Students showcase trades at AGC Central Georgia Skills Challenge

Industry leaders say Audi’s planned Peach County plant will require thousands of skilled workers during construction.

PERRY, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — Students put their construction skills to the test at the 2026 AGC Central Georgia Skills Challenge in Perry Thursday, where industry leaders highlighted growing demand for skilled workers, including those needed to build Audi’s planned manufacturing plant in Peach County.

The Central Georgia Skills Challenge gives participants a chance to demonstrate their construction skills while highlighting the skilled workers who help build Middle Georgia.

Sara Murph, chief financial officer of Parrish Construction Group, says the skills challenge is helping prepare future workers for growing opportunities in the construction industry, especially with a major new investment planned for Middle Georgia.

“It helps prepare the next generation of construction workers by not only teaching them a new skill but also inspiring them to participate in our industry,” Murph said. “And it’s pretty relevant considering that Audi is going to have a $4 billion investment in our community, that’s not just 4,500 jobs in that plan, but it’s going to take thousands of skilled trades to come out there and build a plant of that size.”

Zach Fields, CEO of the Associated General Contractors of Georgia, says many construction careers offer a direct path into the workforce, even before students graduate high school.

“Many are direct entry, so there’s no barriers to entry,” Fields said. “They can go directly to work with a contractor out of school, sometimes before they even graduate high school, if there in a training course.”

Fields says learning a trade can help students pursue other careers in the construction industry. Murph adds that skilled trades also play an important role in maintaining buildings such as hospitals, schools and factories as Middle Georgia continues to grow.

“The foundation of the trades, if a young person is going to be an architect, engineer, or even a project manager, them having the baseline understanding of these processes, understanding how these materials work, will only make them better at these roles,” Fields said.

“Skill trades impact every business, not just construction,” Murph said. “Whether it’s a hospital, school, a factory, you need maintenance to those buildings, and you need opportunities to expand as our community continues to grow. And it takes skill trades, to come out there with their skill and knowledge and craftsmanship to impact our community.”

Organizers say the AGC Central Georgia Skills Challenge also helps prepare the next generation of skilled workers and connect students with career opportunities as Middle Georgia continues to grow.