PHCC revamps national HVAC contest, crowns winners

PHCC’s Educational Foundation in late February held its newly launched National HVAC Apprenticeship Competition — with notable changes from similar, past events. 

What’s happening: Nine HVAC apprentices from six states faced off, tasked with installing a complete split system heat pump, involving piping, wiring, and vacuum charging precisely to the manufacturer’s specifications, mimicking a real-world factory start-up. The contest took place in South Dakota. 

• Its format — piloted by local contractors Dan Hartman of Wolff’s Plumbing and Heating and Brett Kaltvedt of Midwestern Mechanical — was designed to better reflect real-world troubleshooting and technical agility. (Previous events included separate technical stations.)

The big picture: Organizers say the improved format better positions the contest as a top pipeline for the industry’s most skilled labor, and can be replicated and scaled across states. 

What they’re saying: “Putting this competition together was no small feat, but we’re thrilled to have created such a strong blueprint for national HVAC competitions,” Hartman said in a statement. “This type of state-to-state, healthy competition serves as motivation for technicians to sharpen their craft and raise the benchmark of the HVAC industry.”

Give ‘em a hand: This year’s winners included:

• 🥇 First Place — Cole Kelley, Pipefitters Local 537 Boston, Boston, Massachusetts
• 🥈 Second Place — Jantzen Fisher, Midwestern Mechanical, Rapid City, South Dakota
• 🥉 Third Place — Will Lauseng, Waterbury Heating & Cooling, Sioux Falls, South Dakota