About 20 percent of SMACNA’s membership work in the architectural sheet metal sector. However, that number increases annually with the demand for more exterior and interior architectural metal construction projects.

National Apprenticeship Week starts today until Friday, Nov. 17. 

Whether you're a sheet metal apprentice, an HVAC contractor recruiting or a building owner, it's important to know how to explain the basic principles and technologies behind how HVAC systems work.

The Malco Products, SBC, Trade-Pro of the Year Award celebrates outstanding HVAC professionals whose collective experience, achievements, on-the-job safety records and local involvement have made a difference in their communities. 

BILL BRADFORD IS A VETERAN OF THE SHEET METAL INDUSTRY IN MORE WAYS THAN MOST. Born and raised in North Side Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, during the city’s “Steel City” renaissance, Bradford graduated from high school June 1955 and immediately joined the Air Force that July. “I was 17 so my parents had to sign documents to get me in,” he remembers.

I HAVE ALWAYS LOVED NEW TECHNOLOGY. And as a kid, I was an early adapter. My first computer was a DOS 286-based PC, and to cure my boredom, I quickly learned how to boot up basic programs from a 5.25 floppy on that machine.

Calling upon skills taught at the Sheetmetal Ductwork Fabrication School in Burkeville, Virginia, students Tony (left), Nick (right) planned, fabricated, assembled and installed transitions and plenums to achieve a supply and return unit replacement.

After suffering a stroke, John Sciara knew his body could no longer support the demands of sheet metal work. A veteran, union sheet metal worker, Sciara, 53, graduated from apprenticeship in 1992 and has steadily worked for 27 years.

Rosendin Electric sponsored Austin’s first Construction Camp For Girls. The week-long camp gave 13 girls heading into 7th, 8th and 9th grades opportunities for hands-on learning and new experiences in the construction trades.

Dallas Fort Worth International (DFW) Airport has partnered with Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD) to introduce a new apprenticeship program designed to promote internal growth and sustainability of a skilled workforce in the construction and maintenance industry.