Skills Surrounding Facades and Construction

Intro

The facades industry is a small niche within construction, though an extremely important part of the whole process, especially with the ever-increasing focus on safety.

Due to the niche nature of facades, many of the skills are more unique and experience is more difficult to come across. For some roles finding that experience is almost impossible.

Many people within construction have been doing the job from the beginning, many of these start at low-level jobs, through apprenticeships, or at family businesses. For these people, construction is all they know. But any others start doing something else and then change career for whatever reasons. Depending on the roles they previously held they may be able to offer a different perspective or expert knowledge.

A recent conversation with a candidate has made me think about the value of other skillsets within construction and facades and how adjacent skills and experiences should be valued when considering a candidate for a role.

Adjacent skills

Careers surrounding fire safety are of high value to those within facades as major re-cladding and EWI operations are taking place as a result of regulation changes post-Grenfell. These may include anyone who was previously a firefighter, fire marshal or fire safety. Having spoken to a handful of such individuals I can personally say that their insight into the area of facades is more unique and rounded.

Coming from a background like Health & Safety would also be of value for those who may transition to Site or Project Management for example.

Coming from a manufacturing background is also something that may be seen as a positive, especially if it is the manufacturing of building supplies. This experience could offer the candidate a unique point of view about the quality and best use of these materials.

Of course, it should be noted that candidates with this sort of experience are not common, but it does lead to thought about how other careers and areas feed into construction and the facades sector.

Transferable skills

There are also several transferable skills, skills that would apply to any job, that should be considered. Something as simple as a positive attitude, clear communication skills, the ability to problem-solve, and good time management are all skills that make a good candidate a great one.

Within construction, many of these are vital for several reasons and should always be considered.

Why?

Why write about this when the likelihood of someone who may have previously been a firefighter later becoming involved in the facades sector is so low?

Because it doesn’t just apply to construction, and it doesn’t have to be a role with such a direct link.

Every previous role has an effect on how you handle yourself, how you look at a problem, and how you may have previously been exposed to it. It’s always valuable to inquire about past roles to see just what sorts of skills someone may possess because of it.