From the Hall and the Field

By Joe Demark, President/Business Manager, Sheet Metal Workers Local 25 New Jersey is in the middle of a loud debate about data centers. Some people want to slow them down. Others want to stop them cold with a moratorium. A new report released Monday gives lawmakers and residents a chance to step back and look at the facts. It happens to mirror a lot of what I’ve had to say about the best path forward in a recent Op-Ed that [...]

Note: This article originally appeared on BINJE.com. So much of the discussion around the surge in data center has been about where they will go and how much energy they will use. That talk is missing one key aspect: Who is going to make sure they run efficiently? Joe Demark Jr. is President and Business Manager of Sheet Metal Workers Local 25, representing the skilled professionals who sketch, fabricate, install, and maintain the HVAC and air-handling systems that make the modern world function. [...]

The official video series from SMART Local 25. Welding, testing and balancing, fabrication, drafting and installation — a real-world look at the craft, one trade at a time. Every expert started somewhere.

The value of a registered sheet metal apprenticeship, how members top out as journeypersons earning starting wages near $100,000 a year without the burden of college debt, partnerships with regional colleges and the urgent need to upgrade air filtration in commercial buildings.

How a skilled, unionized workforce can power the next wave of data center expansion, from hands-on collaboration with contractors to innovative labor-management partnerships.