On school nights, the parking lot of Steamfitters Local 420 in Philadelphia, PA, is overflowing with service vans belonging to top-notch service contractors. It’s an impressive sight. At 30 percent, the local’s journeyman-to-apprentice ratio is one of the highest in the UA, and 152 of its apprentices are enrolled in its very successful HVACR Service Technician Program. Some 70 percent of its HVACR apprentice population has a four-year degree.

Through effective partnerships with service employers and contractors such as West Chester Mechanical, Emcor Services, Elliott-Lewis, Chadwick Service Company and Lincoln Financial Field, Local 420 HVACR Service Technicians have soared in a league of their own. Each year, they complete well over 1.4 million work-hours.