Local Lodge 271

NATHALIE DELISLE, A member of Local 271 (Montreal, Quebec), raised the bar for women Boilermakers this summer by becoming the first female in North America to compete in a national Boilermaker apprentice competition.

L-146 pair captures first team event, first female Boilermaker competes

TWO MEMBERS OF Local 146 (Edmonton, Alberta) shared the first-ever team honors in the Canadian Boilermaker Apprenticeship Competition held at the New Brunswick Community College in Moncton June 24-28. Neil Bennett and Clayton Chiurka placed first in a field of seven teams from across the nation. The duo also won individual honors as top Boilermaker graduate apprentices — Bennett for 2011, Chiurka for 2012.

BOILERMAKER LEADERS IN the Canadian construction industry met Jan. 24-25 in Toronto to address various project and manpower issues. International Vice Presidents Joe Maloney and Ed Power led discussions about filling job orders with qualified Boilermakers, recruitment initiatives, and the status of the national online dispatch system. General (ret.) Rick Hillier also addressed the group, explaining how organizational and leadership lessons from the military relate to the construction industry.

THE CANADIAN BOILERMAKER apprentice competition tests journeyman tradecraft. The contest begins with a six-hour written exam that includes about 300 multiple-choice questions drawn from the apprentice training curriculum, the Boilermaker Constitution, and local lodge bylaws. Curriculum-related content includes such topics as cutting and welding; hand and power tools; construction materials; metallurgy; blueprint reading; layout and fitting; math; rigging; and boilers, heat exchangers, furnaces, and tanks.

Brooks receives Industry Award of Excellence

ERIC HACHE, a Local 146 (Edmonton, Alberta) graduate apprentice, took top honors in the 2010 Canadian Boilermaker Apprenticeship Competition held at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) in Edmonton June 21-24. The announcement came during the awards banquet at the Fairmont Hotel Macdonald.

Event marks 15th year

DAVID PINAULT, 22, a Local 146 graduate apprentice, won the 2008 Canadian Boilermaker Apprenticeship Competition held at Red River College in Winnipeg, Manitoba, June 22-26. This year marked the 15th anniversary of the event.