ServiceTrade CEO William Chaney shares his top predictions for the fire protection and commercial service industry in the February 2026 issue of Fire Protection Contractor magazine. William gives contractors insights into the forces reshaping how they can successfully streamline operations, attract and maintain skilled technicians, adopt and benefit from AI and other technologies, and use technology to provide better service for customers. Predictions include information about:
- AI & Data,
- Labor Shortage & Talent,
- Industry Consolidation & Valuation,
- Data-Driven Customer Experience
Among his key predictions: agentic AI will become standard for high-performing contractors, with technicians arriving on-site equipped with AI-built prep packs and guided next steps. The skilled labor gap will deepen, making efficiency tools and smart workflows essential growth strategies rather than nice-to-haves. On the valuation front, recurring, compliance-based revenue continues to command premium multiples, and M&A buyers are increasingly favoring tech-enabled, data-clean contractors.
William also highlights a shift in customer expectations, predicting that digital transparency; live job status, photo-rich reports, and real-time issue tracking, will become table stakes for commercial service partners. Meanwhile, reactive break-fix models will give way to predictive, compliance-first service as AI learns from years of inspection and asset data.
The throughline across all ten predictions is clear: the contractors who invest in better platforms, richer data, and smarter workflows will be the ones who grow fastest, command the highest valuations, and deliver the best customer outcomes. Read the full article in the February 2026 issue of FPC magazine.
