Blog

Politeness is important when it comes to any career, especially the plumbing, heating, cooling, and electrical trades. Many people besides myself have noticed a general decline in good manners in recent times. In the trades or any other job for that matter, manners or lack thereof have a way of leaving...

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“Explore The Trades Skills Lab, Built by Ferguson” Applications Due This Month! Bring the plumbing or HVAC trade to YOUR school! Explore The Trades and Ferguson have partnered to bring the plumbing and HVAC trades back into classrooms across the country. Funding is available for both middle...

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In today’s rapidly evolving world, technology plays a pivotal role in reshaping trade education, making it more accessible, engaging, and effective than ever before. You can also get yourself EPA Certified online whenever you want. How crazy is that? Here’s a concise overview of how technological...

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I want to revisit a blog I wrote six years ago for this website. (Click here to read that article.) A key passage went as follows: “Even though I was a klutz mechanically, the mandatory shop classes taught me to handle tools better than I could before then. Even more important, they gave me a […]

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– By JJM Alkaline Technologies and Explore The Trades Explore The Trades is pleased to partner with JJM Alkaline Technologies®, a leading designer and manufacturer of condensate neutralizers, as an Apprentice Level sponsor in 2024. Through this sponsorship, JJM® will support Explore The Trades’...

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You may not think of yourself this way, but no matter what you do for a living, at various times you will have to be a salesperson. You may or may not ever be charged with selling products or services, but at the very least you will have to sell yourself and your talents. You […]

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February 2024 “Explore The Trades Skills Lab, Built by Ferguson” Webinar Join Explore The Trades for a Skills Lab webinar on Wednesday, February 28th from 3-4 PM CST. Participants will have the chance to ask questions, learn about the initiative, and hear from current Skills Lab instructors....

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January 2024 Happy New Year from Explore The Trades! Thank you to all our generous donors who supported our mission in 2023! You help us make a difference and bridge the technical talent gap to the trades of plumbing, heating, cooling, and electrical. Learn more about the impact that Explore The Trades...

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Some of you may be debating about whether to go to college or embark on a trade career. In fact, it is not an either-or proposition. It’s not unheard of for college students or even graduates to find out they like working with tools better than whatever white-collar job their education landed them....

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