Mid West building industry remains strong despite global issues

Serious issues experienced by the Perth building industry in recent months, which has seen multiple builders fold, have not affected the Mid West to the same extent, according to the Master Builders Association of WA. MBA WA executive director John Gelavis said the Mid West building industry had been resilient in the face of global supply chain challenges and skilled trades shortages. “Certainly the Mid West is a really robust building industry that’s got wonderful builders in it. Most of them are Master Builders members, which we’re proud of,” he said. “The contribution we make to the State and local economy is huge and that’s why governments have supported the construction industry and they continue to support us because of what we contribute to the West Australian economy.” Mr Gelavis said it was important for the public to know the issues they were experiencing were not the fault of the builder. “The builder hasn’t caused COVID. We’re working with these State, national and global supply chain challenges,” he said. “It’s really important that consumers are kind and work with their builder. We’re working with the government to try find some solutions to help the industry move forward.” Mr Gelavis said there was a three-dollar multiplier effect for every dollar invested in the building and construction industry. “This is important for local communities like the Mid West, and that’s going to benefit not just people associated with the building industry but also those other industries and small businesses,” he said. “They could be the local delicatessen or accounting firm; there’s a multiplier effect across the local economy.” Mr Gelavis highlighted the contribution the industry made to the local economy. “The support of local economies means that local economies thrive and the Mid West region has an absolutely wonderful building industry,” he said. “It’s a very proud industry made up of some magnificent builders and we as an industry want to make sure that we’re doing the best we can to support the consumers, but also the government or private developers that are doing commercial building work too.” Mr Gelavis said he was optimistic for the future of the industry. “We’re working through the challenges and hopefully the industry will go from strength to strength in years to come,” he said.