THE MOST OBVIOUS ANSWER TO A MANPOWER SHORTAGE IN THE SHEET METAL INDUSTRY IS ‘WOMANPOWER.’ BUT IS YOUR SHOP READY TO LEAN IN? 

During the annual AHR Expo last month, you could clearly see why its reputation as 'The Big Show' for HVACR contractors is well-deserved. But while wandering the massive rows of sheet metal machinery and HVACR systems, I couldn't help but think small.

We have been complaining for years that we can’t get good quality young people into our industry. But now, we are putting together a project that I think will effectively reach hundreds, if not thousands, of potential young people looking for new opportunities.

Here, jam-packed in the pages of SNIPS, were all the nuts and bolts you needed to get your sheet metal shop operations off the ground. It was legendary!

At the start of this year, the Metal Roofing Alliance (MRA) predicted this would be the year when the concept of the “durable home” will become reality.

Most contractors find themselves operating in two work modes: Get work. Do work. As the economy stands now, many shops are in the do work phase. But, the problem is, neither mode allows time for an improve work phase.

I recently ran a 5K on runway 26L at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Although a 5K race isn’t as intense as a full marathon, training for and completing this race will no doubt help prepare me for something bigger down the road. 

Last month, at the annual Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors' National Association (SMACNA) convention in San Diego, California, I had the pleasure of meeting many of SNIPS' longtime readers. To you I say: THANK YOU.

Projects labor agreements are a form of collective bargaining agreement, generally between a local building trades council, or a group of unions, a general contractor and sometimes the end-user of the project.  PLAs are often limited in scope and duration to a particular project, or similarly financed projects, such as school construction.

If there is one saving grace, dare I say it, a silver lining to the shortage of sheet metal workers, it's this: now, more than ever, contractors are taking note of the talent they have on their shop floors.