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A local startup in southeast Ohio helps engage young people in the trades
By: Amanda Pirani
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB/Report for America) — In the back of an Athens warehouse, Southern Local High School students spend their Friday afternoon operating a 3D printer known as the Scorpion.
Like its namesake, the machine has four legs and a long, tail-like arm that reaches toward the front.
They’re the first at their school to participate in a pre-apprenticeship program with Vitruvian, an Athens-based company developing 3D-printing technology for construction.
Students participate in three afternoons of in-person training after completing 40 hours of online coursework.
They learn how to use 3D printers like the Scorpion, as well as other heavy machinery like a forklift.
“I’ve never seen anything like this before,” said junior Cooper Diddle. “It might be a career path for me if I decide that I don’t want to go to college.”
Stefano Alva, director of operations at Vitruvian, said his goal is to give students an experience they can leverage after graduation.
“One of the things that I feel is valuable, whether it is in a college essay … or in a job interview with an employer talking about this experience, is the exposure to the machinery and advanced innovative technology,” he said.
As Ohio continues to face construction labor shortages, founder Chris Sentz believes the technology could encourage more young people to imagine a future in the trades.
“We looked at how (the trades) were recruiting, which was kind of to put a cinder block on the table and say, ‘You want to lift these all day?’” he said. “It’s a lot more enticing to say, ‘You want to play with this giant robot all day?’”
Sentz said they’re willing and ready to partner with more schools down the road. Three more have already signed on for next year.
What does it mean to “print” a house?
The printer uses a special concrete mix to build walls layer by layer.
“Think about your traditionally stacked cinderblocks,” Sentz said. “Rather than having to stack those blocks, you’re just making them in line so that it’s just one solid block on site.”
Some believe 3D printing houses could be a way to address the nation’s housing crisis. The technology allows for faster and cheaper builds than traditional methods.
But the technology is still in its early stages. While Vitruvian has partnered with Survivor Advocacy Outreach Program to build affordable housing in Chauncey, most construction sites won’t be using 3D printers anytime soon.
That’s because building codes and regulations have not yet caught up to the technology.
The process of 3D printing is still changing too, as companies continue to develop their concrete mixes, printing approaches and building configurations.
Sentz said Vitruvian is participating in conversations about regulations, but right now, his primary focus is engaging more people in the construction industry.
“There’s a lot of different technology we’ll see as construction sites evolve to modern times,” he said. “And the key issue is we need labor.”
Pre-apprenticeship hopes to encourage more trade workers
Ohio’s construction industry, like most states’, faces a severe worker shortage.
In 2023, 94% of contractors surveyed by the Association of General Contractors of America said they had difficulty filling trade worker roles. And it could get harder as people continue to age out of the industry.
“Of the folks that are in the labor pool now, over a third won’t be in the pool anymore because they’re retiring in the next seven or so years,” said Vitruvian founder Sentz. “The backfill rate is like five out one in.”
Sentz said he knows there are concerns technology like Vitruvian’s could put some people out of work. But he believes it can instead draw much-needed interest in the construction industry and the trades.
He added that while 3D printers can construct the foundational structure, it’s only one part of the process.
“You still need your electrical, plumbing, roofing,” he said. “There’s so much of it that’s still traditional construction.”
Labor is also necessary to control the printer and monitor its production.
Last year, Vitruvian signed an agreement with the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers Local 23 to develop the pre-apprenticeship program students can participate in today.
After completing the pre-apprenticeship, some have moved on to complete an apprenticeship with the Bricklayers Union, Alva said
The program also has local employee partners like the United Steelworkers union.
Alva believes that as large developments increase the demand for labor in the region, it’s important to develop those pathways to support the local workforce.
“If we don’t use it as an opportunity to train people here locally, what’s going to happen is they’re going to start grabbing people from big cities,” Alva said. “So I am very motivated to use this as a way to tell kids this is what your future could be.”
The pre-apprenticeship also helps schools build on their technical education opportunities. In addition to the training students receive, teachers are also given the opportunity to learn the same material.
Southern Local science teacher Hazel Knotts says her students today are the first to go through the program. But now that word has spread at her school, she’s seen it spark an interest in more kids.
“They keep asking me, what is that? How can I get into that?” she said.
Knotts said she often hears from students that her subject is too difficult, and they won’t be able to use the knowledge when they graduate. She hopes the pre-apprenticeship will help them think differently.
Amanda Pirani is WOUB’s Report for America Journalist covering Economic Livelihood. For more information about Report for America, you can click here.