North America’s top plumbing and pipe-fitting apprentices were put to the test during the 2014 United Association International Apprenticeship Competition, which was held late August in conjunction with the Instructor Training Program at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor, Mich.
The annual competition, sponsored by the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada, featured 32 contestants from North America and Australia. The apprentices represented five piping disciplines: plumbing, pipe fitting, sprinkler fitting, welding and mechanical service.
The Copper Development Association designed and judged the copper component of the competition. The five winners of this year’s “Best Copper Projects” are:
• Plumber: Jonathan Lipary, Local Union 13, Rochester, N.Y.
• Pipe fitter: Dustin Kinzel, Local Union 32, Seattle
• Sprinkler fitter: Joseph Method, Local Union 483, San Francisco
• Mechanical service: Andrey Dubovvy, Local Union 777, Meriden, Conn.
• Welder: Ken Gough, Local Union 527, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Annual UA competition awards apprentices skilled in copper
Apprentices from North America and Australia competed in the 2014 United Association International Apprenticeship Competition. Part of the competition involved copper projects. Photo credit: Copper Development Association
Copper competition winners at the UA Apprenticeship Contest are (left to right): Harold Moret, CDA project manager; Andrey Dubovvy, service technician; Jonathan Lipary, plumber; Dustin Kenzel, pipefitter; Joseph Method, sprinklerfitter; Ken Gough, welder; and Larry Peters, CDA project manager. Photo credit: Copper Development Association
