‘Going to need a trade army’: $5.9B of construction forecast for Central Queensland in next year

CSQ CEO Brett Schimming said the Central Queensland construction industry would be under “intense pressure” over the next 12 months.

According to Construction Skills Queensland, 730 apprentices are currently employed in Central Queensland – a 17 per cent increase from last year. Photo: File

Nearly $6 billion worth of construction work is forecast to take place in Central Queensland in the next year - putting the construction industry under ‘intense pressure’.

Construction Skills Queensland released its $49 million 2021-22 Training Plan in Rockhampton on Tuesday, with plans for a ‘trade army’ to be trained up to meet demand.

It predicts that $4.8 billion of engineering work and $1.1 billion of building work will be be done in Central Queensland in the next 12 months, and that for the same period, $15.6 billion has been ‘committed’ - meaning commenced or likely to commence - to major projects.

A further $10.7 billion in projects is ‘planned’ - meaning commencement is less certain.

For those major projects, 1,645 jobs have been committed, and 4,071 are planned.

According to the CSQ, 730 apprentices are currently employed in Central Queensland – a 17 per cent increase from last year.

CSQ CEO Brett Schimming said the Central Queensland construction industry would be under “intense pressure” over the next 12 months because of a surge in house building demand competing with strong commercial and infrastructure activity.

“Central Queensland’s house building sector has been thrown into overdrive due to HomeBuilder and other government incentives,” he said.

“Central Queensland housing approvals have more than doubled in the last 12 months.

“At the same time, the commercial and infrastructure sectors are thriving and needing a steady supply of skilled workers to keep their projects moving on schedule.

“CSQ estimates that Central Queensland will have nearly $6 billion worth of construction underway over the next 12 months,” he said.

Construction Skills Queensland CEO Brett Schimming. Photo: Matt Taylor

Mr Schimming said training would be a lifeline for the busy construction industry, and announced a $2 million Training Plan for Rockhampton.

“We are going to need a trade army to get through this volume of work,” he said.

“CSQ is putting the call out to trade and site workers, and sub-contractors, to add to your skill set, get new work tickets, and take advantage of this opportunity.”

“CSQ has already registered an increase in local training enrolments, and we’ve seen strong growth in employment of construction apprentices.

“CSQ funded training is available for individuals and businesses of all sizes – from small mum and dad trade operators, to huge workforces like Rookwood Weir and Shoalwater Bay Military Training Facility.”

CSQ funding covers most of the costs, or all of them, of eligible training for workers and businesses in the construction industry.

Originally published as ‘Going to need a trade army’: $5.9B of construction forecast for Central Queensland in next year