Major new residential builder set for Perth following joint venture between Simonds Homes and Atlas Group

One of Australia’s biggest residential builders is entering the WA market after striking up a joint venture with construction stalwart Julian Ambrose - stepson of late magnate Len Buckeridge. The new venture between Mr Ambrose’s commercial construction company Atlas Group and the ASX-listed Simonds Homes injects massive building capacity into WA’s long-suffering residential sector. The new venture, called Simonds Homes WA, will focus on quick-build, pre-cast concrete construction which Atlas employs across its commercial construction projects, focusing on detached homes and high-density apartments. The pre-cast technology shaves months from a traditional brick build, with much of the buildings set to be pre-fabricated at Atlas’ Naval Base workshop. “We can get and walls and roof on in ten days,” said Mr Ambrose. Mr Ambrose said traditional brick or brick veneer homes may also be included in the offering, such as the Simonds home pictured above, claiming the market will guide the final housing range. However, the new venture will not cater to mum-and-dad customers in the mainstream market, but only to developers and housing providers which come under the $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund — a Federal Government initiative to help fund social and affordable housing — with a focus on affordable homes and built-to-rent projects. It will inject capacity into WA’s beleaguered market, which currently completes 21,391 homes a year - which is only two thirds of its 2015/16 peak of at 32,451 homes, according to the Housing Industry Association. Melbourne-based Simonds has built 60,000 homes nationally, with an annual production capacity between 1000 to 2000, and has long been regarded one of the country’s top ten biggest builders with annual revenues exceeding $665 million. The 50/50 venture marks a major expansion for Atlas Group, which purchased BGC Construction in September 2024. BGC Construction built many of Perth’s most iconic buildings, including RAC Arena. The Atlas board comprises Mr Ambrose and Kelvin Ryan, who both worked at BGC Construction when it was WA’s biggest building group. Mr Ryan later served as chief executive to Simonds Group Limited. “If you look at who is behind this, it has the pedigree to be one of the biggest builders in WA,” he said of the broader team. Simonds Homes WA would keep overheads low by drawing from Atlas’s 300-strong workforce of architects, draftspeople and engineers based in the Philippines. Atlas was also expanding its range of pre-cast equipment, recently importing new a machine from Germany which Mr Ambrose said was so coveted there was had a 12 to 18 month waiting list. Mr Ambrose acknowledged the labour shortage but said it was easier to find workers for an automated workshop, where the roster is not subject to variables like inclement weather - than for buildings sites. “If we are serious about lifting housing supply, we must improve productivity,” Mr Ambrose said. “Investing in advanced manufacturing allows us to build smarter and faster while maintaining quality.” Simonds Homes executive chair Rhett Simonds said the company saw strong long-term opportunity in WA. “This partnership gives us immediate scale and capability in a market where demand for housing remains high.”