Chicago, IL — Industrial Careers Pathway has announced that two trade associations – North American Building Material Distribution Association (NBMDA) and Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) have joined ICP as Alliance Partners, effective Jan. 1. It brings the total number of ICP supporting associations to nine.
NBMDA was founded in 1952 in Chicago and serves the leading wholesale distributors of wood panels, surfacing materials, cabinet hardware, finishes and related products from throughout the U.S. and Canada. Membership is comprised of distributors and manufacturers that serve independent building material and kitchen/bath dealers as well as production companies involved in cabinetry, architectural woodwork, stock woodwork, store fixtures, solid surface fabricating and plastics fabricating.
“NBMDA is extremely excited to be a new Alliance Partner of ICP starting in 2016," said NBMDA executive vice president Kevin Gammonley. "NBMDA member firms, like all companies in distribution, are continually challenged in the area of hiring, training and retaining talent. A core objective of NBMDA is to help our members attract and grow their most important asset – their people. We feel the programs and resources offered by ICP will effectively complement our current offerings and be of high interest to our member firms. We strongly believe the industrial distribution channel offers exciting career opportunities for young people but that it will take creativity and collaboration to effectively tell our story to the target audience. We can’t do it alone and thus we are interested in working with related organizations in order to have a greater impact.”
Officially founded in 2003 through the consolidation of Northamerican Heating, Refrigeration & Air-conditioning Wholesalers (NHRAW) and Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Wholesalers International (ARWI), HARDI represents more than 475 wholesale companies (including 17 international companies), more than 300 manufacturing associates and nearly 140 manufacturer representatives. It is estimated that HARDI members represent 80 percent of the dollar value of the HVACR products sold through distribution.
“HARDI members say that identifying and sourcing talent is one of the number one problems keeping them up at night," said Emily Saving, HARDI vice president of professional & program development. "How do they compete for talent with larger, more consumer-facing companies? We see ICP as a big part of the answer. This alliance lets us pool resources with similar organizations, enhance the visibility of our industries, and ultimately allow our members to ‘reach’ some of the brightest talent out there. We are excited to become Alliance Partners and use this platform to connect high-quality job seekers to the many great career opportunities in HVACR distribution.”
In addition to providing visibility about entry-level careers in industrial distribution, ICP develops and delivers useful programs, services and tools to help industrial distributors recruit, on-board, hire, manage, train and retain entry-level employees.
ICP is a multifaceted North American workforce initiative supported by an alliance of industry associations including American Supply Association, Heating Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International, Industrial Supply Association Education Foundation, National Association of Chemical Distributors, National Association of Electrical Distributors Education & Research Foundation, NAHAD —The Association for Hose & Accessories Distribution, NIBA — The Belting Association, North American Building Material Distribution Association (NBMDA) and PTDA Foundation.