10 comments

  • kristov 4 minutes ago

    It's nice to hear tradespeople getting paid well with lots of work. I'm happy for them :-)

  • xur17 34 minutes ago
  • jermaustin1 15 minutes ago

    There are a few Data Centers going up within a couple hours of me, it has pulled all of the trades people away from us. I've called around to every electrician I can find online, or been recommended by neighbors, they are all out of town for the foreseeable future. Same with HVAC and to a lesser extent plumbers.

    I've had to learn a lot of skills this summer trying to get some repairs done on my house, and I've had to pay some extreme "fuck off" prices for work that I couldn't do myself.

    My father-in-law is a construction manager for a large power company, and they've been expanding their footprint as well for these datacenters, and hiring like crazy to speed up their construction.

    He said it will be a few years before the independent trades people become more available.

  • cynicalsecurity 34 minutes ago

    Before you decide to change jobs - the demand in electricians is caused by a temporary massive construction boom of data centers. Maintaining an already built data center doesn't require much personnel. It's a clickbait article.

      bluGill 16 minutes ago

      If you get into any construction job you need to expect to move job sites regularly. If it is a single family house that might be as much as twice a day. If it is a large industrial site it might be every few years. However it is unusual to work at the same location for much longer.

      You are also subject to the economy more than most jobs. When things start going bad you are the first one cut.

      It can still be a good career overall, but it does have downsides and isn't for everyone. I'm not leaving my job even though I know how to do construction.

      palmotea 20 minutes ago

      Yeah, it's exactly like that oil boom in North Dakota. There was a brief, massive increase in demand for construction labor to build oil rigs, and you had "man camps" an the like. Then once the rigs were built, the employment dropped massively because it takes a lot fewer guys to run an oil well than build one.

  • edot 39 minutes ago

    Carpenters? Are we making the data centers out of wood?

      bmcniel 31 minutes ago

      Carpentry tends to span beyond direct woodworking. Installing Drywall over steel studs is one example that might apply to DC construction.

      >Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc.

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carpentry

      ryanmcbride 22 minutes ago

      There is frequently wood in buildings yes

        NoMoreNicksLeft 8 minutes ago

        Homes, not these buildings. Wood's a liability when it comes to fire suppression.