Plans for the International Masonry Institute's new National Training Center were formally launched at a groundbreaking ceremony at the Bowie, Md., site. The two-building complex, totaling 106,000 square feet, will serve as the flagship training center for the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers, which represents masonry craftworkers in the United States and Canada.

The 15-acre site is part of the Maryland Science and Technology Center in Prince Georges County. Construction on the $20 million project will start shortly, with estimated completion in fall 2006.