Data center construction is booming, and for the mechanical insulation industry, these projects represent both a significant opportunity and a new set of challenges. At NIA’s 70th Annual Convention in March, we convened a panel of industry experts moderated by NIA Secretary/Treasurer Louis Walton, Proto Corp. Representing contracting, distribution, and manufacturing, the panelists explored what it really takes to navigate a data center project from the insulation perspective. Today’s data centers are packed with more equipment, more systems, and more trades working in the same spaces than a typical commercial or
industrial project, and that density is a big part of what drives their complexity. The discussion touched on everything that makes these projects unique: the heightened demands around safety and site security, the critical importance of communication and coordination across trades, and the very real pressures around power, product availability, and labor. What follows are key takeaways from each panelist about their experiences working on some of the most demanding projects in the industry today.

Steve Gorman, Regional Sales Leader, Owens Corning
Plan earlier than you think you need to. Communication and transparency are critical. The earlier you’re aligned with your partners, the fewer surprises you’ll face, and the more control you will have.

Auston Shaw, Vice President of Business Development, Southeast Region, Chaparral Insulation Co., Inc.
The biggest challenge is manpower, as the demand is incredible right now. There is more opportunity than capacity. You have to build as a team, without overwhelming anyone, and you’re still taking care of all your non-data-center customers at the same time. These jobs move fast, and you can’t afford to let anything fall through the cracks.

Matthew Stillitano, Vice President, Insul-Tech, Inc.
As with any mission-critical project, the demands on your company and your employees will be extreme at times. It is during these types of builds that you, along with your customer, develop ways to be more efficient. This happens by engaging with your team and your customer, asking questions from the preconstruction estimating process to the punch list items. Short-term pain can always turn into long-term competitive advantages and success. Embrace the chaos!

Matt Vogt, Director of Sales, National Accounts, Distribution International, Inc.
From the distributor side, communication and relationships are everything—bring your partners everything you know as soon as you know it. And don’t underestimate the logistics. Yard space alone becomes a real operational challenge on projects of this scale.

It’s worth stepping back and acknowledging what the panel made clear throughout the conversation: Data center projects are not simply bigger versions of the work they already know how to do. The scale, the security requirements, the compressed timelines, the product specification demands, and the coordination complexity all combine to create a project environment that requires a different level of preparation and intentionality than most mechanical insulation projects.

The good news is that no one is navigating this alone. Contractors, distributors, and manufacturers are all learning together through sharing what’s working, identifying gaps, and building the relationships and processes that make the next project run a little smoother than the last.

Data center work isn’t going away—if anything, the pipeline is only growing. Professionals in the mechanical insulation industry are continuing to invest in communication and planning on the front end, as well as pushing for improvements in execution. NIA remains committed to facilitating these kinds of conversations, bringing voices to the table so that the entire industry can benefit from first-hand insights.