Nexstar Network of Bloomington, Minnesota — one of the leading business coaching and training networks for HVAC, plumbing, and electrical contractors — announced an expanded partnership with SkillCat, a trades industry innovator and Nexstar Strategic Partner. The partnership combines Nexstar's member-driven technical training through its NexTech Academy platform with SkillCat's mobile-first workforce development platform to create what the companies describe as the industry's first fully scalable, accessible, and affordable training ecosystem for the skilled trades.
Julian Scadden, CEO and president of Nexstar Network, framed the partnership's intent: 'This is an exciting evolution as two of our industry's top technical training programs build something stronger, better, and well-suited for the future. Our members will continue to receive the exclusive content and support they depend on through a platform built to scale their success.'
The Two Platforms — What Each Brings
Nexstar's NexTech Academy provides technical training content developed for and by HVAC, plumbing, and electrical contractors — curriculum that covers both technical skills and the business competencies that translate technician expertise into service quality and customer satisfaction. The content has been refined through Nexstar's contractor member community over decades of use.
SkillCat provides a mobile-first delivery platform designed specifically for the trades workforce — an interface and learning management system built around how technicians actually learn, available on smartphones that technicians carry on the job rather than requiring desktop computer access. SkillCat CEO Ruchir Shah described the combination as enabling Nexstar and SkillCat to 'focus on what we each do best while more deeply serving our members and our trades.'
• Lower barriers to entry: Mobile-first delivery makes technical training accessible to potential HVAC recruits who may not have access to traditional classroom training or who work schedules that make evening classroom attendance impractical
• Improved upskilling pathways: Technicians who can advance their skills through accessible mobile learning have clearer career development pathways — improving retention for contractors who invest in their workforce development
• Scalable for the industry: A training platform that scales nationally through mobile delivery can address the HVAC workforce shortage more systematically than locally-delivered apprenticeship programmes alone
Nexstar Network's expanded partnership with SkillCat — combining NexTech Academy's contractor-developed technical curriculum with SkillCat's mobile-first delivery platform — creates a scalable, accessible trade training ecosystem designed to lower barriers to HVAC career entry, improve technician upskilling pathways, and address the structural workforce shortage that the BLS projects will require 40,000+ annual HVAC job fills through 2034.
The HVAC Workforce Context
The Nexstar-SkillCat partnership is designed for the structural HVAC workforce challenge: the BLS projects more than 40,000 HVAC job openings annually through 2034, the average HVAC technician age is increasing, and the pipeline of new entrants has not kept pace with industry growth. Any training infrastructure that makes HVAC career entry faster, cheaper, and more accessible is addressing a genuine industry constraint.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Nexstar Network-SkillCat partnership?
Nexstar Network and SkillCat announced an expanded partnership in May 2026 combining Nexstar's NexTech Academy technical training content with SkillCat's mobile-first workforce development platform to create a fully scalable, accessible, and affordable training ecosystem for HVAC, plumbing, and electrical trades. The partnership aims to lower barriers to trade career entry and improve technician upskilling pathways.
