Central Ohio Building Trades Update: Intel, Data Centers and Power

The America’s Work Force Union Podcast checked in with Dorsey Hager of the Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council for an update on the region’s biggest construction drivers: the Intel project in Licking County, a fast-expanding data center market and a new wave of power generation work designed to support growth.

Hager outlined current workforce needs, described how local debates are shaping development decisions, and emphasized why long-duration projects—such as chip manufacturing, data management infrastructure and energy plants—are becoming the backbone of steady union employment across Central Ohio.

• Intel remains a long-horizon union jobs engine: The project is advancing with roughly 1,000 workers on site today and a projected peak near 1,600 by year’s end.
• Data centers are shifting from single builds to permanent work ecosystems: Construction, upgrades and maintenance create recurring demand across multiple crafts.
• Power generation is becoming the next major pipeline for the building trades: Behind-the-meter power and large plants like Bluegrass could create thousands of union jobs and new infrastructure work.

Intel Construction in Licking County: What the Workforce Numbers Signal

Central Ohio’s construction economy has been defined by megaprojects for several years, but few have carried the same long-term significance as Intel’s buildout east of Columbus. In the latest update, Columbus Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council leader Dorsey Hager described a project that is moving forward steadily, even if it has not reached the headline workforce totals once expected.

The current count is about 1,000 building trades workers on the jobsite, with an additional 600 expected over the next 60 to 90 days as seasonal conditions improve and more exterior work ramps up. That trajectory points to a projected peak of around 1,600 workers by the end of the year.

For the building trades, the most important detail is not the peak number but the duration. Hager framed the Intel work as a multi-year anchor project, with union labor expected to remain engaged well into the next decade. In practical terms, that means steady dispatch opportunities, overtime availability and a project environment where working conditions and incentive structures can support retention.

Just as important is the geographic clustering effect. The Intel site sits in a corridor that includes New Albany and Licking County—an area being reshaped by data centers, related utility work and secondary projects that follow large industrial development. In Hager’s view, the region is entering a phase in which suppliers and complementary facilities begin to arrive, expanding the work opportunities beyond the initial build.

Central Ohio Data Centers: Growth, Pushback and the Reality of Demand

If Intel represents a long-horizon industrial build, data centers represent a rapidly growing sector that is changing the construction landscape in real time. Hager described Central Ohio as one of the nation’s largest data center markets, with momentum that could push the region even higher.

But rapid growth can bring local friction. Hager outlined how some communities are pushing back against new facilities, often using familiar arguments that have appeared in other energy and development debates: concerns about land use, infrastructure strain and the desire to keep large projects out of view.

The building trades’ response, as Hager described it, is not a one-size-fits-all message. It is a sustained community education effort focused on what data centers actually do and why demand is not abstract. Data centers are the physical backbone of modern storage, backup and computing. They support business continuity for major employers and keep critical information closer to home.

Hager also emphasized a point often misunderstood in public debate: data centers are not only about the permanent headcount in a single building. While a facility may directly employ dozens of workers depending on the operator, the broader employment impact comes from the ecosystem around the campus—construction phases, recurring upgrades, equipment replacement cycles and ongoing maintenance.

In Central Ohio, Hager said there are already long-running data center sites where union workers have remained active for years due to regular modernization and expansion. That pattern matters for workforce planning because it creates a steady pipeline for electricians, plumbers, welders, mechanical insulators, laborers and other crafts.

Behind-the-Meter Power: Why Energy Projects Follow Data Infrastructure

As data centers multiply, increased power consumption becomes unavoidable. Hager described behind-the-meter power as a key strategy to support growth while reducing pressure on the broader grid. In simple terms, these projects aim to generate electricity for large users rather than drawing heavily from shared capacity.

From a labor perspective, behind-the-meter power is not just a policy concept. It is another construction and maintenance pipeline. Hager indicated that Central Ohio has already seen early movement in this area, including groundbreakings and pre-job activity that suggest more projects are imminent.

The implication for the building trades is significant: the region’s workload is expanding from building data centers to also building the energy plants that power them. That adds new categories of work—gas and hydrogen facilities, related mechanical systems and the infrastructure that connects power generation to industrial users.

A Local Case Study: Development Votes and Community Infrastructure Needs

Hager detailed a recent case in a small Ohio community where a proposed expansion of data center development became intertwined with local infrastructure challenges.

The situation, as he described, involved negotiations that included potential investments in schools and commitments to address water and sewage systems facing compliance issues. In smaller communities with aging infrastructure, the cost of upgrades can be substantial, and the question becomes who pays and how quickly improvements can be delivered.

Hager’s broader point was that development debates often occur in places where local governments are under pressure, decision-makers are highly visible in daily community life, and the political stakes can be intense. In these environments, the building trades are increasingly focused on early engagement—showing up before misinformation hardens into permanent opposition.

At the same time, Hager suggested that statewide policy frameworks matter because local decisions can have statewide consequences, especially when they affect energy planning and utility costs.

Bluegrass Power Station Approval: A Major New Building Trades Project

While data centers and Intel dominate headlines, Hager’s update also included a major development in power generation: approval of the Bluegrass Power Station in Fayette County.

He described the project as a large-scale gas-powered plant located near existing industrial activity, including Amazon data center campuses and other major investments. Early indications suggest a project cost ranging from roughly $600 million to $850 million.

For union workforce planning, the projected manpower needs are substantial. Hager said early expectations of approximately 750 to 800 electricians at peak, alongside hundreds of pipefitters and significant demand across additional mechanical and civil trades. At full stride, the project could approach 2,000 workers on site.

Beyond the jobsite, Hager described the project as a catalyst for secondary infrastructure work—water and wastewater facilities, road and bridge improvements and expanded access to support industrial growth. For the building trades, these follow-on projects often represent the difference between a single large job and a multi-year regional work program.

Economic Development Wins and Losses: Why the Pipeline Still Matters

Hager also addressed the reality of economic development competition: not every project lands in every region. He described a major manufacturing site decision that ultimately went to another location, despite Central Ohio's strong push.

From a labor relations standpoint, the key takeaway is how the building trades respond to a loss. Hager’s framing emphasized continuity: the region’s workforce pipeline remains strong due to existing wins, ongoing expansions and the broader attractiveness of Central Ohio for advanced manufacturing and life sciences.

He highlighted the core questions major employers ask when evaluating a region: whether the workforce is available to build the facility and whether the skilled workforce is available to maintain and operate it once complete. The Central Ohio building trades’ answer, as he presented it, is grounded in apprenticeship capacity, contractor readiness and the region’s training infrastructure.

What Comes Next for Central Ohio’s Building Trades

Taken together, Hagar’s updates point to a construction economy shifting from single megaproject headlines to an interconnected system: chip manufacturing, data infrastructure, and power generation reinforcing one another.

For the building trades, that system creates two strategic priorities. First, maintain a steady pipeline of skilled workers through apprenticeship and journey-level training to meet demand across multiple crafts. Second, invest in community education and local engagement so that development decisions are informed by facts, long-term infrastructure needs and the economic value of union work.

Central Ohio’s next chapter, as Hager described it, will be defined by scale and duration. The work is not only coming—it is stacking, and it is increasingly tied to the infrastructure that will shape the region’s economy for years.

Go Behind the Scenes of the Labor Movement

Every victory at the bargaining table starts with workers standing together. From the shop floor to the statehouse, hear how activists are fighting for better wages, safer conditions and a stronger future. Subscribe to the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to get the latest interviews with the leaders and organizers building worker power across America.