Australia's construction costs remain stable

Construction costs in Australia put it the 14th most expensive out of 38 countries surveyed for the latest International Construction Market Survey from Turner & Townsend, with national construction costs expected to rise 2.5 percent on average in 2016 compared to 2.9 percent globally.

Zurich took out first spot with Perth at 18, Melbourne at 20 and Brisbane at 22nd.

Gary Emmett, senior economist for Turner & Townsend comments said since last year’s survey, Australia’s construction costs have only increased a few percent in contrast to other countries where markets are overheated. 

He said to ensure Australian prices stay at reasonable levels, the construction industry must think differently and look for cost savings within the supply chain where the biggest savings and innovation can be found including manufacturing production, design and logistics.

“The industry needs to collaborate with suppliers to look for savings as opposed to traditional adversarial relationships. The use of building information modelling (BIM) will help the industry collaborate to gather data and share plans throughout the lifecycle of an asset to find greater cost saving efficiencies,” he said.

"The costs across Australia’s four major markets show Brisbane increased by 4 per cent in the past 12 months, Sydney hit 3.5 per cent while Perth and Melbourne recorded cost increases of 1 per cent respectively.

“For example, Brisbane and Sydney’s apartment booms have led to the increase in costs in these states. Perth has remained relatively steady due to the mining boom finishing and Melbourne is now experiencing a flat period following a busy apartment boom.

“We are also witnessing increased tender competition which is driving down profit margins.  There is an opportunity now for the industry to look at different delivery and commercial models to improve productivity and margin on projects."

The International Construction Market Survey 2016 analyses input costs uch as labour and materials and charts the average construction cost per sq m for both commercial and residential projects. It can be found here.