The power market is in the middle of its biggest transformation in 20 years, and most people don’t realize how fast it’s moving.
In this episode of Building Smarter Projects, host Brad Birck sits down with Nathan Hyrne, Enerfab’s Director of Business Development, to break down what’s actually driving the surge in power demand, what it means for contractors and craft workers, and how Enerfab is positioning itself for the decade ahead.
From the resurgence of coal to gigawatt-scale data center power plants, from nuclear’s long game to the very real labor crunch threatening to slow it all down, Nathan brings 20 years of boots-on-the-ground power industry experience to one of the most wide-ranging market conversations we’ve had on this podcast.
🔍 In this episode, you’ll learn:
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Why data centers can’t wait 7 years for a grid interconnect and what they’re doing instead
How “behind the meter” power is reshaping who builds, owns, and operates plants
Why coal investment is surging again and what that means for maintenance contractors
The real reason coal-to-gas conversions are still happening even as coal rebounds
What 153GW of planned new power actually requires in labor, equipment, and time
Why turbine lead times of 5–7 years are changing how projects are structured and contracted
Where nuclear fits and why SMRs won’t be a mainstream answer until 2035+
Why the craft worker may be the next millionaire in America, and what Enerfab is doing to build that pipeline
The honest concerns: workforce shortages, new data center owners learning power safety, and the complexity of what it actually takes to build a plant
Whether you’re in power generation, industrial construction, or just trying to understand where energy infrastructure is headed, this episode delivers the real-world perspective you won’t get from a headline.
