More than 325 Canadian and American sheet metal apprentices and other sheet metal professionals will convene in Las Vegas, NV, March 6-10, for the Annual International Sheet Metal Competition.

James Shoulders, executive administrator for ITI, says Las Vegas, as home to a state-of-the-art apprenticeship training center, is an appropriate choice to host the event.

Last year's event marked a number of firsts, with apprentices competing in high numbers due to bypassing the regional competitions held in previous years. This year, the competition introduces another first – the introduction of the detailing category, which is open to apprentices and journeymen.

This is the first year journeymen are allowed to compete in the annual competition, in the detailer category, with a new truck as first prize.

"Offering a prize like this turns up the level of excitement and encourages detailers to get certified, so they can register," Shoulders said.

"This category is going to be the highlight of this year's competition – everyone in the industry is going to want to know who won."

In addition to detailing contests, competitors will compete in five sheet metal disciplines, including HVAC, industrial/welding, service, architectural and HVAC testing, adjusting, and balancing (TAB). Each competition includes a written test, sketching projects, a shop project and a blueprint reading test. sheetmetal-iti.org