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Throughout the spring and summer of 2023, approximately 125 SMART Local 105 members were performing HVAC, kitchen, architectural and TAB work on the new home of the Los Angeles Clippers, known officially as the Intuit Dome. The $2 billion project is slated to open for the 2024–2025 NBA season.

SMART’s news team toured the project in May 2023 with Local 105 leaders and members working on the project.

“We’re doing all the HVAC,” said Local 105 journeyperson Mike Duran, who is also a Marine Corps veteran and general foreman with Southland Industries on the arena job. “We’ve got about 1.2 million pounds of ductwork to put in this building. There’s probably about 40 or 50 air handlers.”

The project also has two-and-a-half dozen grease scrubbers and more than 7,000 linear feet of grease duct. “You’ve got hot markets, kitchens, concession stands,” said Duran. “Anything they cook food at, it’ll have a grease hood and it’ll pull the air and filter it and then spit it out of the building.”

He added that the project was on a “fast track,” with all the different trades and thousands of moving parts.

“I think right now there’s 1,100 workers on site. It’s a lot of planning, a lot of logistics to try to make everything and get everything in here.”

Under a project labor agreement (PLA) negotiated for the job, local hiring has been prioritized.

“A goal of a project like this, when it was negotiated through the building trades,” said SMART Local 105 Business Manager/President Steve Hinson, “was to bring people from the community and give them the opportunity to work on a grand structure like this. And give them the opportunity to learn the craft, to learn a trade.”

Hinson underscored that “PLAs have been proven to bring jobs in, using good union labor, on-time and under budget.”

“We’ve got an awesome team out here,” said Duran, “and we all work together for the same goal — to get everything done safely and effectively.”

Duran has been in the sheet metal industry since 1999.

“I came from Local 16 up in Portland,” he said. “My brother worked there and he got me in the trade.”

After apprenticing, Duran joined the Marines, serving for four years — including two tours of duty in Iraq. After leaving the military, he worked for a company providing personal security services in Iraq. He then moved down to southern California, met his wife and got married, and got back into the sheet metal industry with SMART Local 105.

“For somebody that’s coming out of the military,” he added, “that wants to work with their hands and build something, the trades are a great place to go. You can get in, make a good wage, good benefits, provide for your family and be successful. Out of all the trades, I think sheet metal is one of the best ones. We build our own stuff, we install it, we fabricate it.”

The Local 105 (Los Angeles) SMART Army turned out to help Autism Spectrum Athletics (ASA) with its baseball tryouts in April. ASA, which was established in 2012, offers community- based socialization sports programs that are designed to be stress free and non-competitive, with positive peer support. ASA Chief Executive Officer Manny Zapata is a Local 105 member.

Business Manager Steve Hinson and Business Representatives Donny Sappington, Tim Hinson and Erik Villegas helped facilitate ASA’s baseball activities, demonstrating the power of union solidarity to bring fun and happiness to all.

The Antelope Valley Transit Authority (AVTA) recently achieved North America’s first fully zero-emission fleet thanks to the work of SMART SM Local 105 members employed at BYD (Build Your Dreams) in Lancaster, Calif.

Fully 57 of AVTA’s 87 battery electric coaches and buses were built by BYD at its Lancaster Coach & Bus Manufacturing facility. Many BYD employees and their families are served by the agency in the Antelope Valley.

Portions of the fleet were purchased with the help of state funding, including $28.5 million from the California Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) administered by Caltrans and the California State Transportation Agency.

Every American-built, zero-emission BYD bus eliminates approximately 1,690 tons of CO2 over its 12-year lifespan, according to the U.S. Transportation Department. This is equivalent to taking 27 cars off the road. Each bus also eliminates 10 tons of nitrogen oxide and 350 pounds of diesel particulate matter, improving air quality in the communities they serve.

BYD is America’s first battery-electric bus manufacturer that has both a unionized workforce and a Community Benefits Agreement, which sets goals for hiring veterans, single parents, second-chance citizens and others facing hurdles in obtaining manufacturing employment.

According to SMART’s 6th General Vice President and Local 105 Business Manager Luther Medina, “We are proud of our partnership with BYD and the work we have done to ensure the Antelope Valley sets the standard for clean transportation options, not only here in California but across North America.”

The Antelope Valley Transit Authority recently achieved North America’s first fully zero-emission fleet thanks to the work of SMART SM Local 105 members employed at BYD (Build Your Dreams) in Lancaster, CA.

57 of AVTA’s 87 battery electric coaches and buses were built by BYD at its Lancaster Coach & Bus Manufacturing facility. Many BYD employees and their families are served by the agency in the Antelope Valley.

Portions of the fleet were purchased with the help of state funding, including $28.5 million from the California Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) administered by Caltrans and the California State Transportation Agency.

Every American-built, zero-emission BYD bus eliminates approximately 1,690 tons of CO2 over its 12-year lifespan, according to the U.S. Transportation Department. This is equivalent to taking 27 cars off the road. Each bus also eliminates 10 tons of nitrogen oxides and 350 pounds of diesel particulate matter, improving air quality in the communities that they serve.

BYD is America’s first battery-electric bus manufacturer that has both a unionized workforce and a Community Benefits Agreement, which sets goals for hiring veterans, single parents, second chance citizens, and others facing hurdles in obtaining manufacturing employment.  According to SMART’s 6th General Vice President and Local 105 Business Manager Luther Medina, “We are proud of our partnership with BYD and the work we have done to ensure the Antelope Valley sets the standard for clean transportation options not only here in California but cross North America.”