GlensFalls.com logo
GlensFalls.com logo
  • Back to GlensFalls.com
  • Lodging
  • Restaurants
  • Things To Do
  • Events
Glens Falls Business Journal
  • Home
  • New Businesses
  • Business News
  • Business Reports
  • Business Briefs
  • Business Registrations
  • Personnel Briefs
  • Contact Us

Category Archives: Building Trades

Electricians In Region Say Work Is Plentiful, But Finding People For Jobs Is A Problem

Posted onJune 17, 2021
Electricians in the area have plenty of work, says, one in the industry.
©2021 SaratogaPhotographer.com

By Jill Nagy

Area businesses are taking different approaches to deal with a shortage of skilled workers in the building trades.

Mr. Electric of Queensbury runs ads year round on several online help wanted sites. Eastern Heating and Cooling has a well-established apprenticeship program in order to “grow our own.” 

Jim Curran Electric in Saratoga Springs is a situation where the owner was rescued by a son who, seeing his father “overwhelmed,” relocated from Virginia to join the company.

Electricians are busy. “There is an avalanche of work,” according to Fred Giardinelli of Eastern Heating and Cooling. “Nine out of ten companies will give you the same answer: it’s “almost impossible” to find qualified people. 

Curran reported that he is “too busy to train somebody in the proper way.”  Mr. Electric also is “extremely busy.”

Curran, for his part, has soured on the idea of trying to hire and train new people.

“I used to try to hire people,” he said, “but they were not skilled enough.” 

People hired as apprentices often did not show up. At the other end of the spectrum, “if they get too trained, they go out on their own.”

He has been on his own for most of his 33 years in business. Since March, his son Jeff, a licensed electrician in Virginia, has been working with him and will soon become a partner in the business. Jeff and two other sons all worked with him as kids, he recalled, but the other two are following other career paths.

Read More

Ashley Cirelli Thrives After Changing Her Career Path And Joining Plumbers Union

Posted onJune 17, 2021
Ashley Cirelli and Bill Austin work at the training module at UA Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 773 in Queensbury.

By Christine Graf

Queensbury native Ashley Cirelli was working in the restaurant industry before joining the apprentice program at UA Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 773 in 2015. She is one of more than 450 members of the Queensbury-based union.

“I was working in the restaurant business, but there was no stability. You can make great money, but there’s no retirement or health insurance unless you get it on your own,” said Cirelli whose family has  owned several local restaurants including Cirelli’s Jam ‘n Eggs in South Glens Falls.

After learning about the excellent pay and benefit packages available to union apprentices, she decided to apply to the electrician apprentice program at UA Local 236 in Albany. Her plans changed after a chance meeting with Larry Bulman, director of legislative and political affairs for the United Association of Plumbers and Steamfitters, that took place at her parents’ restaurant.

After he told her about the career opportunities available to her as an apprentice at Local 773, she applied and was accepted into the program. In August 2015, she started working at GlobalFoundries as a union apprentice. For her, the job was a perfect fit.

“I’ve been very hands-on my entire life. I helped my dad fix cars when I was young, and I used to build computers” she said. “I always wanted to do something in the trades and almost got into the military. But in high school, I was always told you need to go to college no matter what.”

Cirelli did attend college for 18 months after graduating from high school in 2007. She took business management and marketing classed at SUNY Adirondack but never completed her degree.

Although there is an aptitude test that all apprentice program applicants must take, no special skills are required in order to get accepted into the program.

“You don’t have to have any mechanical inclination at all. Your schooling is hands-on training. They teach you from the very basics of how to turn a wrench all the way up to the advanced skills,” she said. “And as soon as you sign the paperwork, they get you working. You work five days a week for at least 40 hours a week, and you go to school three nights a week for five years.

“You are earning a living while going to school, and they are paying for the school. The only thing you have to pay for is union dues and books. Other than that, they pay for everything. ”

Read More

Founder Of ‘Chimney Heroes’ Takes Business From Small Operation To Thriving Company

Posted onJune 17, 2021
Chimney Heroes, founded by Jamie Wallace, does business from Warrensburg to Albany.

By Christine Graf

After graduating  from University of Albany in 2005 with a degree in business administration, Waterford-native Jamie Wallace applied for a summer youth intern position at Grace Chapel in Jonesville.

“I thought it would be a fun way to spend my summer before I looked for full-time career after college,” said Wallace.

He enjoyed the job so much that he applied for a permanent position as the church’s youth pastor. Despite his lack of experience in ministry, he was hired with the condition that he agree to be mentored. At the time, he was working on Saturday’s for Clifton Park Chimney Maintenance, a company owned by Andy and Jill Looker. Wallace took the job to earn extra money to supplement his youth pastor’s salary.

“I did not even know chimney sweeps existed, so it was very new to me. But I really enjoyed it,” he said.

A year later, with encouragement from the Looker’s, Wallace left his job and started his own chimney sweep business.

“I decided to take a big leap of faith,” said Wallace. “A lot of people said I was crazy, but I went out on my own. My goal was to use the biblical principles I had learned and apply them to the business. And I was right.”

When Wallace started Chimney Heroes (originally named Saratoga Chimney Sweeps) in 2010, he relied on word of mouth, networking groups, and what he refers to as guerilla marketing to find “customers for life.”

“I was waking up at 5 a.m. and doing neighborhood flyers. It was slow going and it was hard, but it worked,” he said.

Read More

Eastern Heating And Cooling Becomes Part Of 12-Company Group: Comfort Systems USA

Posted onJune 13, 2019June 18, 2019
A training session is put on by Dennis Choiniere, right, at Eastern Heating and Cooling.
Courtesy Eastern Heating and Cooling

By Jill Nagy
In the late 1990s, when acquisitions fever was high, a group of venture capitalists made an offer to Fred Giardinelli, owner of Eastern Heating and Cooling, a thriving company that does work throughout the Capital District, including the Glens Falls and Saratoga areas: They would buy his company, but he would continue to operate it.
He accepted the offer, as did enough other business owners, to form a 12-company conglomerate that is now Comfort Systems USA, a national company listed on the New York Stock Exchange that has some $2.1 billion in annual revenues.

Read More

Building Trades Industry Is Working To Combat Shortages In The Labor Pool

Posted onJune 13, 2019June 14, 2019
Officials in the building trades fields say a shortage of skilled laborers still exists.

People in the building trades and construction industry continue to say there is a shortage of skilled labor.
Kevin Maynard, owner of Kevin Maynard Construction in Fort Ann, said older skilled workers are aging out of the industry and there are not enough younger workers to replace them.
“It’s hard to find young people who want to learn the trade and want to do it well. Everyone who has talent, already has a secure job,” said Maynard. “We do everything with all of our heart, and we want to find guys that follow suit with that level of work quality.”
“It’s impacted how much work I can take on because I just don’t have the manpower,” he said.
Maynard stated the shortage has increased the need for full-service construction companies to use sub-contractors. But those sub-contracting companies are facing the same shortage in skilled workers.

Read More

Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning Field Is Among Those Utilizing New Technology

Posted onJune 13, 2019June 14, 2019
Dave Simons co-owner of Simons Heating and Cooling in Queensbury, works on a boiler replacement project. The company says HVAC technology is advancing at a rapid rate.
Courtesy Simons Heating and Cooling

by Christine Graf
“One of the recent changes in the industry is that it’s not all about spinning wrenches and getting greasy and dirty. There’s a lot of technical stuff that needs to be done within the trade,” said Dan Keating, president of BPI Mechanical in Waterford.
His company does HVAC work as well as installations of mechanical systems and equipment.
Jason McCormack, co-owner and operations manager of Simons Heating and Cooling in Queensbury, agreed that HVAC technology has been advancing at a rapid rate.

Read More

Recruiting New Workers For Jobs In Building Trades Continues To Be A Challenge Locally

Posted onJune 13, 2018June 14, 2018
Union leaders, business owners and educators say that recruiting workers or for the building trades is a challenge, but young people can make a good living if they choose to enter a trade.
©2018 Saratoga Photographer.com

By Maureen Werther

People in the building and trades industry—union leaders, business owners and educators—continue to say there is an ongoing need to recruit new people for the welding, HVAC, building construction, plumbing, electrical and other trades. 

At a recent meeting of BOCES counselors and business owners at the offices of Bonacio Construction, Sonny Bonacio talked about the need for skilled labor industry-wide. Bonacio Construction, formed in 1988, is a major residential and commercial builder in the Capital Region.

“It’s been a challenge for the last 15-20 years getting plumbers, roofers, framers. We’ve noticed in our own company there are way too many people who are in their 40s and 50s and not enough in the 20- and 30-year-old range,” said Bonacio.

Read More

Gansevoort Company Official Is NESCA President, Replacing Local Business Woman

Posted onJune 13, 2018June 14, 2018
Cathy Morin of Niatrust Drywall in Wilton, was the third female president of NESCA.
©2018 Saratoga Photographer.com

By Maureen Werther

Lee Keirstead, project manager for Stone Bridge Iron and Steel, Inc. in Gansevoort, is the new president of Northeast Subcontractors Association (NESCA). 

NESCA is a nonprofit trade association based in Albany. It represents nearly 500 subcontracting companies, specialty contractors and suppliers of construction material and equipment, making it the largest subcontractor group in the country. Its members include both union and open-shop companies.

NESCA’s goal is to serve the needs of commercial, industrial and institutional subcontractors, specialty contracts and material suppliers in the Capital District, Hudson Valley, the North Country and west into Binghamton. It works on issues affecting its members and it provides education, advocacy and networking opportunities to its members.

Read More

Local Plumbers Union State-Of-The-Art Training Center Key To Filling Jobs In Region

Posted onJune 15, 2017
At the Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 773 training center in Queensbury, instructors teach the current technologies for the fast-changing industry. Here, they work in a ‘clean room’ setting.
Courtesy Local 773

By Maureen Werther

For the 450 members of Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 773, the outlook regarding the future of jobs is good. Its state-of-the-art training center in Queensbury continues to prepare journeymen for the fast-growing list of jobs in and around the region, union officials said.

Located at 37 Luzerne Road in Queensbury,  the team of expert instructors and support staff at Local 773 serves seven counties that span from Saratoga County to the Canadian border. They provide qualified pipefitters, welders, plumbers, HVAC workers and fire-suppression experts to industries ranging from commercial and light industrial to high-tech companies such as GlobalFoundries.

The $5-million facility was built in response to the rapid increase in apprenticeships the union experienced seven years ago, officials said. It was located on Bluebird Road in South Glens Falls but was no longer able to accommodate the union’s growing membership.

“Our members decided to invest in growing,” said Nelson Charron, marketing representative for Local 773 and longtime member of the union.

Read More

Organization Formed To Help Upstate NY Masonry Contractors Market Their Trade

Posted onJune 15, 2017

Masonry contractors in Upstate New York have formed a new organization to assist in marketing their trade.

The Upstate Masonry Institute (UMI) is the contractors’ new outreach division with the mission to advocate, educate and promote use of masonry in construction projects that span from the Capital Region to Syracuse in the west and up to the U.S-Canadian border.

Upstate Masonry Institute was designed and is dedicated to improve the overall utilization of masonry materials of all types in the Upstate New York area in commercial, industrial and institutional construction projects, officials for the new organization said.

“UMI is here to represent the masonry industry by educating the developers, owners, architects, engineers and contractors involved in the success of masonry construction applications, providing the knowledge and means of increasing efficiency and productivity in masonry, and advocating the increased use of brick, block and stone,” the group said in a news release.

Read More

Posts navigation

Previous 1 2 3 4 Next
Subscribe to Our Newsletter View the Latest Virtual Edition
 SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWS FEED

Categories

  • 50-Plus
  • Banking
  • Banking / Asset Managment
  • Building Trades
  • Business Briefs
  • Business News
  • Business Registrations
  • Business Reports
  • Commercial / Residential Real Estate
  • Construction
  • Construction Planning
  • Corporate Tax / Business Planning
  • Cyber/Tech
  • Dining Guide
  • Economic Outlook 2017
  • Economic Outlook 2018
  • Economic Outlook 2019
  • Economic Outlook 2020
  • Economic Outlook 2022
  • Economic Outlook 2023
  • Economic Outlook 2024
  • Economic Outlook 2025
  • Economical Development
  • Education / Training
  • Entrepreneurial Women
  • Entrepreneurs
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Environment / Development
  • Exclusives
  • Financial Planning / Investments
  • Fitness / Nutrition
  • Health / Community Services
  • Health & Fitness
  • Health & Wellness
  • Healthcare
  • Holiday Shopping Guide
  • Home / Energy
  • Home & Real Estate
  • Insurance / Employee Benefits
  • Insurance / Medical Services
  • Leadership Development
  • Legal / Accounting
  • Meet The Chef
  • My Turn
  • New Businesses
  • Non-Profits
  • Office / Computers / New Media
  • Office / HR / Employment
  • Office / New Media
  • Office / Tech / eCommerce
  • Office / Technology
  • Office / Work Place / Legal
  • Outlook 2016
  • Outlook 2021
  • Personnel Briefs
  • Retirement Planning
  • Senior Living / Retirement
  • Summer Construction
  • Uncategorized
  • Wellness
  • Women In Business
  • Workplace / Legal / Security
  • Year-End Tax Planning

Archives

  • June 2025
  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • November 2010
Mannix Marketing Logo
GlensFalls.com logo
  • Home
  • Lodging
  • Restaurants
  • Things To Do
  • Nightlife
  • Events
  • Health & Beauty
  • Real Estate
  • Businesses
  • About
  • Home & Garden
  • Guides
  • Blogs
  • Sweepstakes
  • Advertising
Official Guide to the Greater Glens Falls Region
Full-Service Internet Marketing: Search Engine Optimization, Website Design and Development by Mannix Marketing, Inc.
Mannix Marketing, Inc. is headquartered in Glens Falls, New York
GlensFalls.com All Rights Reserved © 2025
Disclaimer & Privacy Policy / Terms of Use / Copyright Policies
[uc-privacysettings]

We strive to insure accuracy on GlensFalls.com however accuracy cannot be guaranteed. Information is subject to change.
Please alert us if there is any inaccurate information here.

Having trouble using this site? Accessibility is our goal, please contact us with site improvements.