Blog

As every trades professional knows, an apprenticeship is one of the most pivotal components of a plumbing, HVAC, or electrical career. During this time, apprentices acquire the skills, experience, and knowledge to be able to add value to their team and help clients solve real problems. For each apprentice,...

Undergraduate student enrollment in the Spring of this year declined by more than 662,000 students or 4.7% from Spring 2021, according to a new report by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. To date, the undergraduate student body has dropped by nearly 1.4 million students or 9.4% during...

At Explore The Trades, we’re passionate about plumbing, heating, cooling and electrical, and bridging the technical talent gap to these trades. In This Issue:      ·     Peaden Air Conditioning, Plumbing and Electrical and Tom P. Haney Technical College Partner to Build HVAC Technicians...

Explore The Trades attended the SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference in Atlanta, GA from June 20-24, 2022. This conference brought together over 15,000 students, educators, industry vendors and trades professionals from all over the country. All of these individuals showcased the best...

I tune in to one of those online neighborhood chat groups where people often exchange referrals for various businesses. Almost every time someone asks the group to recommend a plumber or other trade provider, it is couched in terms such as: “One that charges a reasonable price.” They never...

Many men and women who work in the trades have interesting stories to tell — not just because they’ve seen a lot of interesting things on the job, but because they each have unique and diverse backgrounds. The nature of plumbing, electrical and HVAC work allows for people with all professional...

Many of you reading this already have jobs in other fields than the trades. But you’re reading it because you are dissatisfied with the way you now make a living. In some cases, you may feel underpaid and underappreciated. Others among you may simply be bored with the work you do. Or, maybe you’re...

Thank you to everyone who supported and attended the Explore The Trades golf tournament fundraiser in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho! Together with industry vendors, local businesses, and contractors, $50,000 was raised to bridge the technical talent gap to the trades of plumbing, heating, cooling and electrical....

Many of you reading this are in your late teens or early 20s. That is a prime age to enter training for a career in a skilled trade. The purpose of this blog is to help you, as the title of this website makes clear, to “explore the trades.” I’m going to depart from that […]