The Lost Art of the Skilled Trades · Episode 93

The Military-Style Trade School Changing the Workforce Game

With Rob Holmes · Co-founder, Forge Now (Texas)

Hosted by Andrew Brown · May 26, 2026

Rob Holmes co-founded ForgeNow to solve America's skilled trades shortage — producing apprentice-level HVAC, electrical, and plumbing technicians in just 6 weeks.

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The Military-Style Trade School Changing the Workforce Game — The Lost Art of the Skilled Trades

About This Conversation.

Rob Holmes co-founded ForgeNow to solve America's skilled trades shortage — producing apprentice-level HVAC, electrical, and plumbing technicians in just 6 weeks. The average plumber in Texas is 54 years old.

The average electrician is 60. Within 10 years, 50% of today's tradespeople will be on social security.

And nobody's talking about it. Rob Holmes is.

His answer is ForgeNow — a military-style trades training school in Dallas that runs a full-time, hands-on program Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to

Key Takeaways.

01
ForgeNow's military-style training model produces apprentice-level technicians in 6 weeks by going full-time, Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. — the same format and discipline employers expect on day one.
02
ForgeNow graduates start at an average wage of $25 per hour ($50,000/year) and commonly earn raises at 6 and 12 months — compared to $12/hour for an untrained helper with no clear path forward. 50% of today's skilled tradespeople will be on social security within 10 years, and 75% of contractors are for sale — meaning young people who enter the trades now face almost no competition for the next 30 to 40 years.
03
The trades are AI-proof, debt-free, and portable — and Rob makes the case that getting a trade first is the best insurance policy a young person can carry, even if college is still in the plan.

Meet Rob Holmes.

Rob Holmes is the Co-Founder and President of ForgeNow, a trades training school headquartered in Dallas, Texas. A graduate of West Point and a U.S.

Army veteran, Rob built ForgeNow on the belief that the military's model of full-time, immersive, hands-on training is the most effective way to launch a trades career. Since its first class in 2020, ForgeNow has trained over 1,700 graduates and placed them with more than 250 employers across 39 states.

ForgeNow offers 6-week programs in HVAC, electrical wiring, plumbing, and facilities maintenance. It is a Department of Defense SkillBridge partner and GI Bill-eligible program.

Rob and his team are also developing specialized electrical training pipelines to meet explosive demand in the data center sector.

Resources.

linkedin.com/in/rob-holmes-554953 forgenow.edu skillbridge.osd.mil

In This Episode.

Andrew sets up the ForgeNow model — 6 weeks, $25/hour starting wage, and a 91% graduation rate — then welcomes co-founder Rob Holmes.
Rob explains how ForgeNow borrowed the military's full-time, immersive, hands-on format to condense two years of on-the-job training into six weeks.
Two foundational assumptions — the bloom is off the rose for college, and legacy trade paths aren't keeping up with contractor demand — and why on-the-job training creates dangerous attrition risks.
How ForgeNow's short, intense format produces a 91% graduation rate compared to 23% at community colleges, and why the 9% who don't finish almost never fail academically.
How ForgeNow became one of the largest DoD SkillBridge providers in the country, why 1,000 of 1,700 graduates have been military, and what qualities predict success for non-military candidates.
The average electrician in Texas is 60, 50% of tradespeople hit Social Security in 10 years, and 75% of contractors are for sale — why Rob says young people entering the trades now have no competition for 30 to 40 years, and why "get a trade first" is the best insurance policy anyone can carry.