Demand for concrete expected to rise over next five years - report

Demand for concrete expected to rise over next five years – report

Major infrastructure projects underway in eastern Australia are expected to lift demand for concrete and related products, according to new figures from industry representative body Cement Concrete and Aggregates Australia (CCAA).

CCAA CEO Ken Slattery said the construction of the new Western Sydney Airport at Badgery’s Creek was expected to lift demand for concrete by at least one per cent over the next five years.

Melbourne’s Metro Rail Project was also highlighted as an infrastructure project with the potential to increase demand for concrete by another two per cent, according to Mr Slattery.

This rise in demand also follows a record production year for Australia’s concrete, cement and aggregates industry with figures from the CCAA has finding more than 30 million cubic metres of pre-mixed concrete were produced across Australia in 2017.

In 2015, the total amount of pre-mixed concrete produced across Australia was estimated to be 27 million cubic metres, which grew to 28.5 million cubic metres in 2016, according to figures commissioned from industry research company Macromonitor.

The CCAA highlighted the concrete industry contributes more than $15 billion to the national economy each year, with more than 30,000 people are employed directly by the industry and 80,000 estimated to be employed in work related to the industry.

Data released by the CCAA has found NSW construction projects are expected to consume an average of 9.5 million cubic metres of pre-mixed concrete a year between 2018 and 2022, with Victoria following at around 8 billion cubic metres and Queensland predicted to grow to reach 7.2 million cubic metres a year.

“The boom in infrastructure projects such as WestConnex and NorthConnex in Sydney and the West Gate Tunnel in Melbourne, is good news for the heavy construction materials industry and for the more than 110,000 Australians who are employed directly or indirectly in the sector,” Mr Slattery said.

“Demand for concrete is increasing rapidly at a time when more and more planners realise what architects and builders have known for a long time: no other material is as versatile, sustainable and cost effective.”