The Pipeline Podcast stays on the road in Abilene, filming at the Howdy Media Studio with two plumbers from the data center project site: Bill and Ernie.

Bill is an old-school journeyman and a union man’s son. His dad was a union welder, and Bill started out stuccoing houses for $7 an hour before joining the apprenticeship. He talks about working his way up from cast iron piping in a hospital to his med gas endorsements, and about joining DSI in Lubbock after hearing the company didn’t have the best reputation. Ernie is a second-year apprentice plumber who got his start after a rough stretch left him struggling to find work. A call from Bill got him an interview, and he’s been building a new career ever since.

They also get into:

• Why the trades give people a real second chance, and how a rough past doesn’t have to define your career
• The five-year apprenticeship: night school, a $1 raise every six months, and why the cohort you go through with becomes your brotherhood and sisterhood
• Bill’s first look at Stratus and 3D models as an old-school journeyman, and how the technology sped up production once he got used to it
• A day in the life on a massive data center job site: 4 AM buses, stretch and flex, JHA/STAR cards, barricades, fire watch, and dust that never quits
• Working alongside other trades, and the backhoe favor that saved a day
• Language barriers on the job site and learning to work as a crew
• Plumbing licensing in Texas, from journeyman to master, and why Bill hasn’t made the jump
• How AI-made images and logos are becoming part of the show
• Balancing work and family with long hours, newborns, and a little barbecue and football to decompress

A great watch for anyone considering a career change, looking for a fresh start, or curious what it’s really like to work on one of the biggest job sites in Texas.

🔧 Learn more about DSI: https://dsi.us/

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033SLVdnIvRl8MANxfxb1W

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pipelinepodcastdsi LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/dynamic-systems-a-quanta-services-company
📩 Have a topic or guest suggestion? Email us at pipelinepodcastdsi@gmail.com

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