ABC announced the winners of the Construction Management Competition (CMC), National Craft Championships (NCC), Craft Professional of the Year and Craft Instructor of the Year during its Careers in Construction Awards ceremony at the conclusion of ABC Convention 2018 in Long Beach, Calif., March 22.

Construction Management Competition (CMC)

Sixteen teams of four undergraduate students from colleges and universities nationwide put their construction project leadership skills to the test during ABC’s annual Construction Management Competition (CMC). Teams were assigned to manage the completion of the same mock project over two days. First, second and third place awards in five categories were presented to the winners.

The team from Florida International University, sponsored by the ABC Florida East Coast Chapter, won first place overall, in addition to top honors in quality control, estimating and project management. The teams’ projects were graded on their excellence in estimating, project management, safety, quality control and overall presentation. 

A full list of the 2018 CMC winners is available at abc.org.

National Craft Championships (NCC)

The National Craft Championships featured a field of more than 170 craft professionals competing for top honors in 15 competitions representing 12 crafts, including a team competition with journey-level craft professionals from five different crafts working to complete a joint project. Competitors first took an intense, two-hour written exam and then competed in daylong hands-on practical performance test.

NCC is a part of ABC’s effort to raise the profile of careers in construction and highlight the $1.1 billion that ABC member companies spend annually on workforce development. Each year the competition draws some of the nation’s most talented craft professionals and highlights the important role that craft skills training plays in the construction industry.

A list of the 2018 NCC winners is available on ABC’s website.

Craft Professional of the Year and Craft Instructor of the Year

Richard Brown of Gaylor Electric Inc. was named 2018 Craft Professional of the Year, and William Fuller of ABC’s Greater Houston Chapter was named 2018 Craft Instructor of the Year.

Each year, ABC presents the Craft Professional of the Year Award to a construction craft professional who excels in his or her field while also demonstrating a commitment to safety, training and the merit shop philosophy. Brown was selected from among four finalists. Brown started his electrical career in Jamaica and later moved to the United States and completed a four-year ABC apprenticeship program, excelling as a service technician at Gaylor Electric. He is a veteran of six mission trips to Jamaica and Panama, where he uses his skills to help build medical clinics. Brown will receive a brand new 2018 Ram Tradesman truck from the award’s exclusive sponsor, Tradesmen International, with support from FCA.

ABC presents the annual Craft Instructor of the Year Award to an instructor who possesses outstanding creativity, a positive attitude and the ability to transfer knowledge through communications skills and innovative teaching to promote lifelong learning to our future workforce. Fuller was selected from among five finalists as the instructor who best embodies merit shop ideals through superior effort and talent in his role as manager of safety and technical training at ABC Greater Houston Chapter’s Construction & Maintenance Education Foundation. He teaches multiple crafts utilizing the NCCER curriculum, including carpentry, scaffolding, rigging, crane, heavy equipment, crew leadership, boilermaking and CSST, bringing enthusiasm and passion to the classroom.  Fuller received a $10,000 cash prize from award sponsors NCCER and the Trimmer Construction Education Fund.