Section

Industry

News, trends, and analysis of the trades and services industry, including regulations and market data.

A high-tech data center interior showcasing advanced server racks and energy flow visualizations, representing AI power consumption flexibility.

Data centers offer flexibility for 'speed to power'

AI data centers, despite immense power demands, can offer 18% to 55% flexibility in consumption without compromising service quality, Utility Dive reports.

Rick Donovan· Jun 30· 2 min
Diverse group of trainees learning skilled trades like electrical and plumbing at Walmart's new Atlanta training hub.

Walmart opens Atlanta skilled trades training hub

Walmart now offers some internally trained technicians a pay range up to $51 per hour, a significant boost from typical retail wages.

Ben Foster· Jun 30· 2 min
5 Proven Strategies to Sell Your Bergen County Home Faster with BergenRealEstate.com's Expert Agents

5 Proven Strategies to Sell Your Bergen County Home Faster with BergenRealEstate.com's Expert Agents

Selling a Bergen County home quickly and profitably requires a modern, data-driven strategy beyond traditional listing methods. BergenRealEstate.com's expert agents utilize five core strategies, merging local intelligence with sophisticated tools to achieve landmark sales.

Sponsored· Jun 24· 6 min
How Prelion Systems' Construction Safety Platform Solves Your Top 3 OSHA Fine Risks

How Prelion Systems' Construction Safety Platform Solves Your Top 3 OSHA Fine Risks

Prelion Systems offers a purpose-built construction safety platform designed from field experience to tackle the top three costly OSHA violations: Fall Protection, Lockout/Tagout, and Hazard Communication and Training. It provides a proactive, digital solution to manage critical risks and avoid significant fines, moving beyond generic software to protect workers effectively.

Sponsored· Jun 18· 8 min
Holographic AI interfaces and data visualizations projected over a modern construction site, representing the McCarthy and Palantir AI partnership.

McCarthy and Palantir Forge AI Partnership to Revolutionize Construction

McCarthy Building Companies, founded in 1864, is building an AI operating system called 'Pulse' with Palantir Technologies.

Rick Donovan· Jun 11· 2 min
Construction workers installing complex electrical systems inside a large, modern data center manufacturing facility.

Fisk Electric lands $48M data center manufacturing job

Fisk Electric Company, a Tutor Perini subsidiary, secured a $48 million electrical project for an advanced manufacturing and data center infrastructure facility in Houston, TX, Stocktitan reported.

Ben Foster· Jun 9· 2 min
A halted construction site for a large Google data center campus in rural Minnesota, with a gavel symbolizing legal intervention.

Judge Halts Google Data Center Project in Minnesota

A proposed 482-acre Google data center campus in Pine Island, Minnesota, intended to be powered by 1,900 megawatts of new clean energy, has been abruptly halted.

Rick Donovan· Jun 6· 2 min
A US port with cranes unloading steel beams, illustrating the substantial decrease in imported steel due to tariffs.

US steel imports drop 30% as tariffs impact global trade

Steel imports into the United States plummeted by nearly 30% year-to-date in 2026, a direct consequence of ongoing Section 232 tariffs.

Ben Foster· Jun 6· 2 min
A modern data center facility at dusk with construction cranes in the background, symbolizing industry growth and technological advancement.

Construction Execs See Strong Data Center Boom Ahead

At Jacobs, data centers' share of business doubled year over year, now accounting for 3-4% of its total revenue, according to Construction Dive .

Ben Foster· May 28· 2 min
Here's How to Avoid The Most Overlooked Funeral Planning Mistake with Brater Winter Funeral Home

Here's How to Avoid The Most Overlooked Funeral Planning Mistake with Brater Winter Funeral Home

The most overlooked funeral planning mistake is not pre-planning end-of-life wishes, leading to stress and conflict for grieving families. Brater Winter Funeral Home guides families through pre-planning to ensure harmony and honor legacies, offering various options beyond traditional funerals, including personalized cremation services.

Sponsored· May 22· 8 min
Brad Sugars on the Surprising Reason Most Business Owners Fail (And How to Avoid It)

Brad Sugars on the Surprising Reason Most Business Owners Fail (And How to Avoid It)

Brad Sugars explains that most business owners fail because they get stuck in the 'technician's trap,' operating as indispensable employees rather than entrepreneurs. This prevents scaling and wealth creation, essentially turning their business into a job.

Sponsored· May 14· 5 min
Automotive industry professionals networking and exploring innovative vehicle displays at the SEMA Show, highlighting the excitement of the event.

2026 SEMA Show Registration Opens for Industry Professionals

For just $50, qualified attendees can secure their entry to the 2026 SEMA Show, but only if they act before June 26.

Luis Ortega· May 11· 2 min
Mechanics working on vehicles in a busy auto repair shop, surrounded by aftermarket parts, illustrating the stable automotive aftermarket industry.

SEMA Report: Specialty Equipment Sales Stabilize at $52.65 Billion

With new vehicle loan rates around 7.

Rick Donovan· May 3· 2 min
Diverse group of trainees learning carpentry and electrical skills in a bright, modern workshop, symbolizing the future of skilled trades.

Lowe's Foundation Pledges $250 Million for Skilled Trades Training

By 2035, Lowe's aims to have trained a quarter-million skilled trades workers, a workforce larger than Boise, Idaho's entire population.

Rick Donovan· Apr 11· 2 min
A futuristic green skyscraper with integrated gardens, symbolizing the complex financial aspects of green building certifications in 2026.

Green Building Certifications Cost More Than You Think in 2026

Achieving a top-tier green building certification, like the Living Building Challenge, demands more than innovative design.

Rick Donovan· Aug 26· 4 min
Advanced robotic arms and laser technology integrated into a modern construction and woodworking environment, highlighting efficiency and precision.

Robotics and Lasers Revolutionize Woodworking and Construction

For decades, construction robots were more novelty than necessity.

Rick Donovan· Aug 25· 3 min
AI designing new materials in a futuristic lab, contrasted with a traditional factory, symbolizing the gap between discovery and market integration.

AI Labs Discover New Materials, But Market Integration Lags

An AI startup focused on material discovery recently secured $9 million in seed funding, according to TechCrunch.

Rick Donovan· Aug 24· 4 min
Female maintenance technician using a tablet with an AI predictive maintenance alert in a modern manufacturing plant with automated machinery.

AI Adoption Creates Skilled Trades Jobs, Defying Expectations

At a major manufacturing plant, a maintenance technician now receives an alert on her tablet predicting a critical pump failure three weeks in advance, a task that once required daily manual checks an

Ben Foster· Aug 21· 4 min
Futuristic factory floor with robotic arms, human technicians, and holographic displays showcasing advanced manufacturing and IoT integration.

Industrial Manufacturing Sector Growth Drivers Emerge Despite IoT Adoption Hurdles

By 2035, the IoT in manufacturing market is projected to reach a staggering $1398.

Rick Donovan· Aug 21· 3 min
Industrial facility with AI robots and human technicians working together, utilizing advanced holographic displays for maintenance and data analysis.

AI adoption in maintenance is booming, but who will win?

At Hyundai Motor Group, new AI tools achieved an 80 percent adoption rate, drastically cutting engineering and service times, according to Automotive News .

Rick Donovan· Aug 20· 3 min
Modern modular building components being assembled on a construction site, highlighting the speed and efficiency of offsite construction methods.

Modular Construction Offers Up to 50% Faster Project Timelines

While traditional construction projects often face delays and cost overruns, modular methods can slash project timelines by 30% to 50%, completing 60-90% of the work indoors.

Rick Donovan· Aug 17· 4 min
AI assistant hologram providing product information and project guidance to customers and associates in a modern home improvement retail store.

Home Improvement Retail's 2026 Omnichannel Shift: AI & Subscriptions

Lowe's deployed Mylow Companion, a generative AI assistant, to all its stores in May 2025, providing its associates with instant access to product information and project guidance.

Rick Donovan· Aug 13· 3 min
A solitary construction worker on a job site, looking contemplative amidst a backdrop of unfinished buildings and a chilly atmosphere, symbolizing the impact of the July jobs slump on skilled trades.

July jobs slump: Skilled trades face deeper chill

In July, the US economy added a mere 187,000 jobs.

Rick Donovan· Aug 8· 3 min
Construction workers installing sustainable materials on a modern, eco-friendly building site, showcasing the growth of the green building market.

Trades Adapt to Growing Green Building Market

The green building materials market expanded from $369.

Rick Donovan· Aug 8· 4 min
A human engineer collaborating with a sophisticated AI agent on a holographic interface, overseeing automated industrial processes on a factory floor.

AI agent speeds PLC programming, but engineers still manage its work

At the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) 2026 in China, Siemens unveiled its Eigen Engineering Agent.

Rick Donovan· Aug 7· 3 min
A tradesperson using a futuristic tablet on a construction site, with holographic AI financial data overlaid, symbolizing the surge in AI-powered equipment finance.

AI Integration in Equipment Finance for Trades Surges Despite Adoption Hurdles

New AI-powered platforms enable tradespeople to secure equipment financing in under 24 hours, a process that traditionally took weeks, according to Fintech Today.

Ben Foster· Aug 5· 3 min
Farmer using a tablet to access repair data for a John Deere tractor in a sunlit farm field.

Right to Repair Forces Deere to Share Repair Data with Farmers

John Deere, a company long associated with American agriculture, recently paid $1 million and agreed to significantly alter its repair practices.

Rick Donovan· Aug 1· 3 min
Manhattan office building undergoing conversion to residential units, showcasing the complex process of adaptive reuse in urban development.

NYC's Largest Office-to-Residential Project: Conversion Hurdles

Office-to-residential conversion starts in Manhattan are projected to triple from 1.

Rick Donovan· Jul 30· 4 min
Advanced robots and human technicians collaborating on a futuristic manufacturing line, with AI interfaces displaying precision inspection data.

AI inspection and robotics: Reshaping manufacturing jobs

AI inspection systems now detect weld defects with over 99% accuracy, a stark contrast to the 80% detection rate of human inspectors.

Rick Donovan· Jul 21· 3 min
A large, autonomous construction robot pile driving steel beams at a solar farm, showcasing advanced automation in large-scale infrastructure projects.

Construction Robotics Adoption Surges, But Labor Impact Still Uncertain

At a solar power site in Louisiana, retrofitted 72-ton machines from Built Robotics are autonomously pile driving up to 1,000 steel beams a day.

Ben Foster· Jul 20· 3 min