Union Carpenters Build State-of-the-Art Training Facility

Edison, NJ, June 13, 2017 (Newswire.com) - ​​The Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters (NRCC) is building a state-of-the-art apprentice training facility next to its headquarters in Edison, New Jersey.

The 100,000-square-foot, two-story complex will serve as the educational training center for approximately 1,200 carpenter apprentices in New Jersey.

"Many young people today are turning to the trades as a career, including some who have attended college. Becoming a union carpenter offers a specific job skill that lends itself to job security. When apprentices enter our training program, we want them to envision themselves as a highly skilled and dedicated craftworker in a career that promises a future of gainful employment. This new facility will be the center of their educational experience, and we want to ensure that it meets all their training and instructional needs."

John Ballantyne, Executive Secretary-Treasurer, Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters

While the facility will have vast open space for multiple hands-on training models, it will also include classroom space with the latest audio visual technology to support new additions to the training curriculum such as the latest blueprint technology used by the architects and engineers also known as BIM or Building Information Modeling.

Other features will include an overhead bridge crane for the concrete, pile driving and millwright program.

It will also have a fully equipped cabinet shop to support the carpenters' mill-cabinet program.

There will be a 300-seat auditorium with theater seating with all the amenities for holding meetings and conferences, professional presentations, orientations and graduations.

Adjoining the training facility is a five-level parking garage for 325 cars. Construction began in January, and the expected completion is December. The NRCC is building the new facility in Edison because of its central location as they consolidate all of their New Jersey training facilities into one.

"We are looking at the future of our industry, and this new training center will ensure that our union carpenters will have a modern facility where they can learn and sharpen their skills," says Ridgeley Hutchinson, Executive Director, Northeast Carpenters Apprentice Training and Educational Fund (www.njctf.org). "The new generation of apprentice carpenters will be exposed to modern materials, building requirements and technological advances in the industry, and we want to ensure that we have the facility to provide the training to meet these challenges."

The NRCC (www.northeastcarpenters.org) represents more than 40,000 union carpenters in New Jersey, New York (except the five boroughs of New York City), Delaware, Greater Philadelphia and parts of Maryland.

Union carpenters complete a five-year apprenticeship that includes classroom instruction and on-the-job training. They can earn upward of two years of college credit for their course. Those accepted into the apprenticeship program do not pay for their education, and they earn a salary as they learn. The training center also offers refresher courses to journeyworkers, men and women who have passed the five-year apprenticeship phase. They will use the facility to upgrade their skills and learn about new advances in the construction industry.

"Many young people today are turning to the trades as a career, including some who have attended college," says John Ballantyne, Executive Secretary-Treasurer of the NRCC. "Becoming a union carpenter offers a specific job skill that lends itself to job security. When apprentices enter our training program, we want them to envision themselves as a highly skilled and dedicated craftworker in a career that promises a future of gainful employment. This new facility will be the center of their educational experience, and we want to ensure that it meets all their training and instructional needs."

The general contractor for the project is Fitzpatrick & Associates and the construction manager is Epic Construction.

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Source: The Carpenter Contractor Trust