Ned Gebert has been on the SMACNA-Western Washington board of directors for approximately five years, and was elected to the secretary/treasurer position in 2017. Throughout this time, he has also served on the Labor Management Committee. Outside of the board, his community activities are plentiful—he has participated in contract negotiations for Sheet Metal Workers’ Local 66 and Local 32 Plumbers and Pipefitters, and has served on the board for the Northwest Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Foundation.
As a professional certified civil engineer for McKinstry Co., Gebert has worked on a number of high-profile energy management and design-build mechanical and electrical projects, as well as architectural metal work projects. He entered the industry because, as a graduate civil engineer, he was drawn to the construction industry out of a pure attraction to helping to build.
“I started my career with Wright Schuchart Harbor, providing structural support for projects up in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska,” he says. “These projects were predominantly piping related, which piqued my interest in the mechanical construction field. I joined McKinstry Co. in 1984, and have been with them ever since.”
After 36 years in the industry, Gebert has seen a great number of opportunities and challenges unfold. “The construction industry has lagged behind the manufacturing sector in terms of productivity and efficiency,” he says. “Our biggest opportunity is to think and act more like the manufacturing sector and maximize supply chain management and offsite pre-fabrication.”
Safety has presented one of the industry’s greatest challenges and most important areas of change over Gebert’s career. Construction has come a long way, he says, but still has work to do.
“The construction industry is inherently dangerous and it is a constant challenge to make sure our employees have a safe place to work and can return home to their families at the end of the day,” says Gebert.
“Just as it has been our biggest challenge, I am proud of how much positive change there has been in the area of safety,” he adds. “Comparing our projects today to those of 35 years ago, the change is monumental.”
SMACNA has an important role to play in moving the industry into a more secure future by providing support to its contractors.
“Construction can be a very difficult and risky business,” says Gebert. “SMACNA can help contractors navigate those areas of risk—safety, labor management, and financial management.”
As part of his term objective, Gebert fully supports the board’s initiatives in building a strong relationship with its labor partners at SMWIA. “Labor and management need to behave as one entity in order to be successful and compete both locally and globally,” he says, reflecting on his favored words to live by: “Take responsibility. If something needs to get done, find a way.”
Learn more about McInstry Co. at www.mckinstry.com.
