SMART/SMACNA Leadership Panel & Q&A
SMART and SMACNA leaders highlight partnership achievements that have moved the industry forward and shared goals for the future, taking questions from the audience.
Moderator
Clark Ellis
Continuum Advisory Services
As Principal and Founding Member of Continuum Advisory Group, Clark Ellis provides consulting services to facility owners, engineering, and construction service providers, building trades unions, trade associations, home builders, real estate developers, manufacturers of building products, tools, and equipment, channel participants, and installing contractors. He has served these clients in North and South America, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
Clark has contributed his expertise to projects involving enterprise strategy, planning, leadership, market research, training and development, business process improvement, and technology deployment. These projects have spanned construction vertical markets such as industrial, oil and gas, infrastructure, general building, utility, as well as single-family and multifamily residential.
In addition to these specific responsibilities, Clark’s research priorities are focused on the application of new technology throughout the design, engineering, and construction value chain, the development of the new processes and collaborative business relationships necessary for the industry to leverage these transformative technologies, and the development of industrialized construction.
Michael Coleman
SMART General President
Michael Coleman assumed the position of SMART General President on June 1, 2023, having been elected by the SMART General Executive Council following the retirement of former SMART General President Joseph Sellers. In all, Coleman has more than 20 years of dedicated leadership at the local and international level. He played a crucial role during SMART’s second-ever General Convention in 2019, serving as secretary of the Constitution Committee and shepherding through 114 proposed amendments – helping to facilitate the democratic process of our union and positioning SMART for future success.
Coleman began his career as a SMART sheet metal worker in 1985, when he joined what was then Local 65 in Cleveland, Ohio (Local 65 merged with Local 33 soon after). After graduating into journeyperson status and honing his craft for several years, he ran for election as a member of the local’s executive board. From there, he became business representative, then Local 33 president and business manager in 2012.
At Local 33, Coleman cultivated a reputation for pursuing innovative strategies in order toorganize more members, effectively structure benefit and pension plans, provide greater flexibility to members and more. He worked tirelessly to boost the local’s profile throughout northern Ohio and West Virginia and demonstrated a willingness to think outside the box in taking on the challenges our union faces.
Seven years later, upon the request of the SMART General Executive Council, Coleman movedto Washington, DC to work as SMART’s director of business and management relations. Shortly after that, General President Sellers asked Coleman to become assistant to the general president, a position in which he served until May 31, 2023.
Todd Hill
SMACNA President
Todd Hill is SMACNA’s President and is the president of Allen Park, Michigan-based Ventcon. Ventcon has a long history of serving companies in the Detroit area with commercial and industrial services, including several customers in the automotive industry. In 2022, Ventcon expanded its manufacturing footprint by building a new facility in Jackson, TN, to service the Blue Oval City in Haywood County and BlueOvalSK Battery Park in central Kentucky.
Hill began his career in 1990 as a sheet metal apprentice with Ventcon, during his career at Ventcon, he received his associate degree in applied science in computer-aided and mechanical design from Schoolcraft College. During his career climb at Ventcon, Hill became a CAD operator and advanced through several management positions, becoming president in 2005. In 2010, Hill and his two partners acquired the business.
Todd’s service at the national level has been exceptional. He sits on various committees and task forces, including the HVAC Contractors Council Steering Committee, Testing and Research Board of Directors, Contractor Operations Manual Task Force, and previously sat on the Pre-Insulated Phenolic Duct Construction Standard Task Force and the Green Building Task Force. Locally, he serves on the SMACNA Metropolitan Detroit chapter’s Board of Directors, Pension and Annuity Joint Trust Funds, Local Joint Adjustment Board, Joint Apprenticeship Committee, Labor Relations Committee, Fire Damper Committee, and Market Recovery Committee.
Tom Martin
SMACNA Immediate Past President
Tom Martin is SMACNA’s Immediate Past President and President of T.H. Martin, Inc., a full-service mechanical contractor based in Cleveland, Ohio. Martin is an industry innovator and highly regarded member of SMACNA-Cleveland, which represents more than 60 contractor firms in northeast Ohio. He has served as the chapter’s president since 2014.
On the national level, Martin’s involvement is unmatched. In 2018, he was awarded SMACNA Contractor of the year. And most recently, he was awarded 2021 Legislative Contractor of the Year. He is a critical player in ongoing lobbying efforts to reform registered apprenticeship laws and regulations, pension reform, infrastructure policies, and prevailing wage enforcement legislation. Martin also attends political events from coast to coast to expand SMACNA’s influence with Congress, his state’s governor and other leaders in Washington, D.C.
Martin is a member of many SMACNA committees, including the National Contractor Manual Task Force Committee, HVAC Council Steering Committee, SMACNA/SMART National Market Recovery Committee, and the SMACNA National Strategic Planning Task Force Committee.
T.H. Martin, Inc. is a family-owned business started in 1985 by Martin’s father, Thomas H. Martin. In his role as president, Martin works alongside his brother, Mike, who serves as vice president of the company.
John Daniel
SMART General Secretary Treasurer
John Daniel assumed the position of SMART general secretary-treasurer on July 1, 2024, following his election by the SMART General Executive Council. Daniel officially won election to the office on August 14, 2024, during the Third SMART General Convention.
Daniel has steadfastly served SMART members for more than 30 years. Since entering the industry in 1991, he has been a sheet metal fabricator and installer, an instructor, organizer, business representative, financial secretary-treasurer and most recently the president/business manager for Local 265.
Daniel’s career path has provided him with a well-rounded perspective of the sheet metal industry and the challenges facing the unionized sector. Having an open mind and being an active listener, leveraging assets both financial and relational, employing technology to not only capture more work opportunities but to attract the next generation of trades men and women — these are only a few of his priorities. Daniel is a trustee on both local and national plans, and he received his bachelor’s degree in labor studies from the National Labor College.
Frank Wall
SMACNA CEO
The Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors’ National Association (SMACNA), the leader in promoting quality and excellence in the sheet metal and air conditioning industry, announced Frank Wall as the organization’s new Chief Executive Officer, effective January 20, 2026. A dedicated executive who has provided strategic leadership to a variety of industry associations and coalitions, Wall looks to advance SMACNA’s mission of creating a competitive advantage for members, through industry education, labor relations, standards development, industry representation, and business studies.
Wall most recently served as the Mechanical Contractors Association of America’s (MCAA) Executive Director of Operations at MCAA. At the National Office, he served as Executive Director of the John R. Gentile Foundation and handled the day-to-day operations of the association. In addition to his role at the MCAA, Frank also worked with C. Richard Barnes and Associates as a faculty member, helping facilitate leadership courses for the unionized electrical industry.
Prior to his time at MCAA, he was Executive Director of the Plumbing and Mechanical Contractors Association of Oregon. There, he helped the association develop a partnership between labor and management to promote progress by uniting in the common goals of professionalism, quality, productivity, cost-effectiveness, safety, and expanding the market share of the union mechanical, industrial, and service contracting industries. His goals were achieved through education, labor relations, public relations and government affairs, both locally and nationally.
Wall also served as President of the Portland Executives Association, Vice Chair of the Oregon Workforce Development and Talent Board, and member of the State Prevailing Wage Committee. He served on the Portland Public Schools CTE Advisory Council, board member of the Oregon Building Congress, and board member of the Emerald Cities Coalition. He was presented the Driving Force Award by Governor Kate Brown in 2018, recognizing his outstanding accomplishment in workforce development in the state of Oregon.
“We are pleased to be led by a professional with the leadership and industry skills necessary to navigate the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead,” said SMACNA President Todd Hill. “He is the right person to take the helm in achieving our objectives.”
Wall is a long-time volunteer for the March of Dimes. He has served on the organization’s National Board of Trustees and on their National Volunteer Leadership Council. Frank has traveled the United States speaking to boards and volunteers about board development and board excellence. Born and raised in Northeast Portland, Frank graduated from the University of Oregon with a BS in Journalism. He has been married to his wife Colleen for 45 years and has two adult sons and three granddaughters.