Chris McLean named New Zealand’s top apprentice

MEDIA RELEASE

30 May 2017

Chris McLean named New Zealand’s top apprentice

Fifteen regional apprentices gathered in Auckland for the NZCB Apprentice Challenge Final on Friday 26 May, where Otago’s Chris McLean claimed the top honour.

Alongside finalists from across the country, the 27 year-old was judged on his dedication to his apprenticeship, examples of his work and a five minute presentation to NZCB members at their annual conference. Second place was awarded to Luke Dickinson, 20, from Tauranga and third to Alexander Cholewa, 26, from Wellington.

Chris heads home with over $3,000 worth of prizes including trade quality tools and an Outward Bound Scholarship.

The NZCB Apprentice Challenge Final took place at the 19th NZCB Annual Conference at the ANZ Viaduct Events Centre in Auckland, following a series of regional challenges where apprentices from 14 locations built a challenging outdoor table and bench seating.

In the 10th year of the NZCB Apprentice Challenges, NZCB Chief Executive Grant Florence says he is impressed by the skill base and attitude of the apprentices.

“Perseverance and passion are vital skills for any apprentice, and it’s great to see this in the competitors in the NZCB Apprentice Challenges over the last 10 years,” says Grant.

“NZCB is the only building trade association that requires formal trade-qualification as a prerequisite for membership. In this context, fostering more quality apprentices and guiding them through the early stages of their careers is hugely important. In the New Zealand context, this is vital given current and projected skills shortages in the industry and associated build quality issues.”

The NZCB Apprentice Challenge is run by NZCB in association with the Industry Training Association Building (ITAB) and industry training providers across New Zealand.

During the NZCB Annual Conference, all 15 apprentices also had the opportunity to compete in the annual Great Apprentice Race – a fun building-related challenge that involved designing, building and racing a soap box trolley, around an obstacle circuit by the ANZ Viaduct Events Centre. Tools and supplies were generously provided by Mitre 10 for the challenge, which helped the apprentices with everything they needed to compete.

Damian Thompson from Northland impressed judges and delegates alike, and the 23-year-old returns home as the race winner of the Great Apprentice Race.

Another regular feature of the NZCB conference is a charity auction for their Apprenticeship Scholarship Trust, which this year raised over $15,000. The Trust supports apprentices in times of personal hardship that would otherwise prevent them from completing their training.

ENDS

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