Mass Timber, Ironworkers, and the Real Story Behind “New” Materials

Mass timber might be the new buzzword, but this isn’t really a story about wood vs. steel. It’s a story about people. It’s about how fast our industry can retrain, regroup and show up when the work changes — and whether the next generation gets invited into that change or left watching from the sidelines.

The Construction Dive piece, “Mass timber demand is growing. Ironworkers say they’re ready,” asks a simple question: as these projects pop up across the country, who is going to build them? Ironworkers are stepping forward with a clear answer: we are. With mass timber projects growing more than fivefold in just seven years, that’s not some future problem — it’s happening right now on real jobsites.

From a My Work My Future lens, here’s what jumps out at me: new material, same labor crunch. But instead of panic, you see ironworkers leaning in — building mockups, upgrading training and working in composite crews that mix ironworkers, carpenters and other trades. That blend of old-school rigging skills and new-school material is exactly the kind of opportunity young people tell us they’re looking for: work that feels modern, meaningful and still lets them use their hands.

And honestly, the part that sticks with me isn’t the buzz around “innovation.” It’s the apprentices standing inside a 12-foot mass timber mockup, learning how not to bruise a beam that “has feelings,” as one contractor jokes in the article. I can picture those faces. That’s where the future of this work really lives — in the training yards, classrooms and labs long before a crane ever swings onto the jobsite.

For students, parents and career-changers, mass timber is one more reminder that the trades aren’t stuck in the past. The work is evolving, the tools are evolving, and the people who say yes to these paths get to be part of that evolution — not just watching it on a screen.

Read the full article on Construction Dive: “Mass timber demand is growing. Ironworkers say they’re ready.”

(Credit: Construction Dive / Matthew Thibault)

JATCs, unions, schools and contractors: when you talk to young people about careers, are you telling these stories — or are they still only hearing “college or nothing”?