Georgia Contractor (March / April 2019)

Volume 15, Issue 2 March | April 2019

CEFGA CAREEREXPO AND SKILLSUSA STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS An Interview with Scott Shelar President & CEO of CEFGA

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Georgia Contractor

GEORGIA

CONTRACTOR

w w w. t h e g e o r g i a c o n t r a c t o r . c o m Editor-in-Chief: Roland Petersen-Frey Art Director: Pamela Petersen-Frey | (770) 521-8877

The Georgia Contractor is published bi-monthly on a calendar year basis. It is a magazine designed around the construction industry associations and their members. It is supported by associations and their members. Executive, editorial, circulation, and advertising offices: 1154 Lower Birmingham Road, Canton, Georgia 30115 • Phone: (770) 521-8877 • E-mail: rfrey@a4inc.com. Send address changes to your association and/or to A4 Inc. Opinions expressed by the authors are not necessarily those of any of the associations or publisher nor do they accept responsibility for errors of content or omissions and, as a matter of policy, neither do they endorse products or advertisements appearing herein. Parts of this magazine may be reproduced with the written consent of the publisher.

March | April 2019

On The Cover ~ The GEORGIA CONTRACTOR spotlights the CEFGA CareerExpo and SkillsUSA State C h a m p i onships each year with great enthusiasm!

This event is the culmination of the year’s training and educational program for Georgia’s young adults looking at exciting careers in the construction industry. Now more than ever, Georgia’s young people are seizing the fabulous opportunities open to them in this very properous field.v

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TABLE CONTENTS OF

Welcome Letter from Matt Arthur, Technical College System of Georgia

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7 Welcome Letter

from Richard Woods, GADOE

Welcome Letter from Dan Smith, New South Construction

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Richard Woods

Finishes

Equipment You Might Use

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32 Prepare for the ‘What-if’ Scenarios

COVER STORY An Interview with Scott Shelar, President & CEO, CEFGA

34 TCSG: Two Years

18 School

Counselors…

Friend or Foe? Heavy Equipment

22 GDOT Keeps

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27The World of

33 The World of

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21 The World of

Chuck Little

GDOT

Branding the Skilled Trades

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Scott Shelar

25 Opportunities at

Georgia Moving

Roofing

to your Career

37 The TCSG Foundation

39 The World of

Mining - Aggregates

40 Wiregrass

Georgia Technical College - Teaching Work and Life Skills

Georgia Contractor

42 Careers in the

54 Workplace

44 Middle-skilled

57 Finding Your Path

Landscape & Landscape Construction Industry Jobs, the Forgotten Heart of the Workforce

to a Career in Construction

Safety First & Always

58 SkillsUSA -

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48 From Handshake

to Hands-On Jordy Andrade

Expectations in the Classroom

The World of Sheet Metal

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Building Tomorrow’s Technicians - TEFGA Automobile Technicians Can Have an Impressive Career Path

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61 Shift Your Career

into High Gear with IEC

ADVERTISERS IN THIS ISSUE

AceElectric. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

M.C. Dean. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Atlanta Electrical Contractors Association . . . . 11

Mechanical Trade Institute . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Associated General Contractors (AGC). . . . . . . IFC

Chattahoochee Technical College . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Flint Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Georgia 811 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BC

Georgia Construction Aggregate Association . . 12 GEICC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25, 50

Georgia Piedmont Technical College . . . . . . . . . 20

Georgia Power Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Georgia Trade School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Georgia Urban Ag Council . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 IEC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IBC

Lehigh Hanson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

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McCarthy Building Companies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Metro Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Milwaukee Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

New South Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Ogletree Deakins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 PeopleReady . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 SelecSource. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

South Georgia Technical College . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Technical College System of Georgia. . . . . . . . . 36

Tractor & Equipment Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Wiregrass Technical College . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

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Georgia Contractor

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Georgia Contractor

Branding the Skilled Trades

By Ryan Blythe | Founder | Georgia Trade School

n previous issues of the Georgia Contractor, I have had the pleasure of sharing the success stories of a few of our more than 700 graduates.

Storytelling is at the heart of our marketing strategy. With so many opportunities upcoming in the welding industry as we inch closer to our maximum skills gap in 2024, storytelling and branding will become even more critical for schools and employers seeking to attract the most qualified candidates.

If you don’t know who you are selling towards, it is very difficult to build a great brand.

Small businesses can’t afford to market to everyone and only a select few are going to need your product or service. Georgia Trade School is interested in being an alternative to college, so we focus our efforts on young people in middle and high school. Career changers are welcome to attend our school, but we are not actively marketing to them. We have even visited elementary schools using glue art as an example of running beads. I thoroughly agree with AGC of Georgia, CEO Mike Dunham that the most popular toys in Kindergarten are STEM related (Lincoln Logs and Legos) yet we

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March | April 2019

are not developing children’s natural interest in building and creating.

GTS Founder Ryan Blythe and

Graduate Cassandra Gitana, who works on the set of “Stranger Things”

Once your audience is determined, you need to figure out who you compete with. Most people assume we compete with Technical College System of Georgia, but we only have had a handful of kids who looked at technical schools.

More likely we have young men and women who are trying to

decide between us and a private liberal arts college or a state university.

That’s why planting seeds years in advance is crucial to our recruiting.

Also, it is okay to acknowledge the strength of your competitors, to learn from their marketing and recognize what their strengths and weaknesses are. We could never compete facility wise with a large corporate welding school like Tulsa or Lincoln Electric, but we can more than make up for it by creating a dynamic experience.

Next you must find your unique selling point, your differentiator so that in a sea of products and services you can stand out. That must be part of your brand, so that it will lead to recognition and remembrance. In our case we highlight outcomes because that trumps any other reason to work with us. If you can make 50,000 dollars coming out of school and take those skills anywhere in the country, it is a very attractive prospect. This is where storytelling once again becomes crucial. Our prospective students and their parents need to see, read and hear about our welders who work on the sets of Hollywood Blockbusters, Professional Sports Stadiums and Naval Shipyards.

What colors do you select for your brand, for your logo, how does it reflect your personality. We chose patriotic colors since our mission was to “Rebuild America.” Red and Blue are also colors that support a wide range of merchandising and advertising opportunities. It is important to us to create shirts, hats and hoodies that our students want to wear. If they look good your customers become a walking billboard.

You need to care about your font, 9

US Congressman Barry Loudermilk speaking to GTS students your look and your brand voice.

Our fun, youth-oriented environment is very different from say, Jones Day where gravitas and prestige matters.

And a good look will only be a good brand if it is consistent, otherwise you will not be trusted.

Millennials and Generation Z especially are skeptical of inauthentic marketing. This is where our partnership with YouTube sensation ChuckE2009 has been so helpful. Every six months we travel to his studios and film instructional and project videos. We are willing to give away our expertise for free with the belief that

the content will be so popular it will draw future students. The results support our hypothesis as nearly 100,000 people view each video. This successful partnership has led to students from twenty states attending GTS. Having that kind of geographic diversity results in additional employer partnerships. It also increases student quality.

Finally, you must build brand awareness. You may have the best product or service in the craft industry, but if nobody knows about it, you could be in trouble. There’re endless tools to highlight your brand from digital to print, but es-

pecially social media platforms. It’s simply unacceptable in 2019 to not have a strong Facebook™, Instagram™ and /or LinkedIn™ presence.

If you have built transformative projects, invest in a great photographer and get those images to go viral. Find a brand ambassador- who can tell your story authentically. Design press releases and distribute to local, regional and national media. Earned media is huge in building a powerful brand. Embrace your community- as impressive as our media wall is, our GTS families are more interested in the sponsorships of a local high school sports team or a little league than a column in the Wall Street Journal.

In the end bring your trade program, fabrication shop, construction company or union to the public. Don’t let yourself be insulated by industry. Step out of your comfort zone. Go to Chambers of Commerce, Business Associations and community festivals.

Don’t be afraid to tell your story!v

GTS CWI Scot McKneely instructing students in our welding lab 10

Georgia Contractor

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Georgia Contractor

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nder Scott Shelar’s leadership—now going on 21 years—the Construction Education Foundation of Georgia has earned national recognition for its annual CareerExpo and SkillsUSA State Championships, which draws more than 8,000 attendees annually; and its Construction Ready Program, which has trained and placed more than 800 Atlanta-area residents in construction careers since 2014. On the eve of another CareerExpo and SkillsUSA gathering, we took a moment to chat with Scott about the evolution of CEFGA, its rapid growth of late, and ongoing opportunities to promote construction careers in Georgia.

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After beginning your career in the construction industry as Director of Education and Safety for the Georgia Branch, Associated General Contractors (AGC), you joined CEFGA in 1998. What do you remember most about your early days in this job?

I was very young, and honestly, I didn’t know a whole lot about the construction industry, so I had to learn on the job. I have good memories of a lot of people taking me under their wing and teaching me what they knew about the industry.

Also, I remember being really excited about the opportunity, the responsibility and the challenge.

Before that, the longest I had ever been in a job was maybe two or three years. I knew when I started with CEFGA that it was going to take longer than three years because of the size of the challenge.

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Q&A

An Interview with Scott Shelar

President & CEO, CEFGA Story & Photos by Allen Allnoch

How have you seen the construction industry change over that span, and how has CEFGA evolved along with it?

When it comes to the labor issue, which is what we’re focused on, I would say it’s become more real now for employers—they’re really feeling the labor shortage more now than they were 20 years ago.

So that has motivated them to get involved with CEFGA and try to figure the problem out.

The other really encouraging thing that’s happened is that 20 years ago, the common belief was that you had to get a four-year degree to be successful. I would say that in the last three to five years, people are seeing that there are good careers in the skilled trades.

That’s been our message for the last 20 years, so it’s really satisfying to work on something for so long and then start to see other people jumping on board.

CEFGA has longstanding relationships with the National Center for Construction Education & Research (NCCER) and the Georgia Department of Education (DOE).

But you seem much more independent now. What is your relationship with those organizations today?

We’re an accredited training sponsor of the NCCER, and we’re still the largest one in Georgia, so that’s a big part of what we do, working with high schools to get them certified and make sure they’re teaching industry-relevant skills. We’ve always been a partner with the DOE as well. They pay us Georgia Contractor

to go in and certify these high school programs, and that’s a winwin. I think they see us as a link to the construction industry, and it’s good for us because having DOE as a partner makes it easy work with schools across the state.

So nothing’s changed in our relationships there, but now we’re doing other things, like training adults for careers through Construction Ready; establishing relationships with organizations such as the Arthur Blank Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Atlanta CareerRise and the Home Depot Foundation; and working closely with government entities, such as the Department of Labor and its Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act (WIOA).

How did CEFGA come to host the CareerExpo and State SkillsUSA Championships?

I had been involved with SkillsUSA even before my time with CEFGA. When I was with AGC, I helped organize the carpentry contest, which was in the automotive lab at Gwinnett Tech. Back then the contests were spread out in different locations.

I traveled to the national Skills USA Contest, which at the time was in Kansas City, and I was so impressed with how they had all the contests under one roof, with thousands of people watching them. Once I saw that, I had a vision for what it should be, and I was inspired to come back to Atlanta and make our contest look more like the national contest.

We took some industry leaders to see it the next year, and they came back excited, too. So it wasMarch | April 2019

n’t really hard to get others on board. We started small, at the Gwinnett County Fairgrounds. And that’s when we introduced the concept of the CareerExpo and the various “Worlds” of construction to SkillsUSA. We felt like there would be some synergy between students learning about the trades and students competing in the trades all on the same floor.

2008 began a stretch of tough years for the industry, yet you managed to keep the CareerExpo going. How did you do it?

The recession was tough on everybody, including us, but there was still a lot of excitement around the Expo. It’s an optimistic, forwardlooking event. I think the enthusiasm of our partners kept it going as much as anything.

And the event continues to grow.

What have been the keys to its success, and how do you keep that going?

I think it’s more word of mouth than anything. I tell people, it’s kind of like the Grand Canyon— you can take pictures and tell people about it, but they really have to see it to appreciate how big and exciting it is.

Construction Ready, which now has four locations and more on the

way, got its start as Westside Works in 2014. How did CEFGA get involved in running that?

I read an article in the Atlanta Business Chronicle about how Arthur Blank was going to build a worldclass football stadium and he had a vision to also help the communities around it. He said he walked the streets in those communities, and the thing people seemed to need more than anything else was access to quality jobs.

I thought to myself, “We have a labor shortage [in construction], and Arthur Blank wants to help people find jobs, so there’s a winwin opportunity.” I reached out to Holder Construction Company, which was one of the general contractors at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and shared a vision to set up a training center on the Westside to help put people to work on the stadium. Holder connected us with the Arthur Blank Family Foundation and it turned out they were already thinking along those lines, too.

We partnered with HB Next and some of our partner employers, and that’s how we started the Construction Ready program. We placed 170 of our graduates, all Westside residents, on MercedesBenz Stadium. That got a lot of attention and we started hearing from other people saying, “Hey, we

“When it comes to the labor issue, which is what we’re focused on, I would say it’s become more real now for employers—they’re really feeling the labor shortage more now than they were 20 years ago.”

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want a program like that for our residents.”

How satisfying is it to look back and see so many stories of success and changed lives that have come out of Construction Ready?

The work we’ve done with Construction Ready is the most satisfying of my time with CEFGA, and really my whole working life. It’s just so powerful to see someone come in looking for an opportunity, and within four weeks get the training and credentials and connections to go to work. I really can’t think of a more rewarding thing in my professional life than that. I get chills thinking about it.

CEFGA’s staff and board have grown over the years, too. What is your approach to being an effective leader?

This is new territory for me. When you go from a staff of three to five to a staff of 13 to 15, your responsibilities change. In the early days I would roll up my sleeves and get involved in every little detail. Now I’m having to learn how to trust my team and not be involved in all the details. Fortunately I have the three best VPs in the non-profit world in Zach [Fields], Tina [Robison] and Jamie [Buck], running the various aspects of CEFGA, and it’s become quite easy for me to trust them. They’re doing a better job with each of those areas than I ever did in any of them.

What is your vision for the future of CEFGA? After 20 years I feel like we’re finally beginning to have some im16

pact in terms of delivering on our mission. I think we need to sustain and increase our growth in order to continue to have that kind of impact—getting more people to consider a career in construction, getting them the training and credentials they need, and hiring quality people on our staff who can help us figure out where we need to be putting our energy.

Even with another downturn, I think there are so many people retiring from our industry, there’s going to continue to be a need for workers. And from a practical standpoint, we’ve been pretty good about putting aside some resources, so when the next downturn comes, we’ll be in a good place financially to weather it and continue to fulfill our mission.

CEFGA survived one economic recession. What is the plan for coping if there is another one?

Are there any specifics you can tell us about regarding new CEFGA initiatives or programs?

Scott Shelar

We’re always keeping our eyes open for creative ways to achieve our mission, kind of like we did in starting Construction Ready. I don’t know exactly what the next one is, but I know there’s a next one out there. Our most recent one is Construction Ready PLUS, which we launched with the Home Depot Foundation. The idea there is to build on the skills our Construction Ready students have gained and the lessons they’ve learned on the job and in the industry.

What do you enjoy most about your job?

What I enjoy most are the opportunities to interact with so many different people and the fact that I never get bored with my job. There are always exciting challenges and new opportunities and new partners to work with. And just the diversity of the partners we work with—construction companies, general contractors, trade contractors, trade associations, government agencies, private foundations, educators, and of course our students. v Georgia Contractor

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School Counselors…

Friend or Foe?

By Chuck Little | Atlanta Electrical Contractors Association | Human Resources Director

tereotypes are everywhere.

In the world of construction, people think of the average construction worker as a big bellied, big neck, dumb guy with their pants hanging down. That’s your typical construction worker, right?

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Music geeks—kids with earbuds in every minute of the day. Popular kids—snobs. Nerds! No explanation needed.

Well, when it comes to school counselors, there are stereotypes too. Here goes. That person finished high school; then went to college for their undergraduate degree; then continued college to get a Master’s degree; then went back to high school to tell all their students— “go to college.”

For the past fifteen plus years

Our association conducts an annual Electrical Apprenticeship Career Day for high school seniors every March.

As with most generalizations, when you drill down into your basic electrical worker, you find out nothing could be further from the truth.

Electricians train as apprentices for five years before they “turn out” as professional “journeypersons.”

During those five years, they study Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). In other words, after high school, they are studying Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Blueprint reading, Ohm’s Law, AC Theory, DC theory and beyond.

Not only do they study it, but they have to apply it in their world of work. Dumb? No way.

When it comes to schools, there are stereotypes as well. Jocks— dumb as rocks. Goth—kids who can’t relate to general society. Generation Z—kids with noses into their phones who can’t communicate.

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or so of recruiting into our industry,

I worked directly with hundreds of Teachers, Work Based Learning Coordinators, CTAE Directors and Administrators. Due to the stereotypical belief directly above, counselors were avoided like the plague. “All they do is tell kids to go to college.”

Then, about two years ago, myself and a number of other folks in our industry took a good long look in the mirror and realized we had made a big mistake. Counselors were not talking about other career options because we were not educating them on all the other choices out there—shame on us.

While colleges and universities were wining, dining and constantly edu-

Georgia Contractor

cating counselors about their not working) and how much do they ers Roundtable (CIER), a group schools, our industry was doing pay for tuition? Beyond all that, our representing some 3,000 employers absolutely nothing about all the apprentice graduates make as much and 245,000 skilled trade employgood careers we had to offer that as the highest paying four-year de- ees recently hosted about 75 couninvolve education after high school, grees and a whole lot more than all selors from across the state at our but not college.

Electrical Training Center. They, the low paying four-year degrees.

Dr. Parker had no idea of the too, learned about all the different Around this same time, I met existence of such a program, either. and well-paying careers out there two very important people in the Counseling world. First, the new After thinking about it for a few in the construction industry. This Program Manager for Career Coun- weeks, she called us up and asked was the first of many to come— seling and Guidance at the Georgia us to make a couple of presenta- Career Trade Talks for Counselors.

Department of Education, Ms. Dawn tions to Gwinnett County Coun- The word is starting to get out.

College is but one path to get Mann. Second, at a high school to a great paying career.

During the five years of our career fair, the outgoing Chair of the Georgia School Coun- program, our apprentices incur no Yes, the world of construction careers involves electricians, selors Association, Dr. Tinisha tuition debt and make right plumbers, carpenters and brick Parker. around $165,000. masons, but it also involves enOur association conducts gineers, drafters, estimators, an annual Electrical Apprenticeship selors and Advisors over the sum- project managers, superintendents, Career Day for high school seniors mer. This started the ball rolling on bookkeepers, accountants, recepevery March. Our career day inthe educational process our industry tionists, administrative staff and volves applying to our school and needed to have with counselors more. having a real job interview. I invited So, are counselors a friend or across the state of Georgia.

Ms. Mann to attend and see what In addition to all the above, a foe? Stereotyping said foe, but our apprenticeship school was all the Construction Industry Employ- the reality is friend! v about. She walked around and spoke with our various instructors and saw all the different “hands on labs” we used for learning.

Towards the end of the day, through wide opened eyes, her first word to me were, “I had no idea any of this existed. I just didn’t know!” The light bulb turned on for both of us about the need to educate counselors.

At a high school career fair where I met Dr. Parker, I had a chance to share information with her about the apprenticeship program we offered individuals of full-time work and part-time, tuition-free schooling.

During the five years of our program, our apprentices incur no tuition debt and make right around $165,000.

How does that compare to college kids going to school full-time (mostly March | April 2019

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Georgia Contractor

The World of Heavy Equipment

If you are seeking a challenging and rewarding career, we invite you to consider pursuing a career as a Heavy Equipment Operator in the environmental construction sector. As the Southeast’s premier environmental construction contractor, CBP Environmental takes pride in the reputation for excellence we’ve earned over the past three decades. Based just outside of Athens, GA, CBP boasts an expansive fleet of heavy equipment manufactured by the world’s largest maker of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, and industrial gas turbines: Caterpillar®.

We pride ourselves on our top-of-the-line, late model equipment, which offers the latest in innovative technology including GPS. Our fleet is well maintained by our maintenance department, which is housed onsite at our Georgia headquarters and comes complete with a 20-bay maintenance shop, as well as a fleet of support vehicles that can service equipment at our job sites located throughout the Southeast.

CBP Environmental offers our new employees an indepth training program, making sure that each new hire is fully trained on jobsite safety and comprehensive operation of heavy equipment. We offer competitive starting salaries, full health care coverage including dental and vision plans, 401k plan with generous company match, and paid vacation and holidays.v

To find out more about the environmental construction sector and the careers offered in heavy equipment operation, visit our website at www.cooperbarnettepage.com or e-mail us at careers@cbpinc-ga.com March | April 2019

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GDOT Keeps Georgia Moving

Here are highlights of recent activities.

GDOT’s Regional Traffic Operations Program vital in managing Super Bowl traffic. GDOT and its partners planned, coordinated and practiced for two years to ensure smooth traffic operations during the 10-day Super Bowl LIII timeframe. GDOT’s smart signal system allowed engineers to remotely adjust signal timing without having to go into the field and ensured that signals were timed for maximum efficiency to keep vehicles and pedestrians moving. The transportation operational strategies were executed on a scale never before seen in this country, according to Matthew Glasser, GDOT’s Regional Traffic Operation Program manager.

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or over a century, the Georgia Department of Transportation has kept Georgians moving. Georgia DOT plans, constructs, maintains and improves state roads and interstate highways.

The department is involved in bridge, public transit, rail, general aviation, bike and pedestrian programs, and waterways including the ports of Savannah and Brunswick, and the Intracoastal Waterway. GDOT helps local governments maintain their roads. GDOT’s transportation network connects interstates, state highways, county roads and city streets.

As a state agency with nearly 4,000 employees, Georgia DOT and its people share a vision to boost Georgia’s competitiveness through leadership in transportation and providing a safe, secure and reliable infrastructure.

A minor widening

and ramp restriping

Quick Response

project in Columbia

County significantly

improves the drive

for commuters.

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Widening of State Route 17 - a TIA project in Central Savannah River Area.

addition to the time savings that motorists experience while driving in the express lanes, travel times in the general purpose lanes have been cut in half compared with a year ago.

Southern Georgia joins Transportation Investment Act program. Due to the success of TIA in the original three regions, residents in Southern Georgia voted to pass the TIA Referendum - a 10-year one percent sales tax to fund regional and local transportation improvements. Visit www.ga-tia.com to learn more about the TIA Program and its regions.

Quick Response Projects improve safety and congestion. Whether it’s restriping, adding or extending a turn lane, or improving an intersection, GDOT’s Quick Response Program reduces congestion and improves safety on state routes in Georgia’s communities. The program enables GDOT to identify, ap-

Transportation roundtable held at Port of Savannah/Jimmy DeLoach Parkway Extension project. As the single largest container terminal in North America, the Port of Savannah and its vicinity have a unique blend of aviation, rail, freight, and logistics needs. Roundtable participants included U.S. DOT Under Secretary for Transportation Policy Derek Kan, state officials, GDOT leaders, and representatives from Georgia’s transportation and business development communities.

“The U.S. Department of Transportation sees and appreciates the strong leadership and quality of work that is happening in transportation Northwest Corridor Express Lanes soon after opening. in Georgia,” Kan said. “The administration looks to states like prove and construct small traffic operational Georgia to learn how innovation, collabora- improvements, safety or maintenance projects that tion and key partnerships at the local level cost under $200,000 and can be implemented in a are driving critical improvements across all short period of time – usually three to four months. In modes of transportation.”

FY 2018, the Quick Response Program funded 173 Northwest Corridor Express Lanes named projects statewide - an investment of $20.4 million.

North America’s top road for 2018 by Roads & The program is administered by the Office of Local Bridges Magazine, just months after opening. In Grants.

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First Major Mobility Investment Program (MMIP) project breaks ground. The I-85 North Widening from I-985 to SR 53 in Gwinnett, Barrow and Jackson counties adds one new lane in each direction built into the median. Completion is anticipated in 2020.

The I-16 @ I-95 Improvement Projects in coastal Georgia are designed to improve traffic flow and enhance safety along one of Georgia’s busiest freight corridors—the gateway to the Port of Savannah.

The projects include widening in each direction from I-95 to I-516 and reconstructing the I-16/I-95 interchange that includes rebuilding two congested on/off ramps; adding collector-distributor lanes

View of the big screens and monitors at the Transportation Management Center’s Regional Traffic Operations Program on I-95 northbound to help eliminate weaving to and from I-16; adding lighting at the interchange; and installing Intelligent Transportation System technology to link to Georgia NaviGAtor. Construction is anticipated to start in mid-2019, with the projects scheduled to open to traffic in 2022.

When complete the 11 initial 24

Quick Response construction for this roundabout in Coweta County took less than two weeks. large-scale MMIP projects will add over 300 new lane miles in Georgia’s metro areas, create additional capacity, improve the movement of freight, provide operational improvements and efficiencies, enhance safety and decrease travel times.

Visit http://www.dot.ga.gov/IS/MMIP. GDOT provides a sustainable and connected transportation system that supports economic development and improves the quality of life for all Georgians. Whether it’s innovative project delivery through public-private partnerships and design-build contracts;

Georgia Express Lanes, our growing managed lane network; the Transportation Management Center, home of the Georgia NaviGAtor 511 intelligent transportation system; the HERO program that serves metro Atlanta interstates and the CHAMP program in the rest of the state; or innovations like diverging diamond interchanges, pedestrian hybrid beacons and reduced conflict U-turns (RCUTs), Georgia DOT continues to embrace change and rise to meet new challenges, break new barriers and positively impact more lives. v

For information about Georgia DOT, visit www.dot.ga.gov.

Follow us on Facebook™ (www.facebook.com/GeorgiaDOT) and Twitter™ (http://twitter.com/gadeptoftrans). And be sure to read GDOT’s The EXTRA Mile blog for timely commentary on transportation in Georgia. Visit http://www.dot.ga.gov/AboutGeorgia/Pages/ TheExtraMileBlog.aspx.

Georgia Contractor

Opportunities at GDOT

By Crystal S. Jarvis

he Georgia Department of Transportation offers a variety career opportunities across the state. Candidates are invited to apply for Highway Emergency Response Operator (HERO), and Maintenance Labor Temporary (MLT) and Equipment Operation positions, which all directly work to

trained emergency response professionals who are dispatched to traffic-related incidents with the primary duty to clear roads so that normal traffic flow is restored. The teams also assist stranded motorists with flat tires, dead batteries or a bit of fuel or coolant.

MLT and other equipment operation positions offer opportunities to perform roadway and highway maintenance, including maintenance of concrete, bridge and asphalt; and snow and ice removal. On-the-job training opportunities are available in statewide areas of A HERO Team at work. emphasis within the ensure the safety and upkeep of area of assignment, including Rouour transportation system. The po- tine Maintenance, Maintenance sitions offer great incentives and Areawide, Special Outfits and Meopportunities to develop and en- chanic Shop. hance skillsets in various roles, caHEROs, MLTs and equipment reer advancement, on-the-job operators contributes to fulfilling the training and career incentives to Department’s overall mission, which obtain a commercial driver’s li- is to “Deliver a transportation syscense (CDL). tem focused on innovation, safety, Georgia DOT’s HEROs are sustainability and mobility.” v

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HOW TO APPLY:

Online: http://team.georgia.gov/careers/ or https://ga.taleo.net/careersection/ga_external/ jobdetail.ftl?job=FAC00AG March | April 2019

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The World of Finishes

March | April 2019

The recognized time to acquire the knowledge and skills required to become a tile mechanic is typically three-tofour years of uninterrupted experience training under an already experienced and qualified tile craftsman. This is more formally known as an Apprenticeship Program.

The beginning level in the tile trade is called the Apprentice Tile Finisher (ATF). The ATF learns to fill joints, caulk, set up work area, mix mortars, properly clean and polish finished tile surfaces. The ATF is ultimately responsible for the finished product. Upon mastering these skills, the trainee will begin the second half of their career based learning to be a tile mechanic. The median Hard Tile Setter salary in Atlanta, Ga. is $51,530 as of January 2018 with a range usually between $41,651 63,741, not including bonus and benefit information and other factors that impact base pay.

CC Owen is dedicated to the personal success and development of every employee. Providing each employee with the necessary resources for an opportunity to learn and expedite their careers based on their own personal interest and aptitude for the tile trade. As employees of CC Owen, you will be encouraged to further develop and grow your knowledge, skill, and credentials through Industry Certifications offered at the Ceramic Tile Education Foundation, www.ceramictilefoundation.org.

Installing ceramic tile is hard work, labor intensive and extremely exacting. Most would say in fact that it’s an art form. Tile setters, often referred to as a “tile mechanic,� generally work indoors and during the day. Ceramic tile mechanics are craftsman with age-old skills.

Over time newer and better methods and materials have been introduced but tile setting remains the same basic process that it has been since the days of the ancient Roman Cathedrals. v

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Equipment You Might Use You need to be skilled in the tools of the trade. For some, the tools may be a hammer or a wrench, but for many, these tools could have four foot high wheels and weigh 15 tons. In this section, you will learn more about some of this equipment and what tasks each performs. We would like to thank Flint Equipment for providing the photos for this section. Take a look.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE

Take to the Skies

The Kespry Aerial Intelligence System lets you easily conduct site surveys and visualize job progress. This complete unmanned system generates high-resolution aerial images, topographic maps, 2D and 3D models and accurate volumetric data. This data can help you optimize the jobsite so that you can improve productivity and reduce costs.

Afraid of Heights? Take Down the Mountains‌

Big jobs shouldn’t be a hassle. Do more without a lot of extra effort with the K-Series Dozers. They offer state of the art electronic controls that put the operator in complete command of an arsenal of production boosting hydrostatic advantages, including power turns, counter-rotating tracks, power management and infinitely variable travel speeds. The standard Eco mode will also help save fuel without loss of productivity, adding more money to your bottom line.

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Clear a Path for Takeoff

When clearing the toughest forest environments, use a relentless machine that has your back. The L-II series skidders combine a range of grapple choices with serious power and stability—for the versatility and performance you need to give it your all. With an all-new continuously variable transmission, longer booms and bigger grapples, you can get more done on the jobsite in less time.

High Cotton

Non-stop harvesting with the John Deere CP690, the most powerful cotton harvester in the world. One machine powered by a John Deere turbocharged Final Tier 4 engine. Operator friendly cab with easy to use controls. And, of course, the most productive row units in the business, offering clean, high-efficiency picking.

Down to the Last Inch

Grade-control technology is a must have tool for maximizing productivity and maintaining a competitive edge today. Industry first John Deere SmartGrade Motor Graders are fully integrated and calibrated from the factory, arriving at your jobsite ready to work. With no external masts, cables or GNSS receivers to install and remove, operators can focus on the grading job at hand instead of on tedious daily maintenance.

Taking Our Service to New Heights

Our team is dedicated to providing the best product support and service possible to our customers. We strive for machine excellence to keep your jobsite productive at all times. This is possible by providing the best training to allow our service techs the ability to quickly assess and fix any issues that may come your way.

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Prepare for the ‘What-if’ Scenarios

By Khalid Siddiqi, PhD | Chair | Department of Construction | Kennesaw State University

n February, Kennesaw State University’s Department of Construction Management and Bennett Thrasher, one of the country’s largest full-service certified public accounting firms, presented the results of the third annual Georgia Construction Outlook Survey, providing insight on the state’s construction industry.

Among the findings were: • 57 percent of respondents reported a higher project backlog from the prior year.

• 84 percent of respondents projected an increase in revenue in the next year, 7 percent higher than the previous year.

• Salaries for many positions increased by an average of 5.2 percent from 2017.

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For the past three years that this outlook survey has been conducted, the greatest priority for the construction industry is attracting and retaining qualified individuals.

Additionally, healthcare costs, industry-specific training and the willingness and ability of employees to travel are pain points that 149 Georgia-based construction companies said they must frequently overcome. A simple way companies can tackle these issues is to prepare for ‘what-if’ scenarios, such as the abrupt departure of a project manager.

According to the U.S. Bureau 32

of Labor Statistics, employment of construction managers is projected to grow 11 percent from 2016 to 2026, faster than the average for all occupations. However, 83 percent of companies surveyed said recruiting and retaining qualified individuals was their biggest business challenge.

One solution to combat the talent shortage is to form strong relationships with universities that have the ability to supply the construction industry with high-quality interns. Companies should prioritize on-the-job training and mentoring for these interns with the expectation they can one day fill vacant project management positions with a wealth of experience already under their belts.

At Kennesaw State University, the Department of Construction Management offers an ACCE-accredited bachelor’s degree program in construction management with six in-demand concentrations: general, land development, specialty construction, heavy construction, facilities management and residential construction.

KSU construction management students have a strong reputation of learning how to apply knowledge and technology to solve real-world construction problems.

Every KSU graduate has held internships while earning their degrees, and many receive full-time

positions upon graduation with the companies they met through various career fairs and activities held throughout the academic year.

The Construction Management Department at KSU also fosters strong relationships with leading construction companies via a 35person industry advisory board, featuring representatives from Chick-fil-A, Albion, Bennett Thrasher and Parrish Construction Group, among other respected companies in the greater Atlanta area. The board’s objective is to ensure that students meet the educational and career needs of the industry from an employer’s perspective. Through their organizational structure, the board recommends actions to the department to ensure that learning outcomes at the program level meet or exceed employer needs.

While it’s a perfect time to obtain the education necessary to become a professional in the booming construction management industry, companies should be prepared to nurture the highly talented interns that academic programs like KSU’s can produce. In doing so, companies can ensure they are prepared for ‘what-if’ scenarios as they arise.

For more information about Kennesaw State’s construction management programs, visit http://cacm.kennesaw.edu/. v Georgia Contractor

The World of Roofing

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What do you do when you’re young and unsure of your future? You learn a skilled trade! Many successful people don’t stop at the first sign of success; In fact, it tends to push you further.

Most often we learn our skills early on in life by watching our parents and the careers they choose. Terry Dickerson’s son, Bryce is a prime example of following dad’s footsteps. Terry Dickerson, the owner of Roof Depot, gives his son all the necessary tools to start his journey in the roofing world.

When entering a skilled trade, such as roofing, you have a unique opportunity to advance in the chosen field while earning a respectable salary along the way. Another thing to consider, there are many more positions within a roofing company’s organization than the installation aspect. Such as administrative, estimating, human resources, project management, accounting, and IT positions. Most of these positions can be learned hands on verses attending conventional higher learning. In the current labor market, many companies have taken on the philosophy to train people to fill these roles rather than hire from outside of the organization. This allows the company to tailor training to fit what that specific company’s needs are in that role. If you were able to speak with innovators such as Henry Ford or Andrew Carnegie, neither of which attended University, to ask what the key to success is, commitment and determination would be a common theme.

It’s always a good idea to have many resources to rely on when entering the workforce for the first time. A recent study shows that we appear to be approaching a time that the economic benefit of a college degree will dim.

The growth in the wage gap between high school graduates and college graduates has slowed to a halt; 25 percent of college graduates now earn no more than the average high school graduate. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, fewer than 20 percent of American jobs require a bachelor’s degree. Now, I’m not suggesting college isn’t worthwhile; it’s just not a requirement to be successful.

Going to college doesn’t guarantee success. The choice is yours and yours alone. Set your own standards, create your own path, work at a pace that’s beneficial to you, and never give up on yourself or what you believe in.v 33

TCSG: Two Years (or less) To Your Career t wasn’t long ago when we, as a society, began selling the idea that the only way to the middle class was by earning a four-year postsecondary degree. The “fouryear college for everyone” mantra became universal in high schools across America, creating a divide between those who graduate with this credential and those who don’t. We believed that the jobs of the future required workers to have the knowledge that could only be gained in four-year institutions.

Anything less, and you’d be left behind in the 21st century. As it turns out, this way of thinking has gotten Georgia (and all of America) in a bit of a quandary. In fact, most of the jobs today do not require a fouryear degree. On the contrary, 55 percent of the jobs in Georgia require something called “middle skills”—education beyond high school, but not a four-year degree.

The country is experiencing a significant middle-skills gap, meaning there are more job openings than there are workers with the right training to fill these openings.

According to the National Skills Coalition, middle-skill jobs account for 55 percent of the labor market in Georgia, but only 43 percent of the state’s workers are trained to the middle-skill level. The demand for middle-skill jobs will remain strong—51 percent of job openings will be middle-skill over the next five years. This means there is a

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tremendous opportunity for high school students who are considering an alternative to the traditional, four-year college—and that is

under the HOPE Career Grant. This means that a student will have the skills industry desperately needs AND he or she will graduate with

through one of the technical colleges in Georgia.

The 22 colleges and 88 campuses of the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) are guided by one mission—to develop a skilled workforce for the businesses and industries in Georgia.

All of the more than 600 programs offered across the system can be completed in two years or less and at just $89 a credit hour. Additionally, through the HOPE Career Grant, tuition is free for those interested in pursuing one of 17 highdemand career fields where there are more jobs than skilled people to fill them. Some of the career fields include construction, industrial maintenance, precision manufacturing, welding and joining technology, and computer programming.

TCSG’s programs are designed to prepare students for the middleskill jobs that continue to go unfilled in Georgia. And, these are good-paying jobs. According to job market analytics company Burning Glass Technologies, the average salary for a computer programmer is $85,000 a year; an avionics technician makes an average of $60,000 a year; a logistician makes an average of $57,000 a year; and an industrial machinery mechanic makes an average of $48,000 a year. All of these career fields fall

little or no financial debt.

For those students who have their sights on a four-year college, that’s fantastic. We need workers with bachelor degrees, master de-

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grees and beyond. However, the time has come to challenge the notion of a “four-year college for all” and examine the tremendous opportunities available for those students who want to continue their education after high school. A technical education provides an affordable and accessible option for students who want a career and a good salary in a shorter amount of time. It also provides something business and industry need—a skilled workforce.

To learn more, visit TCSG.edu/free-tuition v

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The TCSG Foundation

By Juli Fields | Executive Director | TCSG Foundation

he Technical College System of Georgia Foundation is committed to supporting TCSG students. Through fundraising, marketing and outreach, we seek funds for statewide initiatives that attract, retain, graduate and place student into the workforce.

Many TCSG students face challenges along their postsecondary journey. Ninety three percent of TCSG students qualify for some form of financial assistance and 60 percent are categorized as economically disadvantaged.

For many students, the journey ends when they are unable to pay tuition or fees. Once a student loses momentum, they are less apt to remain on their journey.

These barriers stand in the way to a path of prosperity for students and their families.

George Washington Carver said, “Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.”

Our goal at the TCSG Foundation is to help as many students as possible obtain the keys to freedom by removing barriers. The TCSG Foundation strives to remove financial barriers in two key areas— GED® test fees and gap funding.

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GED® Test Fees For many adults in Georgia, there are financial barriers to taking the GED® test. Many who complete adult education classes to prepare for the test are unable to pay the test fees and remain among the March | April 2019

nearly 1.2 million Georgians who are more likely to be unemployed or under-employed. The TCSG Foundation provides funding for test vouchers for the GED® test which consists of four subtests at $40 each, for a total of $160.

Gap Funding While TCSG has consistently provided quality educational programs, affordability can make the difference in the ability for students to enroll and to graduate.

The TCSG Foundation established The Gretchen K. Corbin Last Mile Fund in 2016 to remove financial barriers preventing students from making progress towards their chosen technical certificate, diploma or degree. The Foundation provides funding to the 22 TCSG colleges which apply those funds to students who are at risk of being unenrolled due to fees owed.

Last year, the TCSG Foundation was able to provide 400 test vouchers for the GED® test and funding for more than 100 TCSG students to remain enrolled in their chosen educational program.

That’s potentially 500 people who have grasped the key and are solidly on their way to unlocking the golden door of freedom.

Ultimately, we aim to see a day when GED® test vouchers are available to anyone who wishes to take the test and gap funding available to anyone at risk of being unenrolled. With continued support from individual donors and corporate partners like AT&T, Atlanta Gas Light, CocoCola Inc., and Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia Inc., we are making great strides towards that day.

As the saying goes, “a rising tide raises all boats.” With support from the TCSG Foundation, the individual now has a path to a fuller life, Georgia has a stronger workforce and the ripple effects go on for generations.

Understanding a bit more about the TCSG Foundation, we hope you’ll want to be a part of our mission. You can make a gift online at www.tcsgfoundation.org or contact Foundation Executive Director Juli Fields at 404-982-3498 to learn more. v 37

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The World of Mining Aggregates

The aggregate industry offers a broad array of both practical and professional job opportunities. Some of the skilled positions located at the quarries include plant managers, foremen, haul truck operators front-end loader operators, drillers, quality control technicians, welders and mechanics. Typically these jobs require a limited amount of formal education and/or training. Pay for these positions can start at $17 per hour or more.

Administrative and staff positions are also an important part of the aggregate industry, providing support and guidance at the district and division level. These professional opportunities include upper management, engineering, sales and marketing, finance and accounting, human resources, safety management, and administrative support staff. These positions require more experience but show you the unlimited career opportunities being offered in this industry.v

The rock is then loaded into haul trucks that carry the rock to the plant for processing.

Explosives create controlled blasts that break the rock from the ground.

From this, benches are created in the pit

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Wiregrass Georgia Technical College

Teaching Work and Life Skills

By Lydia Hubert | Director of Marketing and PR | Wiregrass Georgia Technical College aldosta, Ga. Preparing students for successful future careers is the heart of what Wiregrass Georgia Technical College does. Through the instruction of talented and dedicated faculty, Wiregrass students are graduating with the confidence and the skill set needed to work anywhere life takes them. Students also have the opportunity to add to their resumes by being a member of the college’s SkillsUSA Chapter. SkillsUSA is a student organization at the secondary and post-secondary level that gives students the chance to compete against their peers in various skills based competitions. The competitions range from what they are majoring in like welding and nursing to life skills such as job interviewing and public speaking. Wiregrass had a banner year in 2018 and is gearing up for this year’s competition.

Last year at the state SkillsUSA competition, Wiregrass Tech brought home 15 gold, 11 silver, and 7 bronze place medals. The college medaled in 21 out of 31 contest for those with Wiregrass competitors. Among the gold medal count was the Chapter of Distinction Gold level award. The college was one of two colleges in the state recognized at this level.

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Johnathan Wolfe captured the eyes of many employment prospects when

he won Gold at the National SkillsUSA competition in Auto Collision Repair.

The college’s chapter was also recognized for the Largest Member Growth and Largest Chapter. In July of 2018, the college traveled to Kentucky for the National SkillsUSA competition with the gold medal winners. At Nationals, the college had students earn two Gold medals and the top spot in the nation. Wiregrass Auto Collision Repair student Johnathan Wolfe won a Gold medal in Collision Repair Technology and Radiology students Bridget Curdden, Amber Parton, and Blake Royals won Gold in the Community Service Competition At Nationals, Wiregrass Tech

received the most medals (10) and the most Gold medals (4), among Georgia colleges. The state of Georgia was number two in the nation for medal count, at 82. While at Nationals the Wiregrass Skills Chapter was recognized as a National Model of Excellence Chapter.

The college was one of 24 nationwide to be recognized for the chapter’s community service work for that year. This was the first year Wiregrass’ SkillsUSA Chapter was recognized as a Chapter of Distinction. There are several levels of distinction a chapter can earn and Wiregrass was recognized for three areas. They earned recognition for Georgia Contractor

personal skills where the students worked on a project they called, “Colors for a Cause.” The students collected coloring supplies and then distributed the donations to seven area hospitals. The Workplace Skills level was met with the Tiaras and Ties Project that supported two local Night to Shine Proms through the Tim Tebow Foundation. Students and advisors collected clothing items, provided cosmetology and esthetic services to prom attendees, and had volunteers work each prom as buddies. The third level the Chapter completed was technical skills.

The Chapter worked with a community leadership group to design and implement the City of Adel Daylily Display, a metal artwork project that was installed in the heart of the city of Adel. Each piece of the display was designed, built and installed by Wiregrass students and faculty.

Kelley Wetherington serves as the college’s Campus Life Coordinator and SkillsUSA Advisor. She worked hard recruiting students for the organization and coordinating the service projects that led them to win the gold level Chapter of Distinction award. “I am beyond proud of the students and advisors for their dedication, sacrifice, and hard work that they put in this year.

Not only did the students put in extra time perfecting their skills for competition, but they also put in extra time helping with several community projects while juggling their college and home life.”

Wiregrass’ SkillsUSA Chapter is planning big things again this year. With the addition of new members, they are once again working on community projects like March | April 2019

Wiregrass SkillsUSA member and now graduate, Olivia Gilliland, used her

artistic painting skills learned in her Auto Collision Repair class to paint theses daylilies as part of the City of Adel Daylily Display. The Welding team members welded the metal flowers.

Tiaras and Ties project.jpg) The Wiregrass Tech SkillsUSA Chapter were

thrilled with the response they received in their community project, Tiaras

and Ties. They helped those attended the Night to Shine Proms through the Tim Tebow Foundation find the perfect outfit.

Tiaras and Ties. The team found themselves exceeding last year’s donation of clothing items for the Night to Shine proms recently. The Chapter members are staying after class often so they can perfect their skills as they prepare for the state SkillsUSA competition. Wiregrass Tech is extremely proud of all our

students who put in the extra time to enter into competitions. As Wiregrass prepares students to be the best in their fields, the community service experience the students gain while in college will continue after graduation in their own communities, making a difference for years to come. v 41

Careers in the Landscape & Landscape Construction Industry o you love the outdoors, have a passion for the environment, and yearn for a fulfilling, difference-making vocation? The landscape industry offers a myriad of options for jobs and careers that can make a difference in their lives—and the lives of those around them.

The professional landscape industry is broad. There are many career specialists whose job duties

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Photo Credit: Sharon Dowdy, UGA sential products and equipment to create and maintain landscapes.

There are those who make large landscape construction projects a reality and those who install landPhoto Credit: Gibson Landscape Services play an important role in the health, well-being, and beauty of the landscapes we enjoy. For instance, an agronomist’s work is most closely associated with what they do below ground, with soils and soil science, while an arborist works above ground, specializing in the planting and maintenance of trees.

There are professionals who spend good parts of their days outside or in greenhouses and those who like spending time inside, on the phone, on a computer or in a science lab. There are those who work in the field, including athletic fields, and those who sell and supply es42

Photo Credit: Chris May, Georgia Tech scapes that make a homeowner’s dreams come true. Landscape professionals include entry level employees, executives, and CEOs. Regardless of the specific job duties and responsibilities, all of the men and women associated with creating and caring for the green spaces we enjoy are landscape

professionals—and they are passionate about their careers.

People often seek employment within the industry but don’t know specifically what they want to do or how to get started. That’s okay!

With over 300,000 landscape professionals hired every year, there’s a job with a career advancement path just waiting for committed individuals who are ready to learn and work. Many who begin in entry level jobs find themselves in management positions or owning their own business years later. That’s because working as a landscape professional is professionally, personally, and financially rewarding.v

Find out more about what kinds of jobs are available in the industry at www.landscapeindustry careers.org Georgia Contractor

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Middle-skilled Jobs, the Forgotten Heart of the Workforce

By Marissa Gbenro

iddle-skilled jobs are defined by Harvard Business School as occupations that require more education and training than a high school diploma but less than a four-year college degree. These jobs account for the largest portion of America’s labor market. It’s no surprise the demand for talent such as pipefitters, electricians, plumbers, and carpenters continues to remain strong. Unfortunately, employers consistently struggle to find individuals to fill these positions. According to Harvard Business School, “69 percent of HR executives say their inability to attract and retain middle-skills talent frequently affects their firm’s performance.”

Interestingly enough, many of the technician jobs that go unfilled every day are well

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paying positions that call for the completion of 44

courses that typically last less than Recently, our very own BI anaa year or that have paid appren- lyst, Josh Hammar, discussed the ticeships. For people in these ca- labor shortage and how it has afreers, it means spending less on fected manufacturing firms and education expenses and beginning their strategy for a well paying profession sooner. recruiting and According to the r e Bureau of Labor Statistaintics, the average hourly i n g wage for plumbers, skilled pipefitters, and l a b o r. steamfitters is Without $24.74.

Some skilled may find the workers shortage of middle-skilled workers to fill jobs, curious, considering the income is companies are unable to complete on par with the median household projects on time and positions are income, these careers require less staying vacant longer. This has than a four-year degree, and the caused businesses to begin hiring jobs are in high demand. candidates without ideal skills and A variety of factors have con- At PeopleReady, we make it our mission tributed to the to recruit the best skilled labor for our shortage of labor in the customers. Our goal is to help ease the U n i t e d strain caused by the labor shortage.

States.

Likely the biggest one is hope to train them on the job. aging baby boomers retiring out At PeopleReady, we make it of the workforce in large numbers. our mission to recruit the best Pew Research Center estimates skilled labor for that every day for the next 17 our customers. years, 10,000 baby boomers Our goal is to will reach retirement age. h e l p There isn’t enough of ease the the population entering s t r a i n the workforce to replace the numcaused by the labor ber of baby boomers who have left shortage. v and continue to leave each day.

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From Handshake to Hands-On

By Allen Allnoch

or high school and college students interested in construction careers, CEFGA’s annual CareerExpo is an invaluable resource that offers face-to-face access to industry professionals across a wide array of disciplines.

Jordy Andrade capitalized on that opportunity at the 2018 CareerExpo, landing a summer job with JE Dunn Construction and building relationships that just might translate into a full-time career one day.

“Every year we went to the CEFGA CareerExpo,” says Jordy, who studied construction at the Fulton County College and Career Academy while attending Langston Hughes High School. “I was walking around, looking at different companies and schools, and JE Dunn kind of caught my eye. I went up to talk to a superintendent, Nathan Tucker, and that’s how we got connected.”

Jordy went to work for JE Dunn immediately after graduating from Langston Hughes. He spent the summer on a job site in the Atlanta suburb of Austell, where he began as a general laborer, gained some valuable experience in carpentry, and also shadowed workers in surveying and engineering.

He left JE Dunn to attend Morehouse College, where he’s majoring in business administration and is the starting punter on the Maroon Tigers’ football team, but he plans to return for more summer

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work. His ultimate goal is to be a superintendent or project manager.

“The experience was amazing,” Jordy says of his time with JE Dunn. “From the foreman and the superintendents to my co-workers,

they all taught me a lot. I’m trying to learn every aspect of the business that I can. I really enjoyed myself and I’m looking forward to going back and hopefully continuing my career with them.”

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JE Dunn’s Nathan Tucker praises Jordy’s positive attitude and work ethic, noting those traits can be hard to find in young, inexperienced workers.

Jordy had the benefit of a good role model as a young boy – his father has enjoyed a successful career in construction, mostly in grading and piping construction.

“I’ve seen that since I was a little kid,” Jordy says. “Eventually I thought, ‘I’m kind of interested in that,’ and that’s when I decided to start the career academy program [while in high school].”

Ever the learner, Jordy says he enjoys watching videos on construction topics in his free time, and he frequently picks his father’s brain for insight. He’s already earned the OSHA 10 credential, and he knows how to drive Bobcats and other heavy equipment.

“One thing that attracts me to the construction business is when I think about one day having kids, I can say, ‘Hey look, I was part of the team that built this building,’” Jordy says. “There’s something that clicks – I just feel at home doing this hands-on work. I like to be interactive. I don’t like to be sitting down or staying in one spot and watching other people work.”v March | April 2019

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The World of Sheet Metal

Sheet Metal Workers weld in many industrial settings.

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If you’re looking for Career and not just a job… If you’re looking for competitive pay and benefits…If you’re looking for an exciting job that will take you to new heights… then look no further than the Sheet Metal and Welding Industry!

Georgia Sheet Metal Apprenticeship program offers a 5-year apprenticeship program where students can earn the education and skills to prosper in an exciting trade. While other technical schools train you before you set out in a particular field, Georgia Sheet Metal Apprentices earn while they Learn. The first day of Training starts on the Job earning a paycheck with raises every year. with a blend of on-the-job training as well as classroom and labs, students obtain the knowledge and skills to perform the various duties of a Sheet Metal Worker. The training program specializes in Sheet Metal Ductwork fabrication and in- Sheet Metal Workers Fabricate and stallation, Industrial Install HVAC ductwork Welding and Testing, Adjusting and Balancing. And did I mention that after completing the 5-year program you will have zero in tuition debt! That’s right, the training program is tuition-free.

At this year’s CEFGA/Skills USA expo, the World of Sheet Metal sponsored by the Georgia Sheet Metal Apprenticeship Program will feature a virtual welder, where students can test their welding skills in a videogame-like setting; a fabrication area where students can build a tool tray out of sheet metal; a spin-to-win game; and a testing, adjusting, and balancing game that visually illustrates what air balancing is and how it works. v

For more information about Georgia Sheet Metal Apprenticeship Program, visit www.jatc85.org or call 404-753-6466.

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Workplace Expectations in the Classroom

By Chad Pruitt | Assistant Principal | Griffin Regional College & Career Academy

real world is fast and honest. Once again, superintendents and managers plan specific activities for each day and when an employee misses work his/her supervisor must go back and reschedule events or even worse put extra duties on his/her coworkers to complete the day’s activities… and no one likes that! So, have you ever wondered why your instructor

We need people that can show up to work every day, on time and ready to go to work!” This is a common phrase I have heard after a decade of Advisory Committee meetings. At these meetings Business and Industry partners collaborate with Career & Technical Education program teachers to help guide them as they design and implement an educational program that aligns to the demand of the respective industry. So, let’s explore where some of your classroom rules and procedures have originated…

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Tardiness “If you are on time, you are late.”

This is the creed for punctuality in any trade related position. Employers count on their people to be early as all meetings will start on time and stay on task to keep the project on time and on budget. Superintendents and managers are

“If you are on time, you are quick to address anyone that comes in late, disrupts an active meeting and misses vital information important for the day’s activities. So, have you ever wondered why your instructor gives you such a hard time for being late? Just like positions in trade related companies, the first thing your teachers 54

“If you don’t come in tomorrow, don’t bother coming in on Monday.”

will do each day is begin to deliver his/her lesson as soon as the bell rings for class. By missing this information, you miss the Learning Targets and Oblate.” jectives that your teacher has prepared for the day.

Therefore, missing out on the introduction of the lesson and requiring your instructor to reiterate what has already been iterated!

Absenteeism “If you don't come in tomorrow don't bother coming in on Monday.” It may sound tough, but the

gives you such a hard time for being absent? Teachers spend hours upon hours planning lessons and activities to insure students master specific Standards to make sure their students are prepared for class each day. Although teachers work with students to redeliver instruction that has been missed, many students never follow-up with their teachers and end up with below average accomplishments on activities that could have been mastered if the student had been in class and worked on it with their peers—who may have had to pick up the slack. Therefore, missed days at work or in class not only harms the student that missed but also his/her supervisor and peers.

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are a number of issues with using your cell phone during instruction.

First, if you are in the lab it is very unsafe to use your cell phone because your attention goes from your surrounding where dangerous tools are being used to which ever app you may be looking at. Second, if you are focused on your

“If you are focused on your phone, you are not focused on your teacher who is there to teach you.”

Getting Off Task - Cell Phone Usage and other Disruptions “You can do that on your own time.” The real world can be tough... if you let it! Superintendents and mangers are obligated a pay a fair wage for your time. So, in

“You can do that on your own time.” return they expect that you are fair to them by working during the time they are compensating you for and not getting off task. If your employer pays you for 8 hours of work for a day, they expect that work to be completed, not 6 hours of work and one hour on your cell phone and another at the water tank. So, have you ever wondered why your instructor gives you such a hard time for being off task such as being on your cell phone? There March | April 2019

phone you are not focused on your teacher, who is there to teach you.

Lastly, there are other disruptions such as horseplay and other activities that can not only cause safety concerns, but can cause a decrease in production which can ultimately delay the project and decrease the moral of the people that work on it.

So, have wondered why your instructor gives you such a hard time for…

While tardiness, absenteeism and

“The next time you think your teacher is giving you a hard time…in reality he/she wants to see you be successful.” off task activities are often allowed far more often in public education, the private sector rarely allows con-

secutive events of these without immediate long-lasting consequences—such as being fired. Your teacher is not really trying to give you a hard time, they are just trying to implement expectations from the workplace into the classroom to ensure that students do not leave their Career & Technical Education program with a false understanding of what will be expected of them at their first job and each one after that. The next time you think your teacher is giving you a hard time… in reality he/she wants to see you be successful. If your teacher has his/her way you will hear “Great job, you’ve earned this promotion!” instead of hearing phrases like “If you are on time, you are late,” or “If you don't come in tomorrow don't bother coming in on Monday,” or “You can do that on your own time.” The next time you think your teacher is giving you a hard time, you may want to reconsider.

He/she is more than likely looking out for your best interest and your life long success. v About the Author Chad Pruitt has served the Career & Technical Education community as a Construction Teacher in the Griffin-Spalding County School District, Program Manager for the Trade & Industrial Programs at the Georgia Department of Education and currently serves as Assistant Principal at the Griffin Regional College & Career Academy as well as the Career, Technical & Agriculture Education Coordinator for the Griffin-Spalding County School District.

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Finding Your Path to a Career in Construction ooking for a job in construction and unsure where to start? A career in the construction industry can vary and can take different paths for different people. All education and experience levels are found in the construction industry, including the entry-level route, the skilled labor route, and the professional route.

You might be surprised to know how experience requirements and salaries can differ by position.

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Carpenter: Carpenters work as hands-on members of the onsite project team and assist in daily project activities. On average, carpenters in Georgia make an average salary of $52,000 a year. Carpenter roles do not require a college degree.

Project Engineer: As an entry-level position, project engineers are responsible for assisting project personnel in the planning, directing, and coordinating of on-site project activities. Project engineers earn an average annual salary of $63,000 in the state of Georgia.

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Project Manager: This position requires a bachelor’s degree in construction management or a related field. Project managers are responsible for the planning, procurement, and execution of a project, and can earn an average annual salary of $93,500.

Superintendent: Superintendents are responsible for project supervision and overall on-site administrative and technical management on a construction jobsite. Superintendents make an average annual salary of upwards of $100,000. Superintendent roles do not require a college degree.

Welding: A skilled welding engineer can make an average salary of $ 91,500.

Becoming a welding professional does not require a college degree, however; does require a high school diploma and training from a welding school.

Ready to take the next step?

At New South Construction, we provide the opportunity to gain valuable insight into the construction industry, explore career avenues, and acquire lifelong industry and trade skills. Whether you are a high school senior looking for summer employment, or a college student seeking an internship, there is no limit as to how far our opportunities can take you.

Additionally, New South offers a scholarship program through the New South Foundation. The scholarship program is geared toward incoming college freshmen and rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors, that have a family member currently working in the construction industry. Applications are accepted through March 31, 2019.

For more information on scholarships, please e-mail kdingler@ newsouthconstruction.com

For more information on internships and career opportunities, please e-mail ethomas@ newsouthconstruction.com

or visit

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SkillsUSA - Building Tomorrow’s Technicians - TEFGA

By Will Boyter | Territory Manager | Hunter Engineering Company | Atlanta Region

killsUSA is a partnership of students, teachers, and industry working together to ensure that America has a skilled workforce. SkillsUSA helps each student excel and provides educational programs, events, and competitions that support career and technical education (CTE) in the nation’s classrooms. Hunter Engineering Company is proud to partner with SkillsUSA as well as local secondary and post-secondary auto-shop labs to help ensure that today’s students are exposed to the same type of equipment that they are most likely to see in the industry. Our involvement with SkillsUSA GA each March is one of the biggest highlights of the year for the Hunter team in Georgia. We are honored to work with other industry partners to help showcase the finest talent in the state in their respective fields of transportation.

Hunter is the exclusive supplier of wheel alignment systems used for testing during SkillsUSA National competitions and WorldSkills competitions. This is a direct reflection of what potential technicians are going to see in the Automotive and Diesel truck shops. Hunter products are industry standard and are used to gauge the most skilled young technicians in high school and colleges across the country and world.

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Hunter’s TCR1 Revolution Automated tire changer in a local

dealership service center

Hunter’s Road Force Elite balancer and TCA34S tire changer in a local independent repair facility.

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Hunter’s Hawkeye Elite aligners and flush mount scissor racks in a local dealership service department Hunter Engineering Company was founded in 1946 by Lee Hunter. From our humble beginnings where we brought the revolutionary Tune-In wheel balancer followed by the Lite-A-Line wheel alignment system, Hunter has continued to produce state-of-the-art wheel, brake, and inspection equipment. With over 350 patented inventions from the award- winning team of more than 75 engineers, Hunter has the largest wheel service product development staff in the world. Paired with 800+ dedicated sales and service staff in the US alone, Hunter offers the most comprehensive support staff in the wheel service industry. Hunter products are supported and approved by all major OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) and even have multiple OEMs naming Hunter products ‘essential tools.’

Hunter products are proudly “Made-In-The-USA” with multiple manufacturing facilities in Missouri and Mississippi that employ over 800 workers themselves. Hunter has received multiple manufacturing awards of excellence and continues to develop state-of-the-art machines to build our state-ofMarch | April 2019

the-art wheel and brake service equipment.

Exclusive products such as Hunter’s GSP9700 Road Force* diagnostic wheel balancer and the industry standard Hawkeye Elite imaging wheel aligner help the industry solve the most difficult vibration concerns and maximize productivity and efficiency in the

alignment bay. Just in 2018 alone, Nissan/ Infiniti has named both the Road Force* Elite diagnostic wheel balancer and the Hawkeye Elite Imaging wheel aligner “exclusive essential tools” for dealer warranty pay. Furthermore, Hunter’s ACE Autocomp Elite On-the-Car brake lathe is approved for warranty use by all OEMs. Our team of engineers works closely with various vehicle manufacturers to create unique software and hardware components for their specific uses.

Lee Hunter’s grandson and current President (Beau Brauer) has the same innovative vision as Lee Hunter did. As a company, we recognize the continuing changes in automobiles and their ever expanding service needs. We will continue to develop solutions for the industry and help our educational institutions stay informed on what is needed to instruct their future technicians in training. v

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Automobile Technicians Can Have an Impressive Career Path

By Michael Batchelor

he transportation industry is a wide-open industry that is changing by the minute. The problem is our society has the mindset that a transportation repair technician is a job for a strong back and weak mind. This could not be farther from the truth. ASE-certified technicians can expect to earn wages that compare to those requiring a master’s degree with as little as an associate’s degree. The National Automotive Dealer Association just published that a dealership entry level technician with as little as 5 years of experience can expect to earn $55-65,000 and a Master manufacture technician can earn over $100,000 a year.

Educating tomorrow’s technician starts as early as freshman year in high school.

ASE Education Foundation is designed to streamline and better leverage the transportation industry’s efforts to recruit, train, hire, and retain a strong, viable workforce.

The ASE Education Foundation Student Career Development program offers career-minded students a chance to work with employers to obtain real-world experience under the watchful supervision of trained mentors. This school-to-career process includes

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rigorous academics, employability training, in-service work, and mentoring experience. Employers who participate in this program mold their future techs from their junior year of high school through high school graduation, and on into a post-secondary program or right to work. Some 25,000 students have

participated in mentorships at thousands of service and repair locations.

In addition to program accreditation and student internships, the ASE Education Foundation also supports the ASE Entry-Level Certification tests, which are like the professional-level ASE certification tests and are developed using the

same techniques. Designed specifically for individuals nearing the end of formal automotive studies, ASE Entry-Level Certification offers industry-recognized credentials to jump-start careers. Some 50,000 graduating students have earned this ‘first’ certification.

Entry-Level Certification encourages and recognizes professionalism, which benefits young techs and employers alike. It is an indicator of commitment and potential interest and success in our field. Entry level technicians can earn industry-recognized certifications in Automotive, Diesel, and Auto Refinish.

Instructor Support Instructor development and support are key to the Foundation’s mission. Outreach focused on recruiting new instructors and assisting with teaching development help keep career and technical education programs open and strong. The annual ASE Instructors Training Conference offers both technical update training and classroom techniques. Employers can support their local instructors with vehicle donations, job shadowing opportunities, and participating in local career days. v Georgia Contractor

Shift Your Career into High Gear with IEC

By Todd Hawkins | IEC | Associate Executive Director

he number of women working in the electrical trade has risen significantly. The number of female apprentices that attend the IEC Electrical Apprenticeship Program currently stands at nine. This is a great increase over past years.

Several reasons appear likely according to Pace Bartling with Titan Electric of Georgia. Many company owners have worked with women throughout their careers and know that they are just as capable and hard working as men. Attitudes are changing and companies appear open to hiring people from diverse backgrounds in order to overcome the shortage of skilled workers. Ms. Bartling states that companies are looking for people with great attitudes and the ability to work as part of a team. She adds that electrical construction provides a great career with exceptional wages and benefits.

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Women on the Road to Success Rosemarie Bautista with Putzel Electric attends the Professional Electrician Program (PEP). She has over 11 years of experience. Her first job was building a Toyota dealership in Duluth, Georgia. As a new employee, she installed conduit and lighting devices in the building. Rosemarie believes she has always had a natural talent for electrical work, and in July 2019, March | April 2019

Current IEC Apprentices – On the Road to Successful Careers (l to r): Rosemarie Bautista – Putzel Electric – PEP 2 Rhylea Morgan – MetroPower – 1st Year Dominique Luckey – Titan Electric of Georgia – 1st Year Raven Dillard - Titan Electric of Georgia – 1st Year Joaquina Jaynes - Titan Electric of Georgia – 2nd Year Not shown here: Naomi Pittman – Ritch Electric – 1st Year she is ready to graduate with the title of Electrician in all 50 states.

After graduation Rosemarie plans to continue the career path by moving into electrical sales and estimating.

Advice for Others: The trades are not for everyone—be diligent, ready to take on all tasks. The best thing about being an electrician is you do not have to wear makeup or decide what to wear each day.

The Independent Electrical Contractors Atlanta and Georgia Chapters stand ready to help you obtain a great career that provides exciting work and great opportunities. We encourage you to make your career choice early and work diligently to obtain your goals. Contact IEC for your career opportunities (770) 242-9277 or IECAtlantaga.org 61

Rhylea Morgan with MetroPower is just starting her career in the electrical field. She is following in her father’s footsteps who works with MetroPower as well. Like many dads he encouraged Rhylea to be like him and join the electrical trade. Rhylea worked with her dad on residential projects when she was younger by stapling romex wire to wood studs. Rhylea plans to continue her education and one day work as a project manager.

Advice for Others: Work hard to be a good student, join the electrical trade and make good money.

Dominique Luckey with Titan Electric of Georgia has 4 months of experience and loves to learn as much as possible about her job as an electrical apprentice. She especially enjoys seeing different parts of the city since she just moved to Georgia a few months ago. Dominique was tired of low paying and boring jobs. She found the IEC Apprenticeship Program through a program designed to move people to better paying careers. Today, Dominique enjoys using all types of power tools on the job.

Advice for Others: Choose what you want to do and go for it; do not get discouraged because persistence always wins.

regular basis. She plans to move into project management and may own her on electrical business someday.

Advice for Others: The electrical trade is a good place for women. Connect with the IEC and find your contractor today.

Joaquina Jaynes with Titan Electric of Georgia has a little over 1 year of experience working for an electrical contractor. Previously, she worked in the accounting department of a construction company. She realized, like many others, that an inside job was not for her so she decided to work with her hands in the field. Joaquina plans to work in electrical safety.

Advice for Others: Encourages women to get involved in the

electrical trade because of the great opportunities.

Naomi Pittman with Ritch Electric has 3 months of experience working for an electrical contractor.

Currently attending the 1st year of Electrical Apprenticeship, Naomi worked at a facility that had electricians on the site regularly. She watched the electricians work and became intrigued with what they did for a living. Realizing that she wanted and needed a career that she enjoyed led her to Ritch Electric where she is now working her way to a successful career in electrical construction. Future goals include recruiting more women to join the industry.

Advice for Others: Join this exciting field. v

Raven Dillard with Titan Electric of Georgia has 6 months of experience in the electrical trade. She responded to an online ad and found her career. Her dad was a carpenter so she experienced firsthand how working in the trades helps a person provide for themselves or a family. Raven enjoys working with her hands and being outside on a 62

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