Industry News

Partnership is Committed to Closing the Skilled Labor Gap and Continues SCC’s Alliance-Building Effort to Create a Skilled Career Recruitment Machine

Harbor Freight, America’s leading tool store for professionals and DIYers is the latest to join Skilled Careers Coalition’s growing list of partners as it continues to unify cross-sector stakeholders to close the skilled labor gap.

Launched in 2023, Skilled Careers Coalition (SCC) is quickly building an alliance of like-minded partners across business, industry, government, and education sectors with partners that include SkillsUSA, American School Counselors Association, and Warner Bros. Discovery. SCC recently added Harbor Freight Tools to the coalition starting with cross-promotional efforts to engage and inspire the next generation of skilled professionals.

SCC is aligning with Harbor Freight, which is joining SCC’s youth-directed entertainment brand and YouTube series SKILLS JAM during the SkillsUSA 2024 National Leadership & Skills Conference in Atlanta, June 24-28. During the conference, the tools provider will be a presenting partner of SKILLS JAM’s game show, Double Down, providing remarkable prizes for student contestants.

“We’re excited to partner with the Skilled Careers Coalition (SCC). At Harbor Freight, we’re invested in helping the next generation of skilled professionals achieve their career goals,” said Brooke Niemiec, Vice President, Marketing, for Harbor Freight Tools.

“One of SCC’s priorities is to connect the disaggregated ecosystem of skilled careers across America by convening stakeholders to create a unified skilled careers sector,” said Mark Hedstrom, Co-Executive Director, Skilled Careers Coalition. “We look forward to continuing our relationship with Harbor Freight as we further SCC’s mission to close the growing skilled careers gap at scale to help America maintain her strong position in the global economy while enabling young people to find greater career fulfillment.”

In addition to its coalition-building efforts with businesses and industry, the organization also launched a mentorship initiative to connect trade masters with the next generation. Television personality and master carpenter Ty Pennington is the first to join what SCC is calling The Great Skills Transfer – a movement that is critical to preserving and passing on the knowledge and experience of skilled professionals from one generation to the next.

The skilled labor gap is impacting dozens of industries that rely on the skills and talents of workers across hundreds of disciplines. In manufacturing alone, unfilled jobs are expected to balloon to 3.8MM by 20331. Through strategic partnerships with Harbor Freight, SkillsUSA and others, Skilled Careers Coalition is building a skilled trade recruitment engine while helping to raise awareness among young people of the endless possibilities, financial success, entrepreneurial control, and career satisfaction that a skilled career offers.

Taco Comfort Solutions’ new European arm, Taco Europe, has collectively joined the Taco Italia and Taconova brands to grow and expand its operations in Central Europe. To accommodate this expansion, Taco has built a new facility in the town of Boršov, Czech Republic.

The new plant produces high-performance circulators for heating, cooling and solar systems and heat interface units that provide domestic hot water and hydronic circulation. The strategic goal is to multiply production capacities to meet growing market demand.

“We are expanding our design and production capabilities of sustainable, energy-efficient products and technology,” explained Ralph Seewald, Managing Director of Taco Europe. “The new facility in Boršov adds to the fully-stretched capability we already have in Velešín and Garbe Park, CZ.”

The new plant in Boršov also includes a major European distribution center to streamline logistics, reduce lead times to the continental market and reduce the company’s carbon footprint.

“The new Taconova facility in Boršov has excellent transport accessibility to Austria and Germany, and is also close to our plant in Velešín,” said Martin Marek, Managing Director of Taconova production.

“Taco Family of Companies believes that this investment in a new production plant in Boršov is the right and promising step to strengthen the market position of Taco in Europe and ensure long-term growth,” concluded Cheryl Merchant, CEO of Taco Family of Companies.

For decades, Taco Italia and Taconova have provided innovative engineering and highly efficient solutions throughout Europe. The areas of expertise include circulation pumps, hydronic balancing, valves and accessories, and surface heating technology.

The Taco Family of Companies is a global leader in comfort and efficiency in buildings. For over a century, Taco has been providing reliable and highly efficient solutions for the operation of heating, plumbing and solar systems in residential and commercial buildings that save money, energy, and natural resources while maximizing comfort and energy efficiency.

Hiller Plumbing, Heating, Cooling & Electrical (Hiller), Tennessee’s largest provider of residential and commercial plumbing, HVAC, and Electrical service and repair, was honored with Ruud’s 2023 Top Pro Partner Award. This award marks Hiller’s ninth consecutive recognition, beginning in 2015.

Since the 1800s, Ruud, a major manufacturer of HVAC systems, has been at the forefront of heating and cooling system development and innovation. Each year, Ruud evaluates contractors, naming Pro Partners that deliver the highest standards of excellence in installation and service of HVAC equipment. This designation is determined based on quality of work, verified customer feedback, and volume of exceptional installations and repairs.

In 2015, Hiller received their first Pro Partner award, ranking first among 20 contractors selected from a pool of national businesses. Each year since, Hiller has been named among the best-of-the-best. The 2023 award, which was announced at a reception in Fort Worth, Texas, on April 30^th, was Hiller’s ninth consecutive Pro Partner award.

“We are so proud to have been honored with our ninth Ruud Pro Partner Award this year”, remarked Jimmy Hiller, founder and CEO of Hiller Plumbing, Heating, Cooling & Electrical. “Like Hiller, Ruud is extremely committed to superior product installations, service, and maintenance. Their equipment helps us ensure that each family we serve is comfortable and happy in their homes for years to come. We are extremely honored”, he continued, “To have earned an award that recognizes our parallel commitment to superior installation and ongoing service and repair on these systems”.

Launched in 1990 with just $500 and a single truck, 24-year-old Jimmy Hiller founded his company on values that have become signatures of the Hiller brand: integrity, professionalism, exceptional ongoing training, truly caring for others, clear and upfront pricing, and 24/7 emergency services. Today, Hiller is one of the nation’s largest privately-owned home services companies, employing more than 800 associates with a fleet of over 600 “Happy Face” trucks across 17 locations in 7 states.

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Contractor in Charge, the top provider of start-to-finish 24-7 customer engagement, appointment booking, full-service bookkeeping and controller services for home service contractors, announces a strategic partnership with SF&P Advisors, the leader in residential and commercial mechanical, HVAC and plumbing mergers and acquisitions. With the partnership, SF&P Advisors’ clients can leverage Contractor in Charge’s expertise and proven solutions in addition to SF&P’s valuation, accounting, research and financial analysis services.

“We have worked with Contractor in Charge on several transactions that we have closed,” said Fred Silberstein, CEO and president of SF&P Advisors. “We have found they do an excellent job of not only preparing financial statements in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) but giving contractors additional tools to help them grow and scale their business.”

Contractor in Charge empowers SF&P Advisors’ clients to clarify and strengthen their financials and establish strategies to increase efficiencies and grow top-line revenue. Contractor in Charge also provides SF&P clients with unique customer engagement services and clear insights into business performance.

“We’re proud to work with a trusted partner like SF&P Advisors to help contractors maximize the valuation of their business and get the highest rewards for their hard work,” said Lynn Wise, CEO of Contractor in Charge. “Our comprehensive custom services are designed to give professional plumbing, electrical, and HVAC contractors the tools they need to thrive and grow. One way we can do that is to connect them with SF&P, a company with a proven track record of helping contractors reap the benefits of their success.”

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