Boat builder John Lake welds the bowsprit of an aluminium-hulled schooner at Yachtsmith International fabrication shop in Dartmouth.(Peter Parsons / Staff)

"BOAT BUILDERS have to be multi- disciplined," says Chip Dickison, training co-ordinator with the Nova Scotia Boatbuilders Association

"We like to see a person who's hands-on and creative," he said. It also helps to be patient, particular and technically inclined. "It's a real craft."

Building a boat is intensive and laborious work. Boat builders need to be committed team players who take great pride in their craftsmanship, he said.

But at the end of the day they must hand over their accomplishment to its new owner and then turn around and start all over again, he said.

Nature of the Work:
This group includes those who make, assemble, and finish a wide variety of products or inspect the finished products for quality.

For example, boat builders make wooden, fibreglass, and metal boats such as sailboats, canoes and motor boats. Inspectors check the assembled boats to ensure product quality. Furniture assemblers make furniture, while inspectors check the finished products to ensure product quality. Assemblers may work with other wood products like window sashes and doors, or with plastics or fibreglass.

Furniture finishers finish new wood or metal furniture to specified colour and finish, while manufacturing painters and coaters tend and operate machines or use brushes and spray equipment to apply paint or other non-metallic protective and decorative coatings. Furniture refinishers make repaired, used, or old furniture look like new.

Industrial painters and coaters work with brushes or spray equipment to apply paint, enamel, lacquer or other coatings. Many products are coated in this way, including airplanes, automobiles, or bathtubs. Metal sprayers and platers coat articles with metal.

Other workers in this group assemble or inspect jewelry, silverware, clocks, watches, musical instruments, sporting goods and toys.

Skills:
These occupations require mechanical aptitude and physical fitness. Good spatial perception, form perception, and hand-eye co-ordination are important. You must be accurate and attentive to detail.

Employment Requirements:
These positions require some secondary-level education.

On-the-job training is provided. Previous experience as a labourer for the same employer may be required.

Boat builder is a designated apprenticeship trade in Nova Scotia. Although you are not required by legislation to be certified, many Nova Scotia employers require you to be a registered apprentice or have a certificate of qualification.

Furniture finishers or refinishers may require courses in furniture finishing or refinishing. Aviation painters require specialized training or college courses.

Work Prospects:
Employment prospects differ for the various occupations included in this grouping. Employment growth in the coming years is projected to be greatest for boat assemblers and inspectors. The boatbuilding industry is one of the fastest-growing manufacturing sectors in Nova Scotia, with a significant amount of manufacturing taking place in the southwest of the province. This industry has diversified into the manufacturing of pleasure craft for the luxury market by companies like Yachtsmith International.

The stability of larger furniture manufacturing companies is affected by demand for furniture and fixture assemblers and inspectors. Such companies face strong competition for market share from global competitors. These occupations are sensitive to overall economic conditions. The recent closure of the Shaw Wood furniture factory in the Annapolis Valley is an example of such competition rendering the factory unsustainable in the current business climate. This closure has resulted in a loss of 200 jobs and is expected to negatively impact demand for furniture assemblers. Self-employment is not common for these occupations.

Labour Market Information: