The skilled trades gap has become one of the most pressing workforce challenges facing our region’s economy. Critical sectors, from construction and maritime to healthcare, and advanced manufacturing, depend upon a steady pipeline of highly trained workers. To better understand the issue, we asked leaders from industry, education, and workforce development to weigh in on the challenges and opportunities ahead, and what strategies they’re deploying in their own organizations.
—Beth Hester, Managing Editor
Tony Barlett,
Vice President, COO, Sumitomo Drive Technologies
Tony Barlett,We have made a deliberate, long-term investment in building our own pipeline. Our CNC machining apprenticeship program launched in2024 and is a big part of that. Instead of waiting for talent to show up, we are developing it ourselves. We will graduate our first group of apprentices mid-year, which is a meaningful milestone and an early sign that this approach is working.
At the same time, we are strengthening partnerships with local community colleges and high schools. The goal is simple. Create earlier awareness, connect education to real-world application, and give students a clearer path into manufacturing careers. We have also gone on offense to challenge the outdated perception of manufacturing. This is not post-WW2, manual labor driven work. Today’s environment is highly skilled, highly technical, and increasingly driven by advanced technology in clean, climate-controlled facilities. Changing that narrative is critical. It matters for students, but just as much for parents who are helping guide those decisions. This is a viable and rewarding career path, not a fallback option.
Just as important is what happens after we hire. We put a strong emphasis on an employee-first culture because retention matters just as much as recruitment. That includes clear career paths, ongoing training, and competitive wages that reflect the level of skill and value these roles bring. People need to see a future here at Sumitomo Drive Technologies, and we take that seriously.
This is a challenge, no question. But it is also pushing us to think differently, and in many ways better, about how we build the next generation of skilled talent.
Marsha Hudgins,
CEO, Hudgins Contracting Corp
Marsha Hudgins,The skilled trades labor gap isn’t just a looming threat—as a site contractor, it’s our everyday reality. Like the rest of our industry, we face challenges recruiting the next generation of field crew and equipment operators. The primary hurdle is perception; the outdated image of construction as pure physical toil is misguided. Advanced technology is rapidly transforming roles, shifting core requirements from physical strength to tech-savviness and a problem-solving mindset. For operators, GPS-guided grading systems and joystick-controlled hydraulics allow operators to achieve grade-perfect accuracy in a fraction of the time it used to take crews to manually lay sight lines.
Today’s construction equipment and tools can effectively lower the barrier to entry, encouraging both men and women to explore job opportunities that are rewarding and relatively secure from the threat of AI. We also actively work to dispel the perception of “dead-end” roles, offering development tracks for high performers to gain management and technology skills they would otherwise spend decades learning on their own. By putting people first, we are rebranding our industry, ensuring a fulfilling career isn’t limited by physical ability, but is empowered by technology, opportunity, and continuous learning.
Troy Renfrow,
Vice President, Business Development,
Electric Motor & Contracting Co., Inc.
I have the pleasure or working across several major industries in Virginia—pulp and paper, power generation, steel, ship repair, and municipalities—and one challenge consistently rises to the top: a growing shortage of skilled trades.
Electricians, welders, machinists, and other craftsmen are in high demand, yet the pipeline of trained professionals continues to shrink. For years, young men and women were told that a four-year college degree was the only path to success. While college has value, that message created a serious imbalance in our workforce.
At EMC, we rely on skilled trades to serve our customers and partners, so we chose to invest in a long-term solution rather than simply react to the shortage. We developed and self-funded an apprenticeship program for electric motor and pump mechanics. This program combines structured technical training with hands-on field experience, allowing apprentices to earn while they learn. It has strengthened our workforce, improved planning, and created meaningful career opportunities for motivated individuals.
Our apprenticeship program is not just a workforce strategy, it’s an investment in people and in the future of our company. Skilled trades are essential, high-value careers, and programs like this help restore balance to our industrial economy.
Margaret Shaia,
CEO, Acoustical Sheet Metal
Acoustical Sheetmetal Company (ASC) is a manufacturer of highly engineered steel and aluminum enclosures for the power generation industry. The company has experienced explosive demand for our products over the last seven years which has put significant pressure on the organization to attract and retain skilled trades, particularly welders and electricians.
We’ve worked hard to build the organization required to meet the increasing demand for our products, requiring a commitment to developing relationships with area trade schools at the high school and post-secondary level. These relationships have allowed us to develop a pipeline of talent for our business. In addition, we offer an in-house welding school which provides a career path for nonskilled workers who demonstrate the work ethic and commitment to learning. In two months they can meet our minimum welding requirements, which allows a pathway to higher wages with unlimited potential to elevate their career.
Talent is not at our fingertips; we work hard every day to find the types of employees that want to learn and grow their career with ASC and then we invest in them. We’re very proud of the work we’re doing and the positive impact it has on the community.
Jake Young,
Marketing Business Partner, Busch Group USA
Busch Group USA has a rich and proud history in the Hampton Roads area. Skilled and technical trades are high in demand in our industry, and finding the right talent to fuel our growth is paramount.
Our partnerships with the city of Virginia Beach and prominent local colleges and universities have been pivotal in helping us source, hire, and develop long-term relationships with local skilled trades talent. Currently, Busch Group USA employs 6 apprentices, including CNC Machinists, Industrial Maintenance and Assembly Mechanics, and a Mechatronics Designer. Our company became a Registered Apprentice Partner with ECPI and ATI in 2025, and we’re proud to continue strengthening our investments in these programs which have proven invaluable as we continue building a pipeline of skilled talent that will propel our continued growth.
Additionally, through key strategic college and university partnerships, we’ve employed 35 interns over the past 9 years in a variety of technical and professional roles, hiring many of those interns as full-time employees. Our investment in interns is a critical part of our talent and succession initiatives, providing us with high-quality skilled talent capable of preserving our proud heritage in Hampton Roads for years to come.
