The skilled labor shortage has long been a problem that the construction industry has attempted to remedy. Despite the attention the issue has received, there have not been significant positive changes to the skilled trade gap. As recently as 2019, a survey conducted by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) found more than four in five builders expected to face serious challenges regarding the cost and availability of labor, and a separate survey from the NAHB found 85% of remodelers reported shortages of workers available to perform finished or rough carpentry.
A technological innovation from a Portland, Ore., company is working to provide a digital labor solution for the construction industry. In the eight months after its launch, ToolBelt has been able to successfully harness 8% of the contracting marketing in the Portland metropolitan area, allowing local contractors to more efficiently grow their businesses.
ToolBelt was established as a solution for the labor shortage in the construction industry by Josh Engelbrecht. From Engelbrecht's experience, traditional methods of finding skilled labor, such as word-of-mouth, are too slow and create huge challenges for contractors. Engelbrecht aligned with technology leader Ross Barbieri to develop ToolBelt, an app for the busy contractor in the field that operates similarly to staffing platforms such as ShiftWise, Staffing Robot, and Hively.
The ToolBelt app allows users to scout for talent and filter project-ready talent to hire the best workers for a given job. The app allows contractors to browse work samples of available workers, message quickly with project crews, and build a network of skilled and vetted talent that can be reached quickly and efficiently via the app. ToolBelt automatically translates projects and messages into Spanish, allowing an appeal to a broader base of potential workers and allows contractors to access ratings and reviews for available talent. The mobile nature of the app allows contractors to have access to a contractor network anywhere, including on the jobsite.
ToolBelt's technology was designed to be easy to use and the ease of use has contributed to the app's adoption in the Pacific Northwest, according to the company. Through the app, general contractors, builders, and contractors are able to quickly find skilled labor and work with the touch of a button. ToolBelt says it has created a marketplace for over 1,700 local contractors with access to thousand of skilled tradespeople and facilitated hundreds of residential projects and positions in the Pacific Northwest.
ToolBelt, while currently available only in the Pacific Northwest, is looking to expand across the United States. The company will announce expansion plans by the end of the fiscal third quarter.
The efforts of ToolBelt represent one of several different approaches to bridge the skilled labor shortage in the construction industry. The Colorado Homebuilding Academy (CHA) recently shifted its curriculum online to continue its mission of filling the skilled trades gap, while the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) launched the NKBA NextUp program to recruit and empower a younger workforce in the kitchen and bath segment.
