WASHINGTON, DC — Nearly 2,000 middle and high school students from Washington, DC, Maryland, Virginia, and Delaware recently attended the Associated Builders and Contractors’ (ABC) Careers in Construction Expo at the National Building Museum. The expo, which was sponsored by ABC and the association’s Metro Washing-ton and Virginia chapters, featured hands-on demonstrations in a variety of crafts and booths hosted by ABC member firms that allowed students to learn about careers in the construction industry.

“Career expos are extremely important,” said ABC National Chairman Ken Adams. “We need to bring more people into the industry, and an event like this shows young people how interesting and challenging construction careers can be, whether their interests be in computer-aided design or laying brick.”

Students tried their hand at nail driving contests, painting, bending electrical conduit, power drilling and tool safety, brick masonry, reading blueprints, and computer-aided design.