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TO TWIST OR NOT TO TWIST
April 13, 2023 All electricians consider safety a part of their daily life. It simply must be a priority, since they work in hazardous and sometimes unpredictable environments. To observe Electrical Safety Month, we’ll delve into the tools and protocols that help ensure that we all get home safely—in addition to doing the job right. -
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7TH ANNUAL ELITE TRADES CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES TO AIR ON CBS SPORTS NETWORK
December 05, 2022 CBS Sports to Broadcast Competitions on Fridays in December, Highlighting the Nation’s Top Electricians, HVAC, and Auto Techs Vying for $600,000 in Cash and Prizes and Inspiring the Next Generation of Skilled Tradespeople. -
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AN INVENTION BORN OF NECESSITY: THE FISH TAPE
June 02, 2022 Fish tape tends to be an unsung hero of the electrician’s tool lineup. Many of us readily admit that the abuse our fish tape endures is more significant—constantly being dropped on bare concrete, their cases beaten and blemished—all while doing one of the most important jobs that electricians are tasked to do. -
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ROAD TO NATIONALS SHOW AIRING ON FOX SPORTS 2
October 26, 2021 IDEAL Industries Inc. announces the IDEAL Elite Trades Championship Series with television special, Road to Nationals Show, airing on FOX SPORTS 2 Saturday October 30th at 8 p.m. EST. Host Chip Wade will provide a sneak peek at the coast-to-coast qualifying competitions for the first-ever Auto Tech National Championships and look back on winners of past IDEAL Electricians National Championships from 2016 through 2020. -
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IDEAL INDUSTRIES INC. AND INTERSPORT ANNOUNCE THE ELITE TRADE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES AND FIRST-EVER U.S. AUTO TECH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
September 14, 2021 Local market qualifying events will determine top auto technician professionals and students across the country, culminating with National Championship event in Nashville, TN competing for over $200,000 -
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THIRD ANNUAL IDEAL® NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP KICKS-OFF SEARCH TO HONOR AND REWARD ELITE ELECTRICAL TRADESMEN, STUDENTS/APPRENTICES
By Anthony Filomena FOLLOWING TWO SUCCESSFUL YEARS, IDEAL OPENS REGISTRATION FOR SKILLS, TALENT-BASED COMPETITION TO AWARD $600K IN CASH, PRIZES SYCAMORE, Ill., March 08, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Doug Sanford, Group President of IDEAL® Electrical, the world leader in electrical tools and wire termination, announced today open registration for the third annual IDEAL National Championship. -
WATCH AMERICA'S ELITE ELECTRICIANS COMPETE FOR $500K IN CASH, PRIZES DURING IDEAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
By Anthony Filomena TV Special Airing in January SYCAMORE, Ill., Jan. 10, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IDEAL® Electrical, the world leader in electrical products, electrician tools and wire termination, announced today the viewing schedule for the first-ever televised special of the company’s second annual IDEAL National Championship competition. -
IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. ACQUIRES CREE COMMERCIAL LIGHTING AND INTELLIGENT LIGHTING CONTROL SYSTEMS
By Mike Grossman Purchase Establishes IDEAL as a World Leader in Commercial Lighting and Wireless Lighting Controls MARCH 15, 2019 - Sycamore, Illinois - IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. today announced the acquisition of Cree Lighting, which includes the LED lighting fixtures, lamps and intelligent lighting control solutions business for commercial, industrial and consumer applications of Cree, Inc. (CREE – NASDAQ). -
NEW DRILL TAPS FROM IDEAL ELECTRICAL
By Anthony Capkun Ideal Industries, Inc. offers new drill taps constructed out of high-speed steel that combine the tasks of drilling, tapping and deburring into one. Similar to the IDEAL TKO™ hole cutters, a split-point Smoothstart tip guides the drill tap into the material, minimizing walking and helping reduce thread damage. -
EC & M - IDEAL WIRE ARMOUR™ ELECTRICAL TAPE
September 30, 2018 By Mike Eby Wire Armour vinyl electrical tape insulates, bonds, and protects. Suitable for use in a range of temperatures, including extreme weather, the tape offers high elasticity, high UV resistance to water, oil, acids, etc., and is flame retardant. Color choices include black, white, blue, orange, green, brown, yellow, violet and more. -
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‘BEST OF THE BEST’ IN ELECTRICAL TRADE COMPETE IN SKILLS, SAFETY AND TIME AT SECOND ANNUAL IDEAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND
By Anthony Filomena Competition Grows to Over 30k Participants, Awards $500,000 in Cash in Prizes (Taken from globenewswire.com) SYCAMORE, Ill., Nov. 16, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IDEAL® Electrical, the world leader in electrical products, electrician tools and wire termination, showcased the “know-how” and professionalism of electrical professionals, students and apprentices from across the country during its second annual IDEAL National Championship Weekend. -
PROTOOL REVIEWS - IDEAL WIRE ARMOUR™ ELECTRICAL TAPE
By Kenny Koehler For a product that most Pros carry and electricians use every day, electrical tape isn’t the most exciting topic of conversation. You just need it to work. Despite the possibility that it might be bland, I got my hands on the new Ideal Wire Armour Heavy Duty Electrical Tape to see if it offers something more than the standard stuff. -
IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. CHAIRMAN AND CEO TO RETIRE JANUARY 31, 2020
By Mike Grossman Jim James to Retire and Steve Henn Joines IDEAL as CEO Meghan Juday 4th Generation Family Leader to Become Chairman of the 103-Year-Old Family Company AUGUST 20, 2019 - Jim James, Chairman and CEO of IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. has announced he will retire on January 31, 2020. -
FIRST-EVER INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION AT 2019 IDEAL® NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Electricians from the U.S., Canada, China and Australia Compete for Title of ‘World’s Best Electrician’ and their Share of Over $600,000 in Cash and Prizes (Taken from einnews.com) /EIN News/ -- SYCAMORE, Ill., Nov. 21, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IDEAL® Electrical concluded its fourth annual IDEAL National Championship by crowning the first-ever International Champion on November 9 at Disney’s® Coronado Springs Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. -
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IDEAL NATIONALS - IBEW
(Taken from ibew.org) In what has become a yearly tradition, IBEW members dominated the competition at the fourth annual Ideal National Championships, which draws union and nonunion electricians from across North America and is considered the top competition of its kind for inside wiremen -
IDEAL INVESTS IN SKILL AND LABOR SHORTAGE
(Taken from techedmagazine.com) America will face a shortage of electricians in the near future, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA). 7,000 electricians join the field each year, but 10,000 retire. The BLS reports that the employment of electricians is projected to grow 10% from 2018 to 2028 — faster than the average for all occupations. -
BRIGHT FUTURE AT CREE LIGHTING
By Michael Burke (Taken from journaltimes.com) A bright future at Cree Lighting: Now-private company making continual advances STURTEVANT — On March 15, in a bombshell announcement, Cree reported that it had sold off its entire lighting business for $310 million, a business that employs about 1,000 people here. -
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CORONAVIRUS UPDATE
RE: Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update Dear Friends and Partners :Our thoughts are with everyone impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. During such challenges, it is important that we unite and support each other. IDEAL is focused on the wellbeing of our global community – our employees, our customers, our partners and our collective families. -
HEAVY METAL TOUR
By Kelsey Rettke SYCAMORE – Will Nalley said he’s a proud “gearhead” as he and his friend, and fellow Sycamore High School junior, Ryan Kessler toured Auto Meter Productions Inc. in Sycamore. “This is my first time, and I’m kind of a real big gearhead,” Nalley, 16, said Friday while standing on the Auto Meter manufacturing floor. “It’s kind of cool to see how all the gauges and vehicles are made.” -
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: 2019 IDEAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP A GREAT SUCCESS
By Lucie Côté (Taken from Electrical Business website) From Nov. 7 to 9, the Ideal National Championship took place in Orlando, Fla., bringing together 162 high-caliber professionals and students/apprentices in the electrical industry looking to demonstrate their skills. -
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DULUTH TRADING ANNOUNCES SPONSORSHIP OF IDEAL NATIONAL PLATFORM
(Taken from prnewswire.com) MOUNT HOREB, Wis., Nov. 19, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of its continued support of the trades and those who rely on well-made products to get the job done, national retailer Duluth Trading Company, today announced an official sponsorship with the IDEAL National Championship platform in 2020 and 2021. -
2020 QUALIFYING EVENTS COVID 19 UPDATE
QUALIFYING EVENTS SUSPENSION IS EXTENDED PAST APRIL 13, 2020 (SYCAMORE, IL) – April 9, 2020 – IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. is extending its suspension of qualifying rounds for the IDEAL National Championship electrician challenge due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, reflecting stay-at-home ordinances and continued physical distancing guidelines that discourage non-essential gatherings. -
CANADIANS STANDING UP TO COVID-19
In this episode of “Canadians Standing Up to COVID”, Anthony Capkun is joined by Ben Parcero, operations manager with Ideal Industries (Canada) Corp. in Ajax, Ont. Like other providers of goods for essential workers—like electricians—Ideal’s facility in Ajax, Ont., remained an active workplace when the COVID crisis began. -
CIRCUIT IDENTIFIER REVIEW
By Ralph Mroz We’ve all been there. We need to shut down the power to a circuit, but we don’t know which breaker controls it. If we have a partner maybe the panel will be close enough to the work area that we can yell to each other as one of us flips the breakers one by one. -
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IDEAL STAY WIRED TO WIN
IDEAL continues to recognize the essential work electricians are doing during this global crisis. While the annual IDEAL National Championship has been postponed to 2021 due to the coronavirus outbreak, the new virtual Stay Wired to Win™ program aims to keep the electrical community engaged during this time. -
PRO TOOL REVIEWS – IDEAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP COMPETITION
By Clint DeBoer IDEAL NATIONAL CHAMPTIONSHIP ANNUAL ELECTRICIANS COMPETITION We partnered with Ideal Industries this year to bring you a first-hand look at the 2018 Ideal National Championship for electricians. Dubbed the Ideal Nationals, there’s no more intense or visible display of trade skill in this field. The Ideal Nationals—in a nutshell—pit tradesman against tradesman in a national electricians competition to crown a champ. Even better—cash prizes and tool prizes were at stake. Below we list the 2018 Ideal National Championship winners.
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Electrical Safety Month
May 01, 2023 All electricians consider safety a part of their daily life. It simply must be a priority, since they work in hazardous and sometimes unpredictable environments. To observe Electrical Safety Month, we’ll delve into the tools and protocols that help ensure that we all get home safely—in addition to doing the job right. -
TO TWIST OR NOT TO TWIST
April 13, 2023 All electricians consider safety a part of their daily life. It simply must be a priority, since they work in hazardous and sometimes unpredictable environments. To observe Electrical Safety Month, we’ll delve into the tools and protocols that help ensure that we all get home safely—in addition to doing the job right. -
-
7TH ANNUAL ELITE TRADES CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES TO AIR ON CBS SPORTS NETWORK
December 05, 2022 CBS Sports to Broadcast Competitions on Fridays in December, Highlighting the Nation’s Top Electricians, HVAC, and Auto Techs Vying for $600,000 in Cash and Prizes and Inspiring the Next Generation of Skilled Tradespeople. -
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-
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AN INVENTION BORN OF NECESSITY: THE FISH TAPE
June 02, 2022 Fish tape tends to be an unsung hero of the electrician’s tool lineup. Many of us readily admit that the abuse our fish tape endures is more significant—constantly being dropped on bare concrete, their cases beaten and blemished—all while doing one of the most important jobs that electricians are tasked to do. -
-
-
-
ROAD TO NATIONALS SHOW AIRING ON FOX SPORTS 2
October 26, 2021 IDEAL Industries Inc. announces the IDEAL Elite Trades Championship Series with television special, Road to Nationals Show, airing on FOX SPORTS 2 Saturday October 30th at 8 p.m. EST. Host Chip Wade will provide a sneak peek at the coast-to-coast qualifying competitions for the first-ever Auto Tech National Championships and look back on winners of past IDEAL Electricians National Championships from 2016 through 2020. -
-
IDEAL INDUSTRIES INC. AND INTERSPORT ANNOUNCE THE ELITE TRADE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES AND FIRST-EVER U.S. AUTO TECH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
September 14, 2021 Local market qualifying events will determine top auto technician professionals and students across the country, culminating with National Championship event in Nashville, TN competing for over $200,000 -
THIRD ANNUAL IDEAL® NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP KICKS-OFF SEARCH TO HONOR AND REWARD ELITE ELECTRICAL TRADESMEN, STUDENTS/APPRENTICES
By Anthony Filomena FOLLOWING TWO SUCCESSFUL YEARS, IDEAL OPENS REGISTRATION FOR SKILLS, TALENT-BASED COMPETITION TO AWARD $600K IN CASH, PRIZES SYCAMORE, Ill., March 08, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Doug Sanford, Group President of IDEAL® Electrical, the world leader in electrical tools and wire termination, announced today open registration for the third annual IDEAL National Championship. -
WATCH AMERICA'S ELITE ELECTRICIANS COMPETE FOR $500K IN CASH, PRIZES DURING IDEAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
By Anthony Filomena TV Special Airing in January SYCAMORE, Ill., Jan. 10, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IDEAL® Electrical, the world leader in electrical products, electrician tools and wire termination, announced today the viewing schedule for the first-ever televised special of the company’s second annual IDEAL National Championship competition. -
IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. ACQUIRES CREE COMMERCIAL LIGHTING AND INTELLIGENT LIGHTING CONTROL SYSTEMS
By Mike Grossman Purchase Establishes IDEAL as a World Leader in Commercial Lighting and Wireless Lighting Controls MARCH 15, 2019 - Sycamore, Illinois - IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. today announced the acquisition of Cree Lighting, which includes the LED lighting fixtures, lamps and intelligent lighting control solutions business for commercial, industrial and consumer applications of Cree, Inc. (CREE – NASDAQ). -
NEW DRILL TAPS FROM IDEAL ELECTRICAL
By Anthony Capkun Ideal Industries, Inc. offers new drill taps constructed out of high-speed steel that combine the tasks of drilling, tapping and deburring into one. Similar to the IDEAL TKO™ hole cutters, a split-point Smoothstart tip guides the drill tap into the material, minimizing walking and helping reduce thread damage. -
EC & M - IDEAL WIRE ARMOUR™ ELECTRICAL TAPE
September 30, 2018 By Mike Eby Wire Armour vinyl electrical tape insulates, bonds, and protects. Suitable for use in a range of temperatures, including extreme weather, the tape offers high elasticity, high UV resistance to water, oil, acids, etc., and is flame retardant. Color choices include black, white, blue, orange, green, brown, yellow, violet and more. -
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‘BEST OF THE BEST’ IN ELECTRICAL TRADE COMPETE IN SKILLS, SAFETY AND TIME AT SECOND ANNUAL IDEAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND
By Anthony Filomena Competition Grows to Over 30k Participants, Awards $500,000 in Cash in Prizes (Taken from globenewswire.com) SYCAMORE, Ill., Nov. 16, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IDEAL® Electrical, the world leader in electrical products, electrician tools and wire termination, showcased the “know-how” and professionalism of electrical professionals, students and apprentices from across the country during its second annual IDEAL National Championship Weekend. -
PROTOOL REVIEWS - IDEAL WIRE ARMOUR™ ELECTRICAL TAPE
By Kenny Koehler For a product that most Pros carry and electricians use every day, electrical tape isn’t the most exciting topic of conversation. You just need it to work. Despite the possibility that it might be bland, I got my hands on the new Ideal Wire Armour Heavy Duty Electrical Tape to see if it offers something more than the standard stuff. -
IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. CHAIRMAN AND CEO TO RETIRE JANUARY 31, 2020
By Mike Grossman Jim James to Retire and Steve Henn Joines IDEAL as CEO Meghan Juday 4th Generation Family Leader to Become Chairman of the 103-Year-Old Family Company AUGUST 20, 2019 - Jim James, Chairman and CEO of IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. has announced he will retire on January 31, 2020. -
FIRST-EVER INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION AT 2019 IDEAL® NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Electricians from the U.S., Canada, China and Australia Compete for Title of ‘World’s Best Electrician’ and their Share of Over $600,000 in Cash and Prizes (Taken from einnews.com) /EIN News/ -- SYCAMORE, Ill., Nov. 21, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IDEAL® Electrical concluded its fourth annual IDEAL National Championship by crowning the first-ever International Champion on November 9 at Disney’s® Coronado Springs Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. -
-
IDEAL NATIONALS - IBEW
(Taken from ibew.org) In what has become a yearly tradition, IBEW members dominated the competition at the fourth annual Ideal National Championships, which draws union and nonunion electricians from across North America and is considered the top competition of its kind for inside wiremen -
IDEAL INVESTS IN SKILL AND LABOR SHORTAGE
(Taken from techedmagazine.com) America will face a shortage of electricians in the near future, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA). 7,000 electricians join the field each year, but 10,000 retire. The BLS reports that the employment of electricians is projected to grow 10% from 2018 to 2028 — faster than the average for all occupations. -
BRIGHT FUTURE AT CREE LIGHTING
By Michael Burke (Taken from journaltimes.com) A bright future at Cree Lighting: Now-private company making continual advances STURTEVANT — On March 15, in a bombshell announcement, Cree reported that it had sold off its entire lighting business for $310 million, a business that employs about 1,000 people here. -
-
-
CORONAVIRUS UPDATE
RE: Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update Dear Friends and Partners :Our thoughts are with everyone impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. During such challenges, it is important that we unite and support each other. IDEAL is focused on the wellbeing of our global community – our employees, our customers, our partners and our collective families. -
HEAVY METAL TOUR
By Kelsey Rettke SYCAMORE – Will Nalley said he’s a proud “gearhead” as he and his friend, and fellow Sycamore High School junior, Ryan Kessler toured Auto Meter Productions Inc. in Sycamore. “This is my first time, and I’m kind of a real big gearhead,” Nalley, 16, said Friday while standing on the Auto Meter manufacturing floor. “It’s kind of cool to see how all the gauges and vehicles are made.” -
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: 2019 IDEAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP A GREAT SUCCESS
By Lucie Côté (Taken from Electrical Business website) From Nov. 7 to 9, the Ideal National Championship took place in Orlando, Fla., bringing together 162 high-caliber professionals and students/apprentices in the electrical industry looking to demonstrate their skills. -
-
DULUTH TRADING ANNOUNCES SPONSORSHIP OF IDEAL NATIONAL PLATFORM
(Taken from prnewswire.com) MOUNT HOREB, Wis., Nov. 19, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of its continued support of the trades and those who rely on well-made products to get the job done, national retailer Duluth Trading Company, today announced an official sponsorship with the IDEAL National Championship platform in 2020 and 2021. -
2020 QUALIFYING EVENTS COVID 19 UPDATE
QUALIFYING EVENTS SUSPENSION IS EXTENDED PAST APRIL 13, 2020 (SYCAMORE, IL) – April 9, 2020 – IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC. is extending its suspension of qualifying rounds for the IDEAL National Championship electrician challenge due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, reflecting stay-at-home ordinances and continued physical distancing guidelines that discourage non-essential gatherings. -
CANADIANS STANDING UP TO COVID-19
In this episode of “Canadians Standing Up to COVID”, Anthony Capkun is joined by Ben Parcero, operations manager with Ideal Industries (Canada) Corp. in Ajax, Ont. Like other providers of goods for essential workers—like electricians—Ideal’s facility in Ajax, Ont., remained an active workplace when the COVID crisis began. -
CIRCUIT IDENTIFIER REVIEW
By Ralph Mroz We’ve all been there. We need to shut down the power to a circuit, but we don’t know which breaker controls it. If we have a partner maybe the panel will be close enough to the work area that we can yell to each other as one of us flips the breakers one by one. -
-
-
IDEAL STAY WIRED TO WIN
IDEAL continues to recognize the essential work electricians are doing during this global crisis. While the annual IDEAL National Championship has been postponed to 2021 due to the coronavirus outbreak, the new virtual Stay Wired to Win™ program aims to keep the electrical community engaged during this time. -
PRO TOOL REVIEWS – IDEAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP COMPETITION
By Clint DeBoer IDEAL NATIONAL CHAMPTIONSHIP ANNUAL ELECTRICIANS COMPETITION We partnered with Ideal Industries this year to bring you a first-hand look at the 2018 Ideal National Championship for electricians. Dubbed the Ideal Nationals, there’s no more intense or visible display of trade skill in this field. The Ideal Nationals—in a nutshell—pit tradesman against tradesman in a national electricians competition to crown a champ. Even better—cash prizes and tool prizes were at stake. Below we list the 2018 Ideal National Championship winners.
-
-
7TH ANNUAL ELITE TRADES CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES TO AIR ON CBS SPORTS NETWORK
December 05, 2022 CBS Sports to Broadcast Competitions on Fridays in December, Highlighting the Nation’s Top Electricians, HVAC, and Auto Techs Vying for $600,000 in Cash and Prizes and Inspiring the Next Generation of Skilled Tradespeople. -
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