Construction Advancement Program (CAP)


What is CAP?

CAP, the Construction Advancement Program of Western Pennsylvania, is a service organization established in 1961 via the collective bargaining agreements between the Master Builders’ Association and various building trades unions.

The primary CAP function is to provide services which benefit all persons, management and labor alike, who earn their living in union construction working for any of the contributing firms. These services include activities in the fields of Accident Prevention, Education, Apprenticeship, Industry Relations, Legislation, Human Relations and Public Relations.

CAP Contributors

Any building construction employer of carpenters, operating engineers, laborers, cement masons, pile drivers, bricklayers, plasters, and drywall finishers, contributes to the CAP Fund according to the number of manhours worked by these tradespeople. These fund contributions provide the capital with which the staff administers the programs as directed by the CAP Trustees.

CAP Annual Scholarship

In the field of education, providing annual scholarships to students in the University of Pittsburgh’s Engineering Department is something near and dear to CAP.   In the early 1990’s CAP responded to an inquiry from Pitt’s Engineering Department to do a needs assessment of the construction community so that the University of Pittsburgh could expand its engineering studies into areas that would improve the skills and the marketability of its graduates.  The CAP Board of Trustees worked with university faculty to help set goals for what is now the University of Pittsburgh Construction Management Program. 

Congratulations to the 2010 winner of the CAP education scholarship; Jeremiah Beiter. 

CAP Publications

The CAPsule Report is published to promote industry programs and highlight CAP services. This publication features important information for union contractors, such as: wage rate updates; industry event announcements; and safety bulletins.

The Building Regulations & Fees Book for Allegheny County is published by CAP in response to the expressed need by Contributors for business and estimating purposes. This publication contains local municipalities’ information on building fees; tax rates; contact information; and other pertinent information that would apply to construction.