Billerica, MA – Close to 100 people, including Associated Builders and Contractors of Massachusetts (ABC MA) and Gould Construction Institute (GCI) board members, Division of Apprenticeship Standards (DAS) staff, GCI teachers and students, and industry partners attended the ribbon cutting for Gould’s new training facility on Nov. 16.
Julie DeStefano cut the ribbon for the new training facility.
The event included a video message from Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, who congratulated GCI and talked about the important role the new facility would play in training the workforce needed to meet demand in the Massachusetts construction industry. DAS Deputy Director Margie Gilligan spoke about her department’s initiatives and how they expanded National Apprenticeship Week by declaring November National Apprenticeship Month in Massachusetts. Members of her team are focusing on visiting and participating in as much apprenticeship activity as possible in November.
The ribbon cutting coincided with GCI’s annual Craft Championships. Dan Wilson of DECCO won the pipefitting competition, followed by Bradley Morse, also of DECCO, and David Rollend of Notch Mechanical Constructors. Christian Robson of Premier Power was the electrical winner, with Ronilson Rosario and Justin Giglio, both of Electrical Dynamics, placing second and third, respectively. Wilson and Robson will go on to compete in the national competition at ABC’s National Convention, to be held Feb. 25-27 in Las Vegas.
Gov. Maura Healey gave a video message at the ribbon cutting.
“This new facility gives us the opportunity to provide our students with state-of-the-art, hands-on training with virtual simulators and help alleviate the long-term labor shortage confronting the construction industry,” said GCI president, Julie DeStefano.
The facility will also allow GCI to offer workforce programs to attract talent to the trades through programming such as exploratory trade/apprenticeship programs, middle school summer camps and career fairs. It can also host the pre-apprenticeship programs conducted by ABC MA and GCI’s 501(c)3 partner Building Mass Careers.
Pipefitting third-place finisher David Rollend, second place finisher Bradley Morse, winner Dan Wilson, GCI Education Director Diane Craven, electrical winner Christian Robson, second place finisher Ronilson Rosario, and Justin Giglio, who placed third
Among those celebrating the ribbon cutting were staff from Windover Construction, the general contractor for the project of transforming the space into a GCI training facility. “For 12 weeks, our small group met every Wednesday to review and go over the project timeline for the facility and we all became close and enjoyed working with each other,” DeStefano said. “They were an extension of our team for the buildout.”
