Rooted in the Midwest and built on decades of field expertise, this family-led organization supports fiber installation, overhead electric distribution and underground utility construction in more than 16 states. One project may run through a rural corridor with minimal traffic while another unfolds along dense urban streets.

The company’ s utility fleet reflects that range of work, from bucket trucks, horizontal directional drills, mini excavators, skid steers and track loaders to digger derricks and support trucks. Experience levels vary just as widely, with new hires often working alongside operators with decades in the field.

As Sellenriek expanded, hiring alone wasn’ t enough to keep pace. The company needed a more systematic way to upskill the crews already in the field.

Building Consistency Workforce pressure in utility construction is often framed as a hiring problem, as labor demands continue to outpace the available workforce across much of the industry. In practice, the greater challenge often shows up after hiring, when new employees and experienced operators alike are expected to perform complex work with limited time for structured workforce development.

Workers are often most vulnerable early in their careers. One study of workers’ compensation claims found that 34 % of workplace injuries occur during an employee’ s first year on the job. In utilities, where crews operate heavy equipment near energized lines and buried infrastructure, mistakes can escalate quickly. Managing that early career risk is more complicated when crews are dispersed and training conditions vary from one jobsite to the next.

For Sellenriek, that challenge was amplified by scale. Crews were spread across multiple states, operating different types of equipment in widely varying jobsite conditions. Weather could disrupt on-the-job training, and production equipment wasn’ t always available to pull aside for practice. Under those conditions, informal learning often led to uneven standards from one crew or region to the next.

Beyond Seat Time Historically, many equipment operators train through a watch-and-learn model. New hires observe experienced operators, gradually take on more responsibility and build confidence through repetition in the field.

The watch-and-learn approach can build familiarity, but it can also allow inefficient habits or inconsistent safety practices to take hold.“ Experience alone doesn’ t guarantee strong operating practices,” said Mark Woodward, director of training and safety manager for Sellenriek.“ We needed a scalable training system that could bring new hires up to speed quickly while reinforcing standardized practices for experienced crew members.”

To address that challenge, Sellenriek developed the BUILT program, short for Building Utility Infrastructure Leadership Training. The four-day program was originally designed for new hires, but leadership soon saw its value for the broader workforce as well. Bringing experienced employees through the training created an opportunity not only to refresh safety practices, but also to align expectations across crews and regions.

“ We’ ve had 35-year employees come through the program and they feel that it was a tremendous benefit to them.” Woodward said.“ What we quickly realized was we wanted existing employees to come through the program as well to reset safety training.”

That shift changed BUILT from a basic onboarding

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