The Australian Constructors Association has developed the Future Australian Infrastructure Rating (FAIR), an initiative that rates the performance of government funded projects to improve the sustainability of the construction industry.
The FAIR initiative has been developed in response to the construction industry’s workforce shortage, which is expected to peak in less than 18 months with a shortfall of 105,000 workers. This poses a major risk to the delivery of Australia’s infrastructure pipeline.
Skilled migration and training will provide some relief, but only major industry changes targeting productivity and the overall sustainability of the industry will fully solve the problem.
Australian Constructors Association CEO, Jon Davies, said the industry’s challenges are widely understood and solutions known but positive action has been piecemeal at best and lacking coordination.
“Until now there has been no mechanism to ensure reforms proposed by expert bodies like Infrastructure Australia are implemented –let alone expedited,” Mr Davies said.
“The Australian Constructors Association has worked with government and industry to develop FAIR as that mechanism.”
FAIR is designed to rate government funded projects on how well they performed against a range of key reform areas such as improved productivity and increased innovation.
“Federally funded projects undertaken by state government delivery agencies would be given a rating that would be published on a website leading them to strive for increasingly better outcomes for their stakeholders,” Mr Davies said.
“Just like people who look at restaurant ratings, contractors, wanting the opportunity to demonstrate their capabilities, rather than their willingness to accept increasing levels of unquantifiable risk, would look at state government agency ratings when choosing where to focus their best resources, providing another reason for government delivery agencies to collaborate with industry to drive improved project outcomes.
FAIR is planned to build on the success of ratings schemes like NABERs, Green Star, the IS Rating which have all been linked to significant industry improvements.
“There is no reason why these existing rating schemes could not be broadened to bring forward a step change in productivity and innovation across the construction industry,” Mr Davies said.
If implemented, the initiative would see governments address the industry’s skills shortage and reduce sector insolvencies while unlocking productivity gains in the vicinity of $15 billion annually.
“FAIR is about driving innovation, improving productivity, building capability and capacity and improving the culture of the Australian construction industry so that it is an industry of choice, able to deliver the infrastructure that Australia needs –when it needs it –and for a price that it can afford,” Mr Davies said.
