L-627 BM-ST Jacob Evenson, second from right, talks about the importance of local workforce engagement to help developers and contractors succeed in large-scale infrastructure work bids.
Arizona State University hosted a Southwest Carbon Capture and Storage Hub Symposium in May to convene industry leaders and explore a regional approach to energy infrastructure projects fast approaching in the American Southwest. The university invited Local 627 (Phoenix) Business Manager-Secretary Treasurer Jacob Evenson as a topic expert on a panel addressing the community engagement aspects of large infrastructure development.
Evenson discussed the Boilermaker workforce and the union’s apprenticeship program, and he stressed the importance of engaging the local skilled workforce as a key strategy for developers navigating the procurement stage of the area’s many infrastructure projects.
“There were developers from all over the western states at this symposium,” he said. “It was important for us to get in front of them. They understand the importance of hiring a local workforce because, among other reasons, we can help navigate politics and when they have assigned procurement teams, we can introduce them to our contractors. They want us on their jobs, and there’s a lot coming up in the Southwestern U.S.”
