THE strength of the resources sector continues to offer opportunities for local surveying companies, many of which have diversified their business to take advantage of contracts coming out of the state’s north-west.
The past year has been one of expansion for surveyors in Western Australia, as WA Business News’ Book of Lists shows, with the five largest companies having increased staff numbers by an average of 25 per cent.
Leading the pack is Land Surveys, which expanded into the north-west with a new office in South Hedland – in addition to its existing Karratha office.
The business has also taken advantage of increased mining activity on the east coast to open offices in MacKay and Gladstone. The number of surveyors employed has increased by 42 per cent to about 100 out of total staff of 150.
The resources activity is also bringing benefits to smaller players such as Perth Surveying Services (number 15 on the list), which was recently awarded $4 million worth of resources-related contracts.
The company’s revenue for the 2011-12 year increased by about 400 per cent on the previous year, which managing director Chris Finn said was largely thanks to contracts in the resources sector.
The company won its first key north-west contract with Murray and Roberts to work on Chevron’s Gorgon project last year. The six-month contract brought a $2 million boost in revenue from six months of work and marked a shift from the company’s initial commercial building focus.
Mr Finn told WA Business News the GFC prompted him to explore other areas of revenue as a way of reducing risk within the business; but it wasn’t as easy as simply bidding for different work.
“It was about looking at the different clients that were working in that industry and making ourselves more attractive to them; understanding what we needed to produce to ensure we’re at their level,” Mr Finn said.
Part of that process has involved spending $400,000 on gaining international standards accreditation, which Mr Finn said was a key factor in winning major resource contracts.
“It’s almost a complete requirement; the big companies won’t open the door to you unless you have an established relationship or are working under their banner,” he said.
Mr Finn and business development manager, Anton Oud, have also been working with a number of government and private organisations, which have helped the pair grow the business in order to secure major contracts.
The company now employs 21 staff and plans to increase that to about 30 within the next year as it strives for more contracts in the LNG market.
Asphar Consulting Group is another business to report contract wins in the resources field. During the past year it has secured contracts on the $70 million construction workers’ camp for Wheatstone and the Roy Hill iron ore mine, FMG’s Club Hamilton camp expansion and Solomon project, and with Diab engineering on Citic Pacific’s Sino Iron project.
Both Asphar and competitor Whelans have increased the number of surveyors on their books by 22 per cent – to a total of 55 – while McMullen Nolan Group employ 50 surveyors.
Quantity surveyors McGarry Associates has a total staff of 46; having been established in Bunbury in 1996, the company now also has offices in Perth and Mandurah while employing surveyors on a fly-in fly-out basis for resources contracts.
