competitions will be considered for the overall chapter winner to be submitted in March 2009 for the regional competition. 

Additionally, the industry donated door prizes, held equipment demonstations and offered a “prize mine” for kids.

AGC Maine sponsors this annual event with the Boxberry School as a fund raiser for the school. All the operators and participant companies are AGC members or chapter or school staff.

This article originally appeared in the July/August edition of Constructor Magazine

Even in an uncertain economy, one thing remains the same: Education helps construction professionals meet changing market demands. AGC’s ability to offer continuing education credits to meet licensing or designation requirements helps members get the most from professional development programs. In addition, the added convenience of local programs, webinars and audio conferences reduces travel costs and time away from the job. Whether the student is a project manager, specialty contractor, safety director, supervisor, estimator or other project leader, AGC’s increasing variety of courses help build a successful career.
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AGC has begun offering regular webinars on a variety of topics that reflect the industry’s demand for the most up-to-date information. Webinars provide several benefits to participants. They are simple and convenient to participate in. They allow participants to access critical information in real time. And, perhaps the largest benefit is that attendees do not need to travel to participate in the seminar.

What will you need to participate in an AGC webinar? All you need is a computer and Internet access.

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Plan to participate in the next AGC Supervisory Training Program (STP) Train-the-Trainer in Albuquerque and learn to:

• Effectively teach adult learners, 
• Encourage interaction among participants, 
• Get the most out of the STP instructor materials, 
• Incorporate visual aids into the curriculum, and 
• Prepare for and conduct STP courses. 

Contact education@agc.org to learn more. Registration to open soon!

Join fellow mid-level professionals at the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) Working Weekend, October 30 - November 1, 2008 in Boston, MA. Various networking and professional development opportunities are scheduled; highlights include:

• Leadership Session: Crisis Management
• Leadership Session: Communications & Conflict Resolution
• BIM presentation
• Managing a Green Project

Participants will have the opportunity to earn IACET and AIA continuing education credits for qualified sessions. More information and registration instructions can be found on the program flyer. 

The CLC was established to fulfill the need to cultivate the next generation of leaders in the construction industry.The purpose of the CLC is to act as a conduit for participants to network, exchange ideas about work and the industry, serve local communities and continuing education which includes both professional development and leadership skills. 

More information can be found on the AGC website. Please contact Carolyn Cooney, cooneyc@agc.org, with any questions regarding the CLC and the upcoming CLC Working Weekend.

The 2008 October Estimating Academy will be presented by AGC of America and the American Society of Professional Estimators, held on October 28-29, 2008 in Omaha, NE. The conference will be held at the Embassy Suites Omaha Downtown/Old Market. This two day course will cover current topics like LEED® - Estimating for Green Buildings, Estimating with Electronic Documents, Managing Preconstruction and Conceptual Estimating. This program is appropriate for Junior and Senior Estimators.

For more information and to register for this event, please click here or contact Carrie Harper via email at harperc@agc.org or phone (703) 837-5316.

AGC members and chapters are encouraged to hold an event during the upcoming Careers in Construction Week, October 13-17, 2008. This week is designed to increase public awareness of the hard work and contributions of our nation’s craft professionals and increase students’ interest in pursuing construction as a career.

The week is an integral part of the Build Your Future national education and recruitment campaign, sponsored by the National Center for Construction Education & Research (NCCER).

NCCER has set aside a portion of its website to helping the industry plan events, issue press releases, produce radio ads, and more. Free planning materials are available on the website.

Additionally, governors are encouraged to proclaim the third week in October as Careers in Construction Week in their state. So far 16 states have proclaimed Careers in Construction Week in 2008. The sample materials include a proclamation and tips on contacting your state’s governor.

AGC of America is holding its annual Festival of the Building Arts at the National Building Museum in conjunction with the week.

The ambitious, state-of-the-art school is a stand-alone public high school devoted to the construction industry. 

“This futuristic school marks the launch of a new era of high-tech construction instruction in the District,” said DC Mayor Adrian M. Fenty during the ribbon-cutting ceremony. “Phelps graduates can look forward to well-paying jobs that can’t be outsourced and trades that can never be taken away.” 

Phelps first opened in 1934 was closed in 2002 because of a lack of funding.  

The $63 million renovated school now features state-of-the-art classrooms for electrical wiring, carpentry and computer programming and has simulators for training on construction equipment. Phelps was a design-build renovation with Turner Construction Co. and DC Solutions (Fanning Howey Architects, A1-Construction, Bryant Mitchell Architects, and Delon Hampton and Associates). 

The building also meets the U.S. Green Building Council's Silver Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. 

Phelps is starting with just a class of ninth-graders and will add a grade each year until it’s a full, four-year high school with an expected 600 students. The school will prepare students for both college and trades using construction as the thematic approach to their education. 

Pamela Murray Johnson, Turner Construction Co.’s project manager at Phelps, said construction companies nationwide are pushing for more schools like Phelps because workers with the right skills are hard to find. City officials said they expect construction jobs to continue to increase, particularly as green architecture becomes more popular.

Thanks to Kraemer Brothers, the Central Illinois Builders of AGC, AGC of Michigan, and the San Antonio Young Constructors Forum, all of which have provided Build Up! kits to clubs in their region.

The clubs are very excited about the prospect of using Build Up! Here are some of the notes we’ve gotten with the requests:

“My goal is to get the members to look at their neighborhoods and learn the history and importance of where they live.”

“We plan on using the toolkit in our Education and Career Development programs to teach youth in our clubs practical math, science, and history skills to become better, well-rounded students and also to help them find an interest in the building industry.”

“We will use the kit to provide our members with a hands-on project through which they will learn not only how to build bridges and skyscrapers, but will also enable them to reinforce math, science, history and language arts. After the members have built their projects, we will put them on display for the entire Club and we will invite parents to come and see the projects. When the parents arrive, the children will have to explain their project to their parents.”

“This kit sounds amazing. I look forward to seeing my club members working together in building skyscrapers and bridges.”

Each kit costs $199 plus shipping and would be shipped directly to the requesting club. Additionally, AGC will send the club a letter in advance of each kit, telling the club the name of the sponsoring AGC member or chapter.

We are looking for sponsors for kits to be shipped to communities in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana. Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia,Washington state, and Wisconsin.

Boys & Girls Clubs serve nearly 5 million youths from more than 4,000, primarily inner-city, clubhouses. The 102-year-old charity offers youths of all ages a safe, professionally staffed haven that is open after school and on weekends.

If you would more information or would like to know if a specific locality has requested a kit, please contact Liz Elvin, Director of Workforce Development, at elvinl@agc.org or 703-837-5389.

The Associated Contractors of New Mexico (ACNM) has been a partner with the New Mexico Department of Transportation (NMDOT) for the past 12 years in which both state and industry employees are trained under the same program.

The Technician Training and Certification Program (TTCP) classes are conducted at the Albuquerque headquarters of ACNM, which not only boasts a state-of-the-art classroom but also offers in-house testing labs for soils, aggregates, concrete, nuclear densometer and hot mix asphalt (HMA).

The idea behind the TTCP is to promote highly skilled sampling, testing and field technicians, while promoting statewide uniformity and consistency in sampling and testing. Further, the program seeks to “create a harmonious working atmosphere between public agencies and private industry employees based upon trust, open communication, and equality of certification.”

According to Joe Folk, Safety & Training Director for the ACNM, the program has worked extraordinarily well; with both the training classes and the certification exams filling on a regular basis.

Under the direction of Brian Legan, TTCP Training Director and TTCP Training Coordinators Joel Archuletta and Robert Martinez, the chapter offers a 40-hour training class in aggregates and an aggregrates certification; a 16-hour training class in soils and a soils certification; a 24-hour training class in asphalt and an asphalt certification. The two classes are taken separately from the certification exams and there is no requirement to take the training class as a prerequisite for the certification.

On the other side of the building from the labs, Joe Folk conducts a variety of training courses above and beyond those with lab requirements. Currently on the agenda American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA) Traffic Control, Excavation & Trenching Competent Person, Confined Space Competent Person, Substance Abuse for Foreman, Storm Water Qualified Person, MSHA Sub Part 46, and both the OSHA 10- and 30-hour classes. Classes have been so well attended that the chapter built an addition last year, which now houses a high-tech classroom complete with a dual control computer so that the 60-person room can be broken down into two separate classrooms.

The ACNM, under Executive Director Mike Gibson, represents 200 New Mexico transportation and utility construction firms and their 15,000 employees.