DORCHESTER, MA – Pipefitters Local 537 broke ground on a new, 70,000 square foot, state-of-the-art training facility on the same site where they have trained thousands of tradesmen and tradeswomen for over 50 years.
Business Manager Brian Kelly said, “We chose to stay in Boston because this is home and this is where our members live and work. We are privileged to enjoy positive relationships here: with our elected leaders, with our neighbors, with community organizations like the McCormack Civic Association and the Dorchester Historical Society. We’ve been training Pipefitters and HVAC Technicians at this location for over 50 years and you don’t just walk away from a place that has given you so much.”
The expanded facility will triple the existing training space, although there are no plans to increase the number of apprentices beyond the nearly 500 they have now. Instead, Kelly explained, “this modernized space will allow our apprentices to learn and practice the trade to the highest standard. We train our members to become the highest-skilled tradesmen and tradeswomen in the entire world.”
Mayor Martin J. Walsh served as keynote speaker. “This training facility will provide opportunities for apprentices who, if they are willing to work hard and learn the craft, can create a lifelong career and earn a living,” said Mayor Walsh. “Boston is about expanding opportunity for everyone and the work of Pipefitters Local 537 has contributed greatly to that mission.”
The 2,800+ members of Pipefitters Local 537 install piping systems that carry hot water, steam, air, or other liquids or gases needed for industrial production or other uses. They install both high and low pressure systems in industrial and commercial facilities. Pipefitters Local 537 is now over 100 years old, with a rich history in the city of Boston. Among the current leaders of Local 537 are members whose connection to the local goes back generations.
The union is honored to have the support of many elected representatives and their neighbors. They support this project because Local 537 prepares men and women who live in our city to work here, and to do so in a profession that pays a real living wage upon which they can raise their families.
The new and improved Pipefitters Local 537 Training Facility is expected to open in time for the start of the 2018-19 school year next September. Local 537 officials acknowledge that the timeline is ambitious. However, they credit the world-class project team, including Spagnolo Gisness & Associates, Inc. and the Moriarty/Janey Joint Venture, with their ability to get the job done.
