Multi-Tiered Program Aims to Recruit and Empower the Next Generation of Talent to Fill Urgent Need of Jobs in the Design and Construction Industry The National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA), the authority on all things residential kitchen and bath, launched NKBA NextUp, an initiative which aims to recruit and empower a well-prepared workforce for the Read more
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Multi-Tiered Program Aims to Recruit and Empower the Next Generation of Talent to Fill Urgent Need of Jobs in the Design and Construction Industry
The National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA), the authority on all things residential kitchen and bath, launched NKBA NextUp, an initiative which aims to recruit and empower a well-prepared workforce for the kitchen and bath industry.
Through 2026, 750,000 jobs are expected to open up in the design and construction industry, with hundreds of thousands of construction jobs currently going unfilled each month in the U.S. A stagnant workforce adversely affects the kitchen and bath industry as projects take longer to finish. NKBA members reported in 2019 that 30 percent of their upcoming projects might experience long delays. Longer timeframes, in turn, mean that fewer projects can be completed.
“Unfilled jobs in the design and construction industry may be attributed to consistent messages to students and their parents that the most accessible path to success starts with a four-year college degree. Four-year college degrees are one way, but not the only way,” said Bill Darcy, NKBA chief executive officer. “To attract the best talent, NKBA NextUp will engage with a wide network of students who have interest, curiosity, or an entrepreneurial drive that is more compatible with a hands-on career in the kitchen and bath industry, so they are aware of the many paths to success.”
NKBA NextUp will approach this in three ways:
- Create hands-on experiences that introduce high school students to the craft of design and construction.
- Change the dialogue about career paths, raising awareness that there are many pathways to lucrative and stimulating work creating safe, beautiful and functional spaces in the heart and soul of the home.
- Connect interest to action through our chapters, building strong networks of local talent that will deliver an exceptional experience to all homeowners who want to improve their kitchens and bathrooms.
- Create a Hands-On Experiences
The cornerstone of NKBA NextUp is BridgeYear/NKBA Career Tour, bringing six interactive kitchen and bath career simulations to high schools. Through exercises in finish carpentry, installation, kitchen and bath design, plumbing, electrical and showroom sales set up as stations around the school gym, high school students are active participants in “trying on” various careers. Students gain valuable insight into potential vocational pathways they can pursue after graduation that are alternatives to the traditional four-year college degree path.
“With the elimination of shop classes, most of today’s high school students never get a chance to experience the craft and design involved in home building and remodeling,” Darcy said.
NKBA partnered with BridgeYear, an innovative non-profit that enlightens students about career options that require less than a four-year degree. After launching in Houston BridgeYear/NKBA Career Tours will expand outside Texas and expects to impact more than 24,000 students by year three.
In addition, NKBA launched a philanthropic community restoration endeavor to encourage its local chapters to engage the next generation of construction and design talent in the hands-on process of renovating a public building that delivers vital services to its community. The NKBA Rocky Mountain Chapter submitted the winning proposal to renovate the kitchen at a non-profit community center in Colorado. The Mountain Resource Center provides food-pantry access, nutrition education, cooking classes and a wide variety of other health and human services for its community. “This experience will help students see the real-life impact of skills-based kitchen and bath careers and how it makes a tangible difference in people’s lives,” Darcy said.
In a third hands-on experience, NKBA NextUp is facilitating a “Kitchen of the Future” and a STEM Kitchen Robot competition at a middle school near NKBA’s N.J. headquarters. The purpose is to illustrate the intersection of technology and robotics with design, building and practical applications in everyday life.
Change the Dialogue About Career Paths
NKBA will launch a national awareness campaign this spring targeting young adults, their parents, educators and other influencers about kitchen and bath industry careers. The campaign builds on Darcy’s extensive advocacy about kitchen and bath careers to date, which has included appearances on FOX Business, CNBC and other outlets.
“NKBA NextUp is not anti-college; it is pro-career,” Darcy said. “We seek to change the dialogue to ensure that kids and their parents know that there are many paths to career and financial success after graduation.”
The campaign will include original NKBA research to assist in identifying questions and concerns that teens may have about the industry.
- Connect Interest to Action Through the NKBA Chapters
As more students demonstrate an interest in kitchen and bath careers, NKBA local chapters — in collaboration with their wider network of local design and construction industry allies — will light the local path to nurture and mentor them.
It all comes together on the NKBA.org Jobs portal, where NKBA is expanding the job posting possibilities so members can post part-time jobs and internships that are open to students even while they are still in high school.
“How will our chapters support NKBA NextUp? A great start is to simply invite youth in, which many of our chapters already do, through special career days at shops, studios, and showrooms,” Darcy noted. “Now, with NKBA NextUp, our chapters will be able to better connect with potential talent while students can learn more about how a variety of kitchen and bath businesses thrive.”
Similarly, NKBA has invited students from the Clark County School District in Las Vegas to KBIS for the second year in a row. The number of participating students doubled in 2020 to 300 in total, compared to 150 in 2019. Follow-up research after the 2019 event revealed that 75 percent of the students who participated said they were more interested in a career in design and construction after attending.
“We know we have a big job ahead of us to attract the best possible talent that will contribute to the future prosperity and vibrancy of the kitchen and bath industry,” Darcy said. “It’s a tall order, but exactly what a trade association is designed to do: raising the level of professionalism by inspiring, leading and empowering each member of our community.”
For more information about NKBA NextUp, please visit NKBA.org/nextup.
As showcased in the Uponor booth at the 2020 NAHB International Builder’s Show (IBS), Phyn, the leader in intelligent water solutions backed by Uponor and Belkin International, showcases its commitment to innovation in sustainable and water efficient construction products and technology with the introduction of Phyn Plus Pro Edition. Created for and sold exclusively to Read more
As showcased in the Uponor booth at the 2020 NAHB International Builder’s Show (IBS), Phyn, the leader in intelligent water solutions backed by Uponor and Belkin International, showcases its commitment to innovation in sustainable and water efficient construction products and technology with the introduction of Phyn Plus Pro Edition.
Created for and sold exclusively to professional channels including home builders and the residential construction community, Phyn Plus Pro Edition shares all of the best-in-class capabilities of the award-winning consumer Phyn Plus Smart Water Assistant + Shutoff product, the most accurate and comprehensive whole-home smart water monitoring solution on the market.
The Phyn Plus Pro Edition is enhanced with features that are optimized for installation at scale, including an ethernet port, a direct scan QR code for quick setup, and a unique rough-in “blank” to hold the place of the device until the finish plumbing stages of construction.
The adoption of smart home technology in standard new-home construction is growing at a rapid pace as more consumers want to stay connected to their homes for added security, convenience and comfort. 81% of home buyers are more likely to purchase a home with smart technology already installed. Not only does Phyn’s smart technology add to the overall value of a home, but also creates a more eco-friendly residence that supports the overwhelming majority of people looking to live more sustainably.
“In working with home builders we discovered that they have unique needs that the existing solutions on the market have not yet met,” said Ryan Kim, CEO of Phyn. “With the Pro Edition, we listened and took the opportunity to incorporate both their business as well as operational needs to develop an extension of our best-in-class Phyn Plus product that makes it easy for them to integrate into the existing life cycle of a new home build.”
Installed on a single location on the main water line, Phyn Plus Pro Edition is an innovative smart home device that protects and monitors a home’s entire plumbing system. The device analyzes microscopic changes in water pressure — 240 times every second — to fingerprint each water fixture and give homeowners unprecedented insight into their water consumption. From the smallest drip leak to frozen pipes, Phyn ensures homes are water tight and can automatically shut off the main water in the event of a catastrophic leak to mitigate damage.
With a sleek, durable, and compact design that is built for quick installation, the Phyn Plus Pro Edition features an integrated power supply that is built into the device. Additionally, the Pro Edition includes an ethernet port for the device to be hardwired to the home’s network instead of having to only rely on the homeowner’s WiFi. This is key in situations where the device may be installed in a part of the property where the WiFi signal may not adequately reach.
Professional channels will be able to purchase the Phyn Plus Pro Edition for $499 starting in Q3 of 2020. The device joins Phyn’s growing lineup of award-winning products, which includes the recently announced Phyn XL 1.5” and the Phyn XL 2” created for larger homes, new construction and light commercial properties with supply lines up to 2”. Phyn’s robust product suite now offers a full range of leak detection and water monitoring solutions for every type of residence, ranging from the DIY installed Phyn Smart Water Assistant to the professionally- installed Phyn Plus, Phyn XL1.5” and Phyn XL 2”.
Builders and professional installers may contact Phyn at Phyn.com for more information about the Phyn Plus Pro Edition.
Responding to market demand, InSinkErator is re-introducing a new and improved water chiller. This water chiller dispenses refreshingly cold water, as low as 40°F. Featuring a compact design, the CWT100 water chiller fits under your sink. The water chiller features a stainless steel tank and connects and is reverse osmosis system compatible, pair it with Read more
Responding to market demand, InSinkErator is re-introducing a new and improved water chiller. This water chiller dispenses refreshingly cold water, as low as 40°F.
Featuring a compact design, the CWT100 water chiller fits under your sink. The water chiller features a stainless steel tank and connects and is reverse osmosis system compatible, pair it with a RO compatible Showroom Collection hot and cold dispenser. The cold only C1100 will also be re-introduced in March of 2020 as well.
Intended for wholesale, the InSinkErator Water Chiller will be available only at kitchen and bath showrooms where InSinkErator disposers and instant hot water dispensers are sold. Available March 2020.
The U by Moen Smart Faucet offers convenience, precision and intuitive voice-activation technology to help complete tasks in the kitchen, while also offering a myriad of style options to suit almost any design aesthetic. “Whether you’re a mom juggling packed lunches while trying to get your morning coffee, a baker requiring precise ingredient volumes for recipes, or a Read more
The U by Moen Smart Faucet offers convenience, precision and intuitive voice-activation technology to help complete tasks in the kitchen, while also offering a myriad of style options to suit almost any design aesthetic.
U by Moen in Sleek
“Whether you’re a mom juggling packed lunches while trying to get your morning coffee, a baker requiring precise ingredient volumes for recipes, or a multitasker that sometimes needs another set of hands, extra assistance in the kitchen can go a long way,” said Michael Poloha, group manager, IoT, Moen. “Our team is dedicated to developing intelligent innovations that thoughtfully integrate technology to enhance people’s everyday encounters with water, and the new U by Moen Smart Faucet delivers the connectivity and customization our consumers desire.”
Users are able to control their U by Moen Smart Faucet in four ways:
- Voice control allows users to start and stop water flow as well as perform specific tasks on command through their digital voice assistants like Amazon Alexa and the Google Assistant.
- A Wave Sensor positioned at the front of the faucet turns water on or off with a simple hand movement.
- The handle on the side of the faucet offers manual operation, letting users adjust flow and temperature.
- Through the smartphone app, users can set unlimited personalized presets or start and stop water delivery with the push of a button.
The U by Moen Smart Faucet is the only voice- activated kitchen faucet on the commercial market to offer voice- and hands-free activation regardless of the faucet’s manual handle position. Voice service and hands-free control will start or stop the water flow, dispensing the desired temperature and amount, whether the faucet handle is in the open or closed position, and despite manual temperature selection with the handle.
To activate the U by Moen Smart Faucet, users simply ask Amazon Alexa or the Google Assistant to turn the water on or off, as well as dispense precise measurements and temperatures. Once they have created personalized presets in the Moen app, homeowners only need to state the name of the preset within the command.
Voice-activated capabilities include:
- Metered dispensing in fractional metric and non-metric measurements from one tablespoon up to 15 gallons
- Exact and generic temperature commands: “105 degrees” and “hot water” or “cold water”
- Combined metered and temperature requests: “1/2 cup of 105-degree water” or “Two ounces of hot water”
- User-customized presets created within the Moen app: “Baby Bottle” or “Dog Bowl”
Additionally, preheat commands will warm or cool the water to the desired generic or specific temperature, then pause the flow of water until users re-engage the faucet. As the water temperature changes, the hands-free sensor on the faucet will evolve from blue, purple and red, indicating the system is warming up or cooling down to reach the desired water temperature. When the water is ready, the sensor lights will stop flashing and turn solid.
Users also can control their smart kitchen faucet through the Moen app, a whole home smart- water ecosystem that connects consumers to their water and allows control of their Moen Network products in one platform – including the U by Moen Smart Faucet and Smart Shower, as well as the Flo by Moen Smart Water Shutoff and Smart Water Detector.
The Moen app allows for the creation of an unlimited number of presets to simplify operation, setting both temperature and volume to make voice commands easier.
For more information about the U by Moen Smart Faucet collection, visit moen.com/smart- home.
Available nationwide, the Delta Glass Rinser functions much like one in local coffee shops but is designed to work in home kitchens. The new innovation makes it easy to rinse drink ware that can otherwise be difficult to clean. It thoroughly rinses residue in seconds with high-pressure water jets that reach where you can’t. From Read more
Available nationwide, the Delta Glass Rinser functions much like one in local coffee shops but is designed to work in home kitchens. The new innovation makes it easy to rinse drink ware that can otherwise be difficult to clean. It thoroughly rinses residue in seconds with high-pressure water jets that reach where you can’t. From baby bottles and wine glasses to travel cups and water bottles, Delta Glass Rinser conveniently rinses virtually any drinkware.
“Our market research revealed that customers are interested in a solution to more effectively rinse items at the kitchen sink, so we decided to make that concept a reality,” said Adriana Miller, Delta brand product manager. “Ideal for parents, party hosts and fitness enthusiasts alike, the Delta Glass Rinser provides a simple solution, increasing efficiency in the kitchen.”
Additional features and benefits include:
Versatile and convenient:Delta Glass Rinser is simple to use and quickly rinses hard-to-wash drink ware so you can spend less time cleaning up in the kitchen.
Powerful, yet sleek: Simply press drink ware down over the rinser and powerful jets of water shoot up for a thorough rinse that can be applied to a variety of drink ware.The sleek, low-profile design allows the Delta Glass Rinser to pair seamlessly with faucets of any style.
Effective and simple to install: It can be easily installed on sinks alongside anew or existing faucet. The design allows water to funnel directly into the sink with no concern about making a mess.
The DeltaGlass Rinser is currently available in Chrome and Spotshield® Stainless finishes at select retailers, such as The Home Depot and Lowe’s. A metallic version offered in seven finishes will be available exclusively at trade customers in summer 2020 to coordinate with Delta kitchen collections.
For additional product information, visit deltafaucet.com/glassrinser.