Australia Set for a Long Term Boom in Maintenance Construction

According to the Maintenance in Australia report by BIS Oxford Economics, 2022 will see an overall boom in maintenance across the country. Expected to rise by 11%, the annual average will rise from $48.2 billion in 2021 to $53.6 billion over the next 5 years.

While beneficial for enterprises and workers in construction, BIS Oxford warns that the growth in maintenance spending will add further pressure to the current shortages of resources in the construction industry.

The report states that this influx ‘puts additional pressure on the construction industry’s ability to deliver on the upcoming wave of work, as maintenance activities tend to use similar materials and skillsets to the construction sector.’

Industrial maintenance will lead the way, closely followed by transport maintenance (following flood damage in NSW and QLD, building maintenance and growth in utility maintenance.

Utility maintenance is expected to be a slower transition, as renewable energy efforts will see coal and gas power stations replaced by wind and solar. These have much lower maintenance requirements. The NBN expansions continue to work toward replacing more of the copper network with fibre as well, which is also less costly to maintain.