Creating Jobs through Certification for BAC Members

JOURNAL: ISSUE 2 - 2013

Two trends in the construction industry are merging to create new opportunities for skilled craftworkers. The first is the mounting concern of owners, construction managers and architectural/engineering firms about getting projects done right and on time. Quality control has never been more important. Secondly, as the building envelope of floor and wall systems becomes more and more complex, industry demands for control of air, moisture, vapor and thermal movement have increased accordingly. 

IMI offers certification programs in a variety of skill sets, products and systems. Among the more popular are grout certification, giving members the ability to safely and properly install reinforced masonry; air barrier installation, a rapidly growing component of our work, rain screen walls, another growing area where BAC needs quality installation to gain control of the market; and flashing, a major concern of the customers for our products. For a complete list, please visit imiweb.org.

The demand for these types of certifications is on the rise, largely due to the efforts of IMI Technical Directors who work directly with owners and designers to get certification language in the specifications and bid documents. More than 100 architectural and engineering firms now require IMI grout certification as a requirement to work on their projects, and this demand continues to grow.