IN THE MEDIA

20 APR, 2022 Building challenge champion NZCB in the media

Whangarei Leader, Whangarei Northland

Building challenge champion

Whangārei Leader, Whangārei Northland 20 April 2022

Apprentice takes out regional contest

18yo trainee builder Michael Craig is through to NZ final.

ALYSSA SMITH

When it comes to building, Adan Larsen Builders has the tools of the trade and the right people to use them.

When apprentice Michael Craig, 18, took on the challenge to build a park bench in eight hours at the Taranaki regional New Zealand Certified Builders Challenge, he walked away with a win.

Michael placed first at the challenge, which is open to apprentices employed by NZCB builders.

The park benches were assessed by a panel of expert judges who looked at technical aspects such as the quality of workmanship, measuring, cutting and assembly, as well as other essential skills while working, with Michael’s receiving the highest score.

They will be auctioned off via Trade Me, with all proceeds going to the Cancer Society of New Zealand.

Auction winners will also receive a $75 Resene gift voucher to redeem on stain or paint.

Michael, who is two into his apprenticeship, says the support of his workmates and training made him prepared for the challenge.

“It was my first time taking part in the challenge. I had a lot of support from Adan and my workmates so I felt pretty prepared.” Michael faced off against four other regional apprentices for the challenge. “I received the plans a week ahead of the challenge so I got a grasp on what I needed to do on the day. I just paced myself and worked through it.” As well as claiming the title of regional champion, Michael also won a $500 ITM voucher to redeem on trade tools. Michael will represent Taranaki at the NZCB Apprentice Challenge final, to be held at the NZCB Annual Conference in Hamilton in November. There he will compete against 19 other regional winners from across New Zealand for the Ken Read Memorial Trophy and $25,000 worth of prizes. “I’m a bit nervous, I’ve never done anything like this before but I am pretty excited.” Michael started with Adan two years ago through Stratford High School’s Gateway programme. “My uncle is a qualified builder and when I was younger I would help him.” Adan says he is proud of Michael. “We’re all very proud of him. He’s doing very well. He’s good at planning and thinks ahead which came in handy on the day of the challenge.” This isn’t the first time one of Adan’s apprentices has made it to the nationals. “We’ve had five representatives from four apprentices. It’s satisfying to know that what we do in training is working.” Adan says the NZCB Building Challenge is a great experience for apprentices. “It allows the apprentices to benchmark and see what others are doing in the industry. It provides that experience of working under pressure and shows them that they can do it.

AUTHOR: Alyssa Smith SECTION: GENERAL NEWS ARTICLE TYPE: NEWS ITEM AUDIENCE : 9,755 PAGE: 3 PRINTED SIZE: 451.00cm² REGION: NZ MARKET: New Zealand ASR: NZD 698 WORDS: 552 ITEM ID: 1622855673 20 APR, 2022 “It’s not easy putting yourself out there to compete against others and I take Apprentice takes out regional contest my hat off to everyone who competes. I fully support the New Zealand Certified Builders Challenge. We’re looking Stratford Press, Taranaki forward to nationals.” Page 2 of 2 AdanLarsen Adan Larsen with his apprentice Michael Craig (18, right). withhis apprentice MichaelCraig (18,right).

APPRENTICE Joshua Welsh has claimed the title of the Northland New Zealand Certified Builders (NZCB) Apprentice Challenge champion this year.

Three apprentices who made it to the final were put through their paces, given just eight hours to build a park bench that followed specific design plans and met minimum safety standards. The park benches were assessed by a panel of expert judges who looked at technical aspects such as the quality of workmanship, measuring, cutting and assembly, as well as other essential skills while working against the clock, including their ability to follow a detailed plan and safe working technique.

Welsh received the top score overall. Welsh, 27, is undertaking a building apprenticeship at Whangārei Builders. As well as winning the title of regional champion, he also won a $500 ITM voucher to redeem on trade tools and earned a place in the national final representing Northland.

There he will compete against 19 other regional winners from across New Zealand for the Ken Read Memorial Trophy and $25,000 of prizes.

The national final will be held at the NZCB Annual Conference in Hamilton in November.

NZCB industry pathways and apprenticeship manager Nick Matthews said the competition highlighted the high calibre of passionate apprentices currently training in the industry, following a record uptake of building apprenticeships in recent years.

‘‘Nationwide, we’re seeing increasing numbers of Stratford Press, Taranaki 20 April 2022

eager and talented apprentices entering the trade from a variety of backgrounds.

‘‘The regional competitions have really set the bar for what excellence looks like ahead of the national final, with all competitors either employed by NZCB member builders or enrolled with ITAB (Industry Training Association Building).

‘‘The future of the building industry depends on a robust pipeline of trade-qualified and well-rounded builders, and the NZCB Apprentice Challenge is one way we help to foster that. We also encourage NZCB

member builders to take on apprentices to help to ensure there are highly skilled builders coming through to meet increasing demand,’’ says Matthews. ‘‘These events are a great opportunity to give the Apprentice Joshua Welsh has community an inside look at building apprenticeship claimedthetitleoftheNorthland training and what it takes to be successful in the trade, New Zealand Certified Builders and to celebrate those apprentices that have excelled in (NZCB)ApprenticeChallengecham- their field.’’ pionthisyear. The park benches built were auctioned off via Threeapprenticeswhomadeitto Trade Me, with all proceeds going to the Cancer the final were put through their Society of New Zealand.paces,givenjusteighthourstobuild aparkbenchthatfollowedspecific design plans and met minimum safetystandards.Theparkbenches wereassessedbyapanelofexpert judges who looked at technical aspectssuchasthequalityofworkmanship, measuring, cutting and assembly,aswellasotheressential skills while working against the clock,includingtheirabilitytofollow adetailedplanandsafeworkingtechnique. Welshreceivedthetopscoreoverall.Welsh,27,isundertakingabuilding apprenticeship at Whanga¯rei Builders.Aswellaswinningthetitle ofregionalchampion,healsowona PMCA licensed copy. You may not further copy, reproduce, record, retransmit, sell, publish, distribute, share or store this information without the prior written consent of the Print Media Copyright Agency. Phone +64-09-306 1657 or email info@pmca.co.nz for further information.

$500ITMvouchertoredeemontrade withallcompetitorseitheremployed tools and earned a place in the by NZCB member builders or nationalfinalrepresentingNorth- enrolledwithITAB(IndustryTrainland.Therehewillcompeteagainst ingAssociationBuilding). 19otherregionalwinnersfromacross ‘‘ThefutureofthebuildingindusNewZealandfortheKenReadMem- trydependsonarobustpipelineof orialTrophyand$25,000ofprizes. trade-qualifiedandwell-roundedbuil-

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NZCB industry pathways and berbuilderstotakeonapprenticesto apprenticeship manager Nick helptoensuretherearehighlyskilled Matthews said the competition builders coming through to meet highlighted the high calibre of increasingdemand,’’saysMatthews. passionate apprentices currently ‘‘Theseeventsareagreatopportrainingintheindustry,followinga tunitytogivethecommunityan recorduptakeofbuildingappren- insidelookatbuildingapprenticeticeshipsinrecentyears. shiptrainingandwhatittakestobe

‘‘Nationwide,we’reseeingincreas- successfulinthetrade,andtocelingnumbersofeagerandtalented ebratethoseapprenticesthathave apprenticesenteringthetradefroma excelledintheirfield.’’ varietyofbackgrounds. The park benches built were

‘‘Theregionalcompetitionshave auctionedoffviaTradeMe,withall reallysetthebarforwhatexcellence proceedsgoingtotheCancerSociety lookslikeaheadofthenationalfinal, ofNewZealand.

Apprentice Challenge champion JoshWelsh, centre,with third placegetter Scott Robinson, left,and runner-up Siobhan Murray.

Apprentice Challenge champion Josh Welsh, centre, with third placegetter Scott Robinson, left, and runner-up Siobhan Murray. Buildingchallengechampion

Josh shows he’s a cut above AUTHOR: Rachel Canning SECTION: GENERAL NEWS ARTICLE TYPE: NEWS ITEM AUDIENCE : 17,521 PAGE: 5 PRINTED SIZE: 355.00cm² REGION: NZ MARKET: New Zealand ASR: NZD 473 WORDS: 535 ITEM ID: 1620005438 14 APR, 2022

Apprentice gets top score for title

Second year apprentice wins regional challenge Josh shows he's a cut above

RACHEL CANNING Apprentice Josh McLean, 19, has claimed the title of the Taupō New Zealand Certified Builders (NZCB) Apprentice Challenge champion for 2022, after competing against six other apprentices on April 9 and coming out on top.

The apprentices were put through their paces and given just eight hours to build a park bench that followed specific design plans.

The park benches were assessed by a panel of expert judges who looked at technical aspects such as the quality of workmanship, measuring, cutting and assembly, as well as other essential skills while working against the clock, including their ability to follow a detailed plan and safe working technique, with Josh receiving the top score overall.

Josh is currently doing a building apprenticeship at Straight Up Construction. As well as winning the title of regional champion, Josh also won a $500 ITM voucher to redeem on trade tools and earned a place in the national final representing Taupō.

Josh says it feels pretty cool to win the challenge, especially as he was up against stiff competition.

“It was a hard day to get it all done,” Josh says. By lunchtime, he could gauge how far through the competition he was, and then felt confident he would finish. But one wrong cut can muck up the whole competition.

You don’t get given more timber and there will be points off for correcting a mistake.” Josh went to Taupō-nui-a-Tia College where he enjoyed woodwork and design and visual communication classes and knew he wanted a career on the tools.

He is looking forward to going to the national competition in November in AUTHOR: Shannon Thomson SECTION: GENERAL NEWS ARTICLE TYPE: NEWS ITEM AUDIENCE : 58,000 Hamilton where he will compete against PAGE: 9 PRINTED SIZE: 470.00cm² REGION: NZ MARKET: New Zealand ASR: NZD 1,136 WORDS: 258 19 other regional winners from across ITEM ID: 1618134460 New Zealand. 11 APR, 2022

Taupō & Turangi Weekender, Taupō Central , 14 April 2022 i f 2022 i i i i i f S iWinneroftheITM2022apprenticebuilderregionalchallengeheldinTaupo¯isJoshMcLeanfromStraightUp Construction(left),picturedwithfellowStraightUpConstructionapprenticesKurtisMorgan,andCullern Thornby(right)whowasthirdinthecompetition. “It’s a lot of work, I have to put together a portfolio, prepare a speech and do my CV.” Josh has three more years to go in his apprenticeship and says his favourite part of the design-build process is doing the visual part of the building, especially the decking and cladding, because then he gets to have an opinion on how it looks. Straight Up Construction owner Paul Riedel says the apprentice challenge is a good chance for the guys to show off their skills. PMCA licensed copy. You may not further copy, reproduce, record, retransmit, sell, publish, distribute, share or store this information without He likes taking on apprentices the prior written consent of the Print Media Copyright Agency. Phone +64-09-306 1657 or email info@pmca.co.nz for further information. because it’s nearly impossible to employ an experienced tradesperson in the current climate, and also because he wants things built to his own standards. “With an apprentice, after a while you know it’s sweet because they do it how you want.” Paul employs four apprentices and is about to take on his fifth apprentice. He says many of the apprentices find their way to his business through word of mouth, and also through the high school Gateway programme. “If they approach me, because they want to be builders, well that’s a good start,” says Paul. Straight Up Construction apprentice Cullern Thornby was third in the competition, and second place went to Wade Construction apprentice Daniel Merwyn.

Taupo & Turangi Weekender, Taupo Central Page 2 of 2

Apprentice Quinn Kusanic has claimed the title of the Bay of Islands New Zealand

Certified Builders (NZCB) Apprentice

Challenge champion for 2022. Kusanic and other apprentices were put through their paces, given just eight hours to build a park bench that followed specific design plans and met minimum safety standards. The park benches were assessed by a panel of expert judges who looked at technical aspects such as the quality of workmanship, measuring, cutting and assembly, as well as other essential skills while working against the clock, including their ability to follow a detailed plan and safe working technique. Kusanic received the top score overall. Kusanic, 18, is undertaking the building apprenticeship at Rockstead

Construction Ltd. As well as winning the title of regional champion, he also won a $500 ITM voucher to redeem on trade tools and earned a place in the national final representing the Bay of

Islands. There he will compete against 19 other regional winners from across

New Zealand for the Ken Read Memorial

Trophy and $25,000 of prizes. The national final will be held at the

NZCB Annual Conference in Hamilton in November. NZCB industry pathways and apprenticeship manager Nick Matthews

Winner of the ITM 2022 apprentice builder regional challenge held in Taupō is Josh McLean from Straight Up Construction (left), pictured with fellow Straight Up Construction apprentices Kurtis Morgan, and Cullern Thornby (right) who was third in the competition.

QuinnKusaniciswontheBayofIslandsapprenticechallengechampionandwillrepresenttheBayofIslandsatthe Quinn Kusanic is won the Bay of Islands apprentice challenge champion and will represent national final in November. the Bay of Islands at the national final in November. said the recent competition highlighted the high calibre of passionate apprentices currently training in the industry, following a record uptake of building apprenticeships in recent years. ‘‘Nationwide, we’re seeing increasing numbers of eager and talented apprentices entering the trade from a variety of backgrounds. The regional competitions have really set the bar for what excellence looks like ahead of the national final, with all competitors either employed by NZCB member builders or enrolled with ITAB (Industry Training Association Building),’’ Matthews said. ‘‘The future of the building industry depends on a robust pipeline of tradequalified and well-rounded builders, and the NZCB Apprentice Challenge is one way we help to foster that. We also encourage NZCB member builders to take on apprentices to help to ensure there are highly skilled builders coming through to meet increasing demand. ‘‘These events are a great opportunity Caring for yourfurryfriends Caring for yourfurryfriends to give the community an inside look at PMCA licensed copy. You may not further copy, reproduce, record building apprenticeship training and what , retransmit, sell, publish, distribute, share or store this information without the prior written consent of the Print Media Copyright Agency. it takes to be successful in the trade, and Phone +64-09-306 1657 or email info@pmca.co.nz for further information. to celebrate those apprentices that have excelled in their field.’’ The Bay Chronicle, Kerikeri 21 April 2022 CROMWELL Wanaka apprentice to represent Central Otago Wanaka apprentice to represent Central Otago Otago Daily Times, Dunedin

SHANNON THOMSON BUILDING apprentices put their skills on the line in Cromwell at the weekend.

The Central Otago round of the New Zealand Certified Builders (NZCB) Apprentice Challenge took place at ITM Southern Lakes on Saturday, four competitors vying for the top spot.

The daylong challenge was one of20 throughout the country, the winner going on to represent the region at the national NZCB Apprentice Challenge in Hamilton later this year.

Apprentices had to build a park bench — the design plans for which were revealed only one week ahead of the competition — in a test of attention to detail, time management and performing under pressure.

NZCB Central Otago president Andy McRae said the challenge was an important opportunity for apprentices to extend their skills.

“We need to foster our apprentices — we really believe that apprentices are the future,” Mr McRae said.

The competition came down to the wire, the judges having to double-check their numeracy skills to determine the winner.

After extended deliberation, Ty Sarginson, of Wanaka, beat Daniel Cronshaw Hunt.

“We had some stiff competition — we actually had to have a bit of a recount amongst the judges to make sure our maths was right, so they all did very well,” Mr McRae said.

Mr Sarginson, a third-year apprentice with Mark Duffy Building, said that he was “pretty excited” to win and planned to celebrate with a few beers.

Otago Daily Times, Dunedin 11 April 2022

Page 2 of 2

Attention to detail . . . Ty Sarginson, of Wanaka, competes in the Certified Builders Apprentice Challenge in Cromwell. He went on to win the challenge.

NZCB in the media continues...

Apprentices nail new challenge BRAYDEN LINDSAY

Whakatāne Beacon, Bay of Plenty 14 April 2022

SECTION: GENERAL NEWS ARTICLE TYPE: NEWS ITEM AUDIENCE : 41,000 PAGE: 12 PRINTED SIZE: 502.00cm² REGION: NZ MARKET: New Zealand ASR: NZD 537 WORDS: 659 ITEM ID: 1628210052

29 APR, 2022 Apprentice challenge winner makes special Apprentice challenge winner delivery makes special deliveryWaikato Herald, Waikato

Park benches donated to Lions Lodge

Waikato Herald, Waikato 29 April 2022

THREE Eastern Bay building apprentices went head to head over a park bench on Saturday .

With the encouragement of their bosses Stu and Hamish Galloway, Whakatāne apprentices Timo Turner and Liam Marsh, and Hayden Carter from Ōpōtiki, put their hands up for the New Zealand Certified Builders’ Apprentice Challenge, held at ITM. They had eight hours to construct a park bench, using plans supplied earlier.

Mr Carter, who is undertaking a building apprenticeship at Galloway Builders, received the top score.

As well as winning the title of regional champion, he won a $500 ITM voucher to redeem on trade tools and earned a place in the national final representing Whakatāne. There, the 19-year-old will compete against 19 other regional winners from across New Zealand for the Ken Read Memorial Trophy and $25,000 worth of prizes. The national final will be held at the NZCB Annual Conference in Hamilton in November.

“It was something different,” Mr Carter said. “It was a good challenge for me and took me outside my comfort zone. I had to work things out myself and that was a good challenge ... I am stoked to have won.”

Mr Marsh placed second and earned himself $300.

“I was pretty happy with my seat. It’s definitely not perfect but I am happy with how the day has gone and how I tested myself. It’s a cool opportunity to step outside my comfort zone.”

Mr Turner, who was put forward by Mr Galloway, enjoyed the experience.

“It was certainly a lot different to being on the building site and having Hamish yelling at me. I loved it, though and I am

really pleased with how my chair looks. “It isn’t perfect as you can see but it was awesome giving this a crack and I’d be keen to try it again in the future.” Hamish Galloway was impressed with the efforts of the three. “They’re all fantastic benches and it’s great too see them giving it a good crack. “One of my apprentices (Timo) has only been doing it for about 19 months, so to see him do as well as he did is pleasing. “It’s a fantastic event and a great way to challenge the aspiring builders and put them under pressure.” The park benches were assessed by a panel of expert judges who looked at technical aspects such as the quality of workmanship, measuring, cutting and assembly, as well as other essential skills while working against the clock, including their ability to follow a detailed plan and safe working technique. According to judge Bill Teddy, there was “nothing in it”. “They all did incredibly well. They are three impressive chairs and there was only minuscule things separating the winner and third place.” He said it was interesting seeing how all three apprentices went about making the chairs and what techniques they used.AUTHOR: BRAYDEN LINDSAY SECTION: GENERAL NEWS ARTICLE TYPE: NEWS ITEM AUDIENCE : 5,766

Whakatāne ITM managing director Greg Ashton was pleased the event was able to PAGE: 5 PRINTED SIZE: 489.00cm² REGION: NZ MARKET: New Zealand ASR: NZD 856 WORDS: 567 ITEM ID: 1621426342 14 APR, 2022 go ahead after last minute issues with wood

Apprentices nail new challenge supply. “At one stage there we were struggling. The wood hadn’t arrived and it got to about Thursday and we hadn’t heard from them, so we rang round and fortunately ITM in Whakatane Beacon, Whakatane Bay of Plenty Ōpōtiki managed to help us out and supply some.” Page 2 of 2 FINISHED: Hayden Carter, Luke Marsh and Timo Turner with their finished park benches they made as part of an apprentice builders challenge last Saturday. Photo Brayden Lindsay E2238-104FINISHED: Hayden Carter, Luke Marsh and Timo Turner with their finished park benches they made as part of an apprentice builders challenge last Saturday.

i i i i i i i i i i RickyPlymptonofHaywardBuilderswithhiswinningbench.HewillrepresentWaikatoatthenationalfinalatthe Ricky Plympton of Hayward Builders with his winning bench. He will represent Waikato at NZCBAnnualConferenceinHamiltoninNovember. the national final at the NZCB Annual Conference in Hamilton in November. Photo/DanielleZollickhofer After Hamilton apprentice Ricky Plympton claimed the title of the Waikato New Zealand Certified Builders (NZCB) Apprentice Challenge champion for 2022, he and the NZCB team made a special delivery to the Hamilton Cancer Society’s Lions Lodge: They delivered two of the park benches the apprentices had to build for the challenge. NZCB’s Waikato region president Alan Warburton says it has been “a bit of a tradition” for the association to support the NZ Cancer Society. “The other park benches were auctioned off via Trade Me, with all proceeds HamiltonCancerSocietyLionsLodgeoperationsmanager HennySwinken,WaikatoNZCBapprenticechallengewinner going to the Cancer Society of New Zealand.” RickyPlympton,NZCBpresidentfortheWaikatoregionAlan Hamilton Cancer Society Lions Lodge operations manager Henny Swinken Warburton,NZCBcoordinatorSavanaMariaandNZCB committeememberWayneFirthdonatedtwobenchesofthe says the benches would be very much appreciated. apprenticechallengetotheCancerSocietyLionsLodge. “We only expected one, but having two is a very nice surprise. The benches Photo/DanielleZollickhofer will be moving into our courtyard where we often get some morning sun. I’m certain people will make use of it.” The bench that Ricky made is one of the two moving into the lodge, a location that is close to his heart. “My father-in-law has been diagnosed with cancer and it looks like he doesn’t have long. It feels good to do something for a good cause.” And having his work out for the public to see was also “pretty cool”. Ricky competed against 10 other apprentices on April 9. The apprentices were put through their paces, being given just eight hours to build a park bench that followed specific design plans. The benches were assessed by a panel of expert judges who looked at technical aspects such as the quality of workmanship, measuring, cutting and assembly, as well as other essential skills while working against the clock, including their ability to follow a detailed plan and safe working technique. Ricky received the top score. Ricky, aged 29, is undertaking a building apprenticeship at Hayward PMCA licensed copy. You may not further copy, reproduce, record, retransmit, sell, publish, distribute, share or store this information without Builders. As well as winning the title of regional champion, he also won a $500 the prior written consent of the Print Media Copyright Agency. Phone +64-09-306 1657 or email info@pmca.co.nz for further information. ITM voucher to redeem on trade tools and earned a place in the national final representing Waikato. There he will compete against 19 other regional winners from across New Zealand for the Ken Read Memorial Trophy and $25,000 worth of prizes. The national final will be held at the NZCB Annual Conference in Hamilton in November. NZCB industry pathways and apprenticeship manager Nick Matthews said the competition on Saturday highlighted the high calibre of passionate apprentices training in the industry, following a record uptake of apprenticeships in recent years. “Nationwide we’re seeing increasing numbers of eager and talented apprentices entering the trade from a variety of backgrounds. The regional competitions have really set the bar for what excellence looks like ahead of the national final, with all competitors either employed by NZCB member builders or enrolled with ITAB (Industry Training Association Building). “The future of the building industry depends on a robust pipeline of tradequalified and well-rounded builders, and the NZCB Apprentice Challenge is one way we help to foster that. We also encourage NZCB member builders to take on apprentices to help to ensure there are highly skilled builders coming through to meet increasing demand,” says Nick. “These events are a great opportunity to give the community an inside look at building apprenticeship training and what it takes to be successful in the trade, and to celebrate those apprentices that have excelled in their field.”

Exodus of apprentices fear for industry New Zealand Herald, Auckland

With borders opening there are worries more Kiwis will look abroad to greener pastures. In the third of a five-part series, Anne Gibson examines the construction industry

New Zealand Herald, Auckland 02 May 2022

Award-winning building apprentice Cam Schache, 20, calls Titirangi home and he can’t see that changing any time soon.

The former Mount Albert Grammar student works for MyHome Renovations in Onehunga and last month won the apprenticeship challenge for the Auckland branch of New Zealand Certified Builders.

“I really like New Zealand and I can’t imagine myself going to live in Australia. Where I work is awesome but all my family and girlfriend are here too. I understand people who might have family in Australia wanting to look for work over there but that’s not me,” he said.

For Schache, the decision to stay home is straightforward. He’ll soon be earning $80 an hour and will have more work that he knows what to do with. But in the case of other young Kiwis with skills, employers and business owners know thousands of them will soon be booking flights out of New Zealand. They fear outward flow will be far greater than the migrant numbers able to come in, making an already critical shortage of workers far worse.

Analysts in an ANZ report in March estimated a “fairly significant outflow” of Kiwis, in the order of 20,000 a year. The removal of departure cards means it is no longer possible to accurately assess trans-Tasman migration.

With the border still tight for non- Kiwi visitors, the report says it will be easier for Kiwis to leave than for foreign workers to arrive at a time when the country is facing an insatiable demand for workers.

That’s not good news for the construction sector, already facing estimated workers shortages of up to $250,000.

Construction is New Zealand’s fourth biggest employer at 280,000-plus people. Yet the country is still short of people because growth is so strong. By 2024, national annual residential and commercial construction values will hit $48.3 billion, according to the National Construction Pipeline Report 2021, up from $45b in 2018.

Impediments that could prevent activity in the residential sector from growing in the short term included access to skilled workers and access to materials, the report said. Mark Williams, Waihanga Ara Rua (Construction & Infrastructure) Workforce Development Council general manager of strategy and insights, indicated big numbers.

“The site-based in scope construction [residential and commercial] workforce is estimated at 237,230 [people] in the current year, with the forecast workforce gap being a shortage of 205,601 people,” Williams said.

“If we were to look at the next three years the estimated workforce increases to 243,992 but the supply demand gap also increases to a peak of 235,644 people,” he said. Fletcher Building is New Zealand’s biggest construction sector employer, with 16,000 staff here, in Australia and in the Pacific, up from 14,000 recently. The company operates 30 different business units and says it is always looking for new talent. Nick Matthews, of New Zealand Certified Builders, says a record number of building apprenticeships in recent years has helped supply the sector with desperately-needed skills.

“Nationwide we’re seeing increasing numbers of eager, talented apprentices entering the trade from a variety of backgrounds.”

Competitors in the apprenticeship challenge such as Cam were either employed by council member builders or enrolled with the Industry Training Association Building, he said.

Jason Hungerford, director of the Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation, said New Zealand had a record 21,600 apprentices in training in 16 trades by the end of March, with 65 per cent of active apprentices enrolled in carpentry. That number represented a 77 per cent increase from the 12,200 apprentices in March 2020. The organisation had signed up more than 6500 apprentices in 2021 alone. The Government’s Apprenticeship Boost and TTAF (free training) initiatives had played a significant part in that growth, he said.

Matthews said the future of the building industry depended on a robust pipeline of trade-qualified and well-rounded builders. Apprentices were more likely to be in their late 20s, or early 30s, than 18 these days.

Often, they’d been working elsewhere before the lure of getting a skilled trade beckoned. Apprentices aged 40 and over had entered the NZ Certified Builders awards, he said. But is New Zealand training enough apprentices and will they stay, or are we to be Australia’s free training ground?

“That’s the very real risk,” Matthews says. “We could see thousands of apprentices going overseas.”

Employers get subsidies and apprentices get free course fees via Work and Income’s Apprenticeship Boost scheme but that finishes in early August. Funding can mean an extra $16,000 goes into footing bills for one apprentice for two years under the scheme as it stands.

Industry sector leaders say they have been asking the Government about an extension to the scheme but have yet to receive a reply. The list of shortages across the construction sector is daunting, as Immigration New Zealand’s list of skills shortages in the construction, engineering and trade sectors shows.

As of early 2021, skilled job shortages included project manager, project builder, site foreman, surveyor and quantity surveyor, surveying technicians, engineers in civil, structural, electrical, telecoms, engineering draughts persons and technicians, carpenter and joiner, metal fabricator, welders and fitters, bricklayer and stonemason, building inspector/surveyor, floor finishers, glaziers, plasterers, tilers (wall, floor, roof), plumbers and drain layers, electricians, mechanics in air conditioning, refrigeration, electric line, cable joiner, telecommunications technicians, truck drivers and scaffolders.

Alan Pollard, Civil Contractors’ chief executive, said the critical worker shortage was

Auckland building apprentice Cam Schache is not tempted to work in Australia. exacerbated by limited connections to schools, a lack of support for work-ready training and induction and the high cost of training with a limited supply of trainers. A report in April tackled how to support new entrants to join the workforce — an issue of prime importance for an industry employing up to 60,000 Kiwis in building roads, water networks, airports and other essential infrastructure, he said. Government work with industry via the Construction Skills Action Plan, Ministry of Social Development, Regional Skills Hubs and Te Puni Kokiri-funded projects had made a big difference. But more was needed to tie in with industry and prepare people for success when starting work and ready them for the jobs, Pollard said. Rick Herd, chief executive of commercial construction company Naylor Love, says if New Zealand — and that includes the Government — doesn’t get this right the economy and the country’s progress is going to suffer. AucklandbuildingapprenticeCamSchacheisnottemptedtoworkinAustralia. In the meantime, Cam Schache is intent on improving his skills as a carpenter and builder. He will compete in the national final in November, where the country’s top building apprentice for this year will emerge.

Long wait to get a builder — and supplies

DIY urged as growing backlog of new builds and small reno jobs not popular. DIANA CLEMENT

Kapiti News, Kapiti 11 May 2022

HOMEOWNERS hoping to hire a builder or tradie in the coming months could be in for a shock.

Experts have warned that rising costs, supply chain delays and a spike in building projects have all put pressure on the construction industry and contributed to longer wait times.

CoreLogic head of research Nick Goodall says there is a growing backlog of new-builds, with consents for new dwellings rising to just over 50,000 in the 12 months to the end of March, well above the 30,000 to 35,000 houses that New Zealand’s construction industry has capacity to build annually.

Government regulations have been driving the push for new homes, with first-home buyers able to take advantage of lower loan-to-value ratio requirements and KiwiSaver sweeteners and investors able to claim tax advantages with new builds.

“If a builder is willing and able, there are going to be plenty of jobs for them in the next two years,” Goodall says. “There’s a strong pipeline of properties that need to be built.

But there are serious questions about whether the building industry can reach that capacity anyway with the cost [and availability] of labour and the cost of materials constraining the market.”

The same can be said for related tradespeople, such as electricians and plumbers, needed for domestic building work.

That’s just new homes. New Zealanders who want major work done on existing homes could face even lengthier wait times. “Kiwis better be good at DIY because it’s kind of hard to get a builder already,” Goodall says.

However, supply chain issues could work in the favour of those with smaller jobs. Jeremy Gray, marketing manager at tradie marketplace Builderscrack, says: “A lot of complex renovations and new builds are being organised around the availability of materials. Certain builders will still be able to get [smaller] jobs PMCA licensed copy. You may not further copy, reproduce, record, retransmit, sell, publish, distribute, share or store this indone in and around other work that maybe delayed due the prior written consent of the Print Media Copyright Agency. Phone +64-09-306 1657 or email info@pmca.co.nz for further infoto supply issues.” Malcolm Fleming, chief executive of New Zealand Certified Builders, says there are some potential headwinds facing the construction industry. Rising interest rates and inflation are reducing people’s ability to borrow and pay for building work. Fleming says drop-off in demand could ease pressures. That should mean good builders could become more readily available for work.

If building businesses fail however, homeowners will face another barrier to finding tradies. Fleming is “certainly hoping” that the difficulties from supply chain restraints, recruitment and falling demand will not drive builders out of business, but Kiwibank chief economist Jared Kerr is not so sure.

“It’s an uncertain time. There could be a few more builders go to the wall [this year]. We’ve heard of a number of anecdotes of builders struggling with the blowout and costs and ability to find labour. It is a tough period right now,” Kerr says.

“But I think, looking through the next few years, there are still thousands of homes that need to be built in order to balance the housing market. So, there should be plenty of work in the pipeline for the industry as a whole.” Although the larger builders will likely be tied up with large scale home building, smaller builders should become available, he says. But at the same time Kerr also expects to see demand drop in the smaller job space. “I could imagine that as the housing market slows as it is now, people will be less inclined or less keen on renovating. Plus, we did a lot of DIY, and projects around the home over the last couple of years. Maybe that’s coming to an end.” Homeowners post jobs on Builderscrack that tradies then chase if they need work. Gray has seen significant change in tradie availability for those smaller jobs over the past couple of months. Pre-COVID, typically less than 8.5 per cent of jobs posted on Builderscrack attracted no interest. That jumped as high as 15 per cent early this year when demand for tradies was peaking on and off the platform. “The pressure may come off a bit in the months to come, but we’re expecting to see a long tail of demand from people who have held off undertaking improvements due to the perceived low availability of tradespeople.” Builderscrack monitors which trades are in demand. In April, gas fitters topped the list, followed by flooring, cladding, roofing and bricklaying tradespeople. The least in demand were electricians, followed by those dealing in painting/decorating, plastering, excavation and plumbing.