Painting Australia in the 2020’S
As we approach the new decade, it’s time to reflect on how the economy, government policy, environmental issues, new technology and trends will affect our industry. Although none of us has a crystal ball, (and crystal balls don’t actually work, by the way), we can use current trends and policies to predict the major impacts on our industry. It’s something smart business people do all the time, and its what makes us leaders in the industry. In 2007 when I first started talking to painters about VOCs in paint, most painters thought I was some kind of tree-hugging hippy. But only ten years later Low-VOC paints dominate the industry, and they are specified on most large projects. When I spoke to painters about saving water in 2007, a lot of painters thought that I was exaggerating the need to become sustainable. But fast-forward to 2019 and large parts of Australia have been under severe drought for several years and most painters have used waste-water recycling units. In 2013 when the National Painting and Decorating Institute launched e-learning for the painting industry, the MPAV published a press release saying that e-learning could never be used for training painters. By 2019, almost 80% of all apprentices in Queensland are studying on-line using our e-learning system, over 1500 painters across Australia and New Zealand have enroled in an on-line course, and TAFEs across the country are rolling out e-learning for all apprentices.
across Australia have publicly said that these were directly caused by climate change. How will this impact our industry? One way is through increased demand for intumescent coatings, or ‘bush-fire retardant coatings’. After the devastating 2009 fires in Victoria the government introduced new regulations for houses and buildings in bush-fire risk zones. These regulations mean that new buildings built in those zones must meet new Bushfire Residential Building Standards. One method that building designers can use to improve a building’s resistance to bush-fires is to use intumescent coatings on exposed doors and walls. There will no doubt be increased use and awareness of these coatings as state governments scramble to create new regulations to help residents cope with increased bush-fire risk from climate change. If you haven’t, we recommend you complete the Intumescent Coatings Course with the National Painting and Decorating Institute, to prepare your business for this growing market.
So, what does the next decade hold? CLIMATE CHANGE AND BUSHFIRES In case you are still wondering, climate change is not only real, its impacting us right now. Last month 11,000 of the world’s scientists signed a declaration warning that the world’s governments must act urgently on climate change to avoid catastrophic environmental and economic collapse. All leading economists are warning that action must be taken, and business leaders are pushing the government to take meaningful action. The recent devastating bushfires through eastern Australia are not a hoax, they were very real, and unprecedented. Fire chiefs
6 | Aussie Painting Contractor
Climate change will also affect drying times for paint. There is already an increase in the number of extremely hot and dry days in many parts of Australia, and this will continue to increase. Manufacturers may change formulations, but contractors will need to plan their projects to cope with changing climatic conditions. In addition, employers need to plan ahead so that their staff have the physical resources to cope with increasing days of hot and dry conditions.
