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What Are The Differences Between Residential, Commercial, or Industrial Skilled Trades?
Each of these sectors requires a unique skill set and understanding. This blog post will delve into the differences between these three sectors, to help professionals seeking growth or individuals considering a career in the trades industry.
Residential Work
This area of construction is where you'll find the most individual homeowners as clients. While many business owners may have homes, this aspect of your work will be all about the residential clients who need a fence fixed or a new roof put on. It's likely to be smaller-scale projects, but the expectations from clients can be high and they'll often require more attention than a large company that just needs some plumbing done. For instance, say you're a company installing solar panels for industrial buildings—you could get hired for three buildings in a row without much interaction with your client. But if you're putting up siding on one house, you're going to want to consult your client every step of the way to ensure they get exactly what they want. This kind of attention may mean higher salaries or hourly rates—with good reason! It's important to keep up on communication with smaller groups and individuals to make sure everyone's happy and working together well toward the same goal.
- Good interpersonal skills and customer relationship skills are essential here because you will be entering clients homes and often its just you on the job or you and a partner.
- Problem solving skills are key - No house is the same so you are often crawling around attics or the basement looking for problems. You don't always have a coworker to help or ask questions to if you get stuck.
- These Jobs are great if you like working on your own at your own pace
- Residential trades jobs are also great because most the parts you need to fix things are available to buy at any hardware store
- There is a huge shortage of residential tradesmen so wages will be on the rise for years to come. If you are looking for a job, check out our hundreds of open roles!
Commercial Work
Commercial work is similar to residential work in a lot of ways, but the principle difference is that commercial buildings are larger—and we’re not just talking about size. Commercial buildings have more rules, regulations and standards to adhere to than residential construction. In addition, because they're larger and taller, they require more specialized knowledge when it comes to safety measures. As you can imagine, working on a commercial building also requires access to more equipment and people to get the job done right.
Commercial work is typically a more predictable work week because commercial projects and contractor typically have more scheduled resources and maintenance requirements. You will typically be working along side coworkers so you can always find someone to get a second set of eyes on a problem.
Commercial job sites often require more specialized knowledge and compliance with stricter building codes and standards. For instance, a commercial electrician must be able to handle high voltage systems, large air conditioning units, and complex electrical layouts. Similarly, commercial plumbers must be familiar with multi-story gravity feed waste systems, commercial grade water heaters, and large capacity water supply networks.
Industrial Work
Industrial work will take place in the following environments:
- Large buildings or complex structures
- Large machines
- Large pieces of equipment
- Large systems (plumbing, HVAC, electrical, etc.)
- Large pieces of infrastructure (dams, power stations)
Industrial skilled trades are a step beyond residential and commercial in terms of the scale and complexity of the projects. These tradespeople work in industrial settings like factories, power plants, refineries, and other large-scale facilities.
The work done by industrial tradespeople can often be highly specialized, requiring extensive training and qualifications. For example, industrial electricians need to understand advanced control systems, three-phase motors, and other complex electrical systems. Moreover, safety protocols and regulations in industrial settings are often very stringent, adding another layer of complexity to the job.
Similar to commercial jobs, schedules are typically more predictable than residential because you are scheduled by large contractors instead of responding to emergencies. These jobs are great if you want
Industrial jobs can require more travel since the jobs can be more specialized and at large facilities that may not be close to your home
When you can see the differences between each type of skilled trade you can decide which is right for you.
- Residential skilled trades
- Commercial skilled trades
- Industrial skilled trades
While residential, commercial, and industrial trades all require a solid foundation in skilled labor, each sector has distinct characteristics and demands that set it apart. From the type of work and the scale of projects to the level of customer interaction and regulatory requirements, the differences are substantial.
Understanding these differences can help tradespeople choose a career path that aligns with their interests and skills. It can also help clients understand the skill set they should look for when hiring a tradesperson. Ultimately, whether you choose to work in the residential, commercial, or industrial sector, the skilled trades offer a rewarding career with a wealth of opportunities.
