Only so much can be learned from a book before getting out into the real world.

This is one of Matt Langendorf’s philosophies.

Langendorf, training director of Local 149, will contribute to the hands-on activity event today, hosted by the School of Technology‘s Construction Club, in which students will have the opportunity to gain experience in masonry, pipefitting and welding.

The event will be held from 5 to7 p.m. in the construction lab in Klehm Hall, Room 1118.

Those attending will be divided into two groups. One group will focus on pipefitting and plumbing while another group will work on bricklaying.

After a 15-minute break for pizza and refreshments, the groups will switch to allow everyone a chance to participate in both skills.

Trainers from Lincoln Land Building and the Construction Trades Council of Effingham will lead the groups.

Wafeek Wahby, industrial technology program coordinator and faculty adviser for the Construction Club, contacted Allen Wente, president of Lincoln Land Building and Construction Trades Council, to arrange for bricklaying trainers to come to Eastern.

Wente recently retired from Bricklayers Local 8 and has been a bricklayer for 40 years. He arranged for Pete Spence, of the Bricklayers Local 8, to lead the masonry session, and also brought in Langendorf to guide the pipefitting and plumbing component.

Each will bring approximately four apprentices.

Wente said he did not want to simply lecture, so the program will allow students to get “dirty and dusty, just like a bricklayer does,” he said.

Students will have the opportunity to lay bricks themselves.

Langendorf, a steamfitter since 1993, will have two different stations set up for the pipefitting and plumbing session.

One station will allow students to braise a joint between the kind of pipes used for medical gases in a hospital or dentist office.

“When you watch someone else do it, it looks easy, but when I then hand it to you and say ‘OK, you’ve seen this done a time or two, why don’t you give it a try?’ – It’s more challenging than it looks,” Langendorf said.

For the other station, Langendorf will set up a basic steam fitting application that would be done almost every day on the job.

“I think it would be good for anyone in a construction or fabrication technology field to see the hands-on side,” he said.

Langendorf said he will set up pieces of pre-cut pipe about 4-6 feet long. A welding machine will be hooked up for students to make welds on the fittings, as if the pipes were going into a piping system.

He is bringing another instructor to lead the medical gas session while he teaches the steam fitting session.

All the trainers are coming at no cost to the School of Technology or to the Construction Club.

Colby Esenther, senior industrial technology major and president of the Construction Club, said the club only had to pay for pizza and refreshments.

Wente said both the bricklayers and the pipe fitters will supply their own material at no charge.

“We try to do what we can to get students interested in our craft,” he said.

School of Technology students are not the only people who can participate in the hands-on event.

The event is open to all majors and residents of Charleston.

Wahby said the event is open to all majors because some people have hobbies in construction arts.

However, Wahby said not everyone has to participate if they do not want to.

“Some people like to get their hands dirty and their feet wet,” he said. “Some people like to be spectators, (to) just see things, and like to keep their hands clean.”

He said the event is open to both kinds of participation and if students do want to try the activities, the trainers will be there to ensure safety.

Esenther said construction is everywhere.

“Most people are going to have houses of their own, and it’s something good to know, especially plumbing and stuff,” Esenther said. “If a pipe bursts in the middle of the night, at least you’ll know a little bit of something how to fix it.”

Langendorf said the medical gas process might interest all majors, too.

“Anyone that has ever been in a hospital or had a loved one in a hospital will appreciate what goes into the medical gas systems,” he said.

Esenther said the event is a great opportunity for undecided majors because it will allow them to find out more about the school of technology.

By the end of the event, Esenther said he is hoping those who attend will have learned some new trades, made some friends and have a better overall understanding of what construction is.

FACT BOX:

Construction Club hands-on training activity

Tuesday, Nov. 6

5 to 7 P.M.

Construction Lab in Klehm Hall, Room 1118

Bring $1 For Pizza