May 3, 2018

The National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA) recently hosted the Construction Education Foundation of Georgia’s (CEFGA) Career Expo and SkillsUSA competition at the Georgia International Convention Center.

Local NTCA Five Star Contractors Rod Owen of C.C. Owen Tile and Woody Sanders of DW Sanders Tile & Stone gathered area companies to support the effort by donating material, time or both. These included the Ceramic Tile Education Foundation (CTEF), Specialty Tile Products, Inc., John Roberts Design LLC, Custom Building Products, Inc., LATICRETE International, Schluter Systems, Barwalt Tools, Steve Young (Steve Young & Associates), Interceramic, A Tile Experience and the National Tile Contractors Association (NTCA).

Nearly 7,000 enthusiastic students registered to participate in this year’s CEFGA career expo. In past years, students were able to make their own mosaic art pieces from tile. For the most recent edition, the focus was on showcasing the tile installation process.

DW Sanders Tile & Stone employees Jamie Desarno, Ben Garland and Omar Trujillo worked with students, meticulously installing tile on three benches that will be showcased at Coverings 2018. On the first day, they demonstrated how best to cut and set tile. The second day, they explained and demonstrated the most up-to- date grouting processes.

New this year at the Career Expo, students were able to register and interview with potential employers. Owen and Sanders met with many faculty members to discuss potential tile setter training in school construction programs; they met with many students interested in getting into the tile industry after graduation. Ten of 12 students registered for the SkillsUSA tile competition completed the challenge. Due to the ease of finishing the test module last year, this most recent test was changed to a larger size that incorporated heftier challenges such as applying sealant to all joints.

The skill level of the competitors ranged from no experience to working as a helper on tile projects to competing in tile at SkillsUSA last year. While all didn’t finish, each of them was graded on what they had completed. Winners were determined by the scores of hands-on work combined with their answers to a quiz on tile installation.

Winning recipients included First Place Winner Martin Sanchez from Griffin High School, Second Place Winner Christian Mendoza from Kennesaw Mountain High School and Third Place Winner Nathaniel Selby from Shaw High School.

Since many people have inquired about starting a SkillsUSA competition in their respective states, winning test modules and benches are planned to be displayed at Coverings 2018, depending on available show space and how well the completed modules travel.

“There’s something to be said about industry solidarity,” said Bart Bettiga, executive director of the NTCA. “And we certainly experienced it all here. Clearly, skilled young people are realizing that there is a lot more to tile installation than just bringing a bucket and trowel to the jobsite and putting tiles in place. This was a worthwhile, highly beneficial experience for all involved!”