The International Masonry Institute (IMI) of Wisconsin culminated their Apprenticeship Program with thirteen Apprentice Competitions held across the state. To support the effort, County Materials donated five pallets of concrete masonry units to the Kenosha and Milwaukee programs' competitions held at the New Berlin Training Center held on March 10th and 17th, 2017.
The Apprentice Competitions are designed to challenge the young masons who completed either the under 2,000 or over 2,000-hour Apprentice Course. Apprentices in the same course are pitted against each other to build the best wall. Each participant is given blueprints and is tasked with planning the build and laying the block and brick in a specified amount of time. Journeyman masons worked to judge each apprentice for the levelness, neatness, and quality of their wall.
IMI Coordinator and Trainer Don Borchert praised County Materials for their continued support of the industry, “County Materials has always been a part of our competition at some level, and is very involved with new apprentices. I am grateful for their effort in developing a new generation of masons.”
Elliot Knoke and Bran Wardall from the Kenosha program and Nick Haehle and James Fox from the Milwaukee program won at the March 10th and 17th regional competitions and will move on to the state competition hosted by CR Myers on May 20th, 2017.
