How Construction Contractors Can Pull Through Labor Shortages and Material Cost Increases in Australia
The construction industry faces a lot of strain due to workforce shortages and sharp price increases for building supplies. The recent Arcadis and the Australian Constructors Association market sentiment study supported this.
Besides, many contractors have reported a rise in material costs of up to 70%, affecting the overall operations of the construction industry.
As these problems are yet to end, industry leaders are looking for sustainable ways to stay competitive.
Understanding the Cause of the Problem
The COVID-19 outbreak has influenced the market’s supply chain of construction materials. It caused severe inconveniences and delays to different construction projects in Australia. What makes it more challenging is the effect of the Russia and Ukraine conflict, leading to skyrocketing oil prices.
As the world gradually adjusted to the pandemic, some behavioural changes contributed to the demand for bigger dwellings. For instance, the e-commerce boom increases the need for data centres. Thus, additional workforce in the construction industry is necessary,
Despite several job opportunities in the field, the influx of new workers is less competitive than it once was. Training programs have stopped their operations after experiencing suspension due to pandemic-related safety concerns. Hence, the construction industry struggled to encourage people, especially the youth, to partake in the workforce.
How can Contractors Pull Through Labour Shortages and Material Price Increases?
Companies must implement strategies to improve productivity, such as task elimination, task redesign, and task reduction. They should ensure that these efforts will have significant, long-lasting benefits.
Industry leaders can become efficient by removing one step from a routine operation. For instance, they can use innovative tools like construction project management software to organise their data instead of pilling papers on their work desk.
Digital techniques help managers create better and quick decisions, eliminating possible errors that might occur in the project. Additionally, these tools can help them monitor their projects, gather real-time data, and create more detailed insights about the progress.
Investing in technologies might be costly at first, but it serves significant benefits in the long run. Construction software can help organisations speed up their onboarding processes and secure access to the needed talents. Companies need to opt for modern digital solutions to survive amidst labour shortages and material cost increases in Australia.