Workforce Visibility & Labor Trends at DICE National 2025

Workforce Visibility and Tech-Enabled Labor Planning Take Center Stage at DICE National 2025

The future of data center development is not just about land, power, and fiber it’s about people.

At DICE National 2025, held May 20–22 at the National Conference Center in Leesburg, VA, more than 1,000 industry professionals gathered to explore the latest in data center infrastructure, investment trends, AI, and operational challenges. Over three days and 20+ panels, a central theme emerged loud and clear: labor availability, workforce visibility, and digital integration are now critical determinants of success in the data center space.

As the demand for mission-critical infrastructure grows, so does the pressure to optimize every aspect of the construction lifecycle. And perhaps no variable is more volatile—or vital—than the skilled labor needed to bring projects to life.

At Kwant, we came away from DICE energized by deep conversations with unions, contractors, developers, and solution providers, all united around one goal: solving the workforce puzzle.

Labor Availability: The New Site Selection Metric

Traditionally, data center developers have prioritized power access, proximity to users, and land availability when choosing sites. But this year, a new variable entered the equation: workforce accessibility.

Owners and developers are now proactively engaging with labor unions during the site selection phase to assess whether regions can support their labor needs over the life of a project. In high-growth areas where multiple hyperscale builds are underway simultaneously, having access to trained carpenters, electricians, and technicians can make or break timelines.

This shift reflects a more strategic, people-first approach to infrastructure planning. It’s no longer just about where you can build it’s about who can help you build it.

Unions Are Ready to Modernize – But Need Better Forecasting Tools

One of the most insightful conversations we had was with Jason Friedman of the East Atlantic Carpenters Union, who oversees operations across 25,000 workers in 7 states (and 600,000 nationwide). He candidly shared that unions are facing real challenges when it comes to forecasting labor demand and organizing workforce visibility at scale.

Their teams are still heavily reliant on fragmented data and manual systems to track where workers are deployed, how project needs are evolving, and where gaps are forming. In a world where data center schedules are measured in hours, not weeks, this lag in visibility can cost millions.

That’s why the union expressed strong interest in Kwant’s workforce intelligence platform, particularly our ability to provide real-time dashboards of worker deployment, anticipate upcoming labor needs, and streamline communication between unions, general contractors, and owners.

In short: tech-savvy unions are becoming strategic partners, and they’re looking for digital solutions that can help them lead in this new era.

Construction Firms Want Predictive Workforce Analytics

General contractors, too, are feeling the pressure. We spoke with leaders from Clune Construction and Turner Construction, who shared their existing workforce tech stacks which include onboarding platforms like Bridgit and site safety tools like Hammertech.

While these tools are valuable, there's a clear appetite for more unified, predictive solutions platforms that don’t just track compliance but offer actionable insights about whether current staffing levels are on track to meet schedules and budgets.

At Kwant, we specialize in exactly that, we can integrate to existing platforms and deliver great results. Our platform goes beyond basic check-ins and time tracking to deliver:

• Predictive analytics on labor productivity and schedule adherence
  
• Workforce utilization dashboards that integrate with project milestones
  
• Digital twin-compatible data streams that enhance overall construction visibility
  

This isn’t workforce management as usual. It’s labor intelligence built for high-stakes, high-speed construction.

The Rise of Digital Twins and How Kwant Integrates

Digital twin adoption is gaining momentum across the data center sector, especially among firms managing multiple concurrent builds. These digital models provide stakeholders with a real-time representation of construction progress, asset health, and system readiness.

Many attendees we spoke with were curious about how Kwant’s workforce data can feed into digital twin ecosystems, providing another layer of context about who is on-site, how labor productivity is trending, and whether human resources are aligned with physical progress.

By integrating workforce intelligence into digital twins, owners and GCs gain a complete picture of construction health from BIM models and material flows to boots on the ground.

Workforce Visibility: A Persistent Industry Challenge

Throughout DICE National, one issue came up again and again: the lack of clear, consistent workforce visibility across projects.

Stakeholders from across the ecosystem developers, GCs, unions expressed frustration with fragmented systems that make it hard to answer basic but critical questions:

• Who is on-site right now?
  
• Are we meeting our required workforce levels for this phase?
  
• Are we deploying workers efficiently across sites?
  
• Where do we risk falling short in 2 weeks, 2 months, or 2 quarters?
  

Kwant’s unified platform offers a single source of truth, capturing real-time worker data through smart badges, mobile apps, and wearables. This allows for proactive planning, not just reactive management.

Tech-Savvy Unions: A New Era of Partnership

We were particularly inspired by the openness from labor leaders to explore digital solutions. The old perception of unions as tech-resistant is quickly becoming outdated.

In fact, many are actively seeking partnerships with platforms like Kwant to:

• Improve transparency with developers and GCs
  
• Help ensure steady employment for their members
  
• Facilitate better training and workforce mobility
  
• Enable predictive staffing models for high-volume regions
  

This presents a unique opportunity to build stronger, tech-powered collaborations that serve all parties from boots on the ground to the C-suite.

Security & Post-Construction Planning

Interestingly, several conversations touched on permanent security infrastructure planning, especially for hyperscale and edge facilities. While not directly tied to workforce, this theme underscores the growing recognition that post-construction considerations should influence early-stage planning.

Kwant’s access control features biometric integrations, badge systems, zone-based tracking are increasingly relevant not only during construction but as part of long-term security strategies.

Market Intelligence Is Guiding Development Strategy

Developers at DICE also shared how they’re leveraging data platforms to monitor emerging project opportunities, permitting activity, and regional development patterns.

We see this as a perfect complement to what Kwant offers: while those platforms help firms decide where to build, Kwant helps them build smarter once they get there by aligning workforce strategy with execution realities.

Building Connections that Matter

We had the pleasure of connecting with a wide range of industry leaders and innovators, including: Skanska, Fulcrum Data Center Services, Cumming Group, Facilimax, East Atlantic Carpenters Union, Foundation Power, T5 Data Centers, Clune Construction, BuiltOn, Cumulus, Construct-X, PTAG Inc., Microsoft,  QTS, TA Digital. AG Inc.,

Each conversation reinforced the same truth: technology is no longer a “nice-to-have”—it’s a competitive differentiator in construction.

Final Takeaway: Workforce Tech Is the Next Big Investment

From labor forecasting to construction phase visibility, one message echoed through every panel and hallway: workforce tech is moving to the center of the data center conversation.

At Kwant.ai, we’re proud to be at the forefront of this shift. We’re building the tools contractors, unions, and developers need to manage their most valuable asset: their people.

Let’s build smarter, together, let's build with Kwant.