Tasmanian shipbuilder Incat turns to South Australia for workers due to lack of local tradesmen

A LACK of Tasmanian tradesmen has forced boat builder Incat to throw a lifeline to South Australian tradies while they wait for Adelaide’s future frigate work to kick in.

A LACK of Tasmanian tradesmen has forced boat builder Incat to throw a lifeline to South Australian workers while they wait for Adelaide’s future frigate work to kick in.

The call for employees comes as Adelaide shipbuilder ASC is having to shed jobs as work on the Air Warfare Destroyers winds up.

Incat chief executive Tim Burnell said there simply weren’t enough local tradesmen to fill the jobs.

“We recognised probably now 12 months ago that the [Royal Hobart] Hospital job was going to soak up a lot of what we call finishing trades — electricians, fit-out guys, and so on,” Mr Burnell said.

“We knew that would be an issue, but we’ve also been struggling with fitters, mechanics, welders, and fabricators.

“Everyone is experiencing the same issues. No one can remember it being like this in the past.”

Mr Burnell said because the next round of defence work in SA was two or three years away from “really ramping up” Incat had a perfect opportunity for skilled tradesmen to keep up their skills in the interim.

“We can certainly fill the two-year gap for people in South Australia that are waiting for contracts to come online,” he said.

Mr Burnell said Incat was on the hunt for 40 electricians, 24 fit out workers, 71 fabricators and 21 welders.

“We have been advertising for particular tradesmen on and off for well over a year,” he said.

“We had an aim for a workforce total of about 700 for this year but we have just not been able to get the skilled workforce we need in Tasmania.

“We have a peak need for the next six months, and then it drops off a little bit, but we certainly have a need for the next two or three years for more tradesmen than what we’ve currently got.”

A new 35m ferry that was christened and launched at Incat in July. Picture: SAM ROSEWARNE

Incat is currently building two 110-metre catamarans that will operate in Europe.

It has also built ferries that have been used in military applications including one that completed over 100 trips between Darwin and Dili, transporting personnel and equipment, during the 1999 East Timor crisis.

Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union assistant branch secretary Simon Pisoni said the roles could be perfect for workers who have lost their jobs at Osborne’s shipbuilding company ASC.

“There is additional training that is required so it makes a lot of sense to have these guys maintaining those skills and being able to come back to South Australia for the frigate program,” Mr Pisoni said.