Power saws howled and hammers pounded as five apprentices competed at Otago Polytechnic at the weekend in the Otago regional section of the New Zealand Carpentry Apprentice Challenge.
The eight-hour-long competition on Saturday was supported by the Certified Builders Association of New Zealand, the Industry Training Association Building (ITAB) and the polytechnic.
A half-hour lunch break was allowed, but the contest was clearly an intense affair, with a great deal to be done in a short time and strict rules applying.
No smoking, radios or "similar distractions'' were allowed, and contestants had to "remain in their own work area'' and not inspect other competitors' efforts.
Judges could intervene and "disqualify any competitor behaving in an unsafe manner'', the judging handbook noted.
The regional event was won by Dunedin resident and BA Building Ltd employee Chris Campbell (30), who was "quite proud'' and excited with the outcome, having been the only one of the five contestants who also took part last year.
The event had been "incredibly stressful'', and had included some less familiar roofing work, but good preparation and planning helped him to finish in good time, before the eight-hour deadline, Mr Campbell said.
He was looking forward to competing in the apprentice challenge nationals late next month and also to attending the association national conference, which is also being held in Wellington.
The completed playhouses will be put to good use, being given to Otago preschools.
Certified Builders Otago branch president Sacha Gray, who was one of the judges, said he was impressed by the high calibre of the work.
The scores of three contestants were so close that they were hard to separate in the final judging.
