Introduction

Civil Contractors – the people who create Australia’s infrastructure

The roads we drive on, the airports we fly from, the foundations of all our buildings, the bridges we cross, the tunnels we travel through are just some examples of this infrastructure we often take for granted.

Wherever we work, live or play, the Civil Constructor has already been there.

The multi-billion dollar Civil Construction industry offers a variety of occupations.

It is an industry where you can enter, and with training and the right attitude you can become a supervisor or professional engineer.

Many people in civil construction have started their career labouring on an excavation site or working on a road building project and then progressing to operating plant or equipment.

It has been an industry that often recruited by ‘word of mouth’.

But now that is changing and the small to medium size businesses that make up most of this dynamic industry are looking for people to learn the skills that underpin the infrastructure projects being built around Australia.

Exciting new technology is increasing the need for trained and qualified people to work in Civil Construction.  There is also an increasing need to attract new entrants into the industry as the older members of the workforce retire, and the public and private sector invest more money into infrastructure projects throughout Australia.

Occupations within the industry can range from the semi-skilled through to skilled tradespeople in charge of highly advanced machines capable of moving mountains, creating wetlands for our endangered flora and fauna, constructing roads, bridges and other infrastructure.

Leadership positions such as leading hand and site supervisor are available thanks to new training methods that progress to para-professional roles like estimator, associate engineer, engineering technologist and finally professional engineer and project manager.