Building and Construction VETiS

Site Visit

The “Building Careers” program expanded in 2008 with a broader range of activities on offer for students interested in the construction industry. A strong partnership was formed with the Master Builders Association of Victoria (MBAV), enabling the program to include a broader range of field visit locations and also a construction careers night.

The building and construction site visits took place once again. Over two days, 30 students attended the visits which were aimed at adding value to their VETiS studies by highlighting the range of careers available within the industry and offering practical examples of construction environments.

Jarrod Flanigan, Careers Officer for the MBAV organized the domestic site visit. The students were able to view a “live” house site and talk to Mark, a sub-contracting carpenter.

Through discussion with Mark and Jarrod, the students learnt about the stages of building including all of the trades involved in the overall process.

The second visit was to the $110 million Fairfax Media House construction site located in the Central Business District of Melbourne. Grocon Project Manager Jason O’Hara hosted the visit and offered great insight into the construction industry. The development is on target for completion in early 2010 and will house The Age, The Australian Financial Review and other media organisations.

“The two site visits showed two vastly different methods of construction”, explained Adrian Giannini, Career and Transition Officer at the Baw Baw Latrobe LLEN.

“On the domestic site there was an opportunity to view the more traditional role of a carpenter, whereas the Grocon site offered more of a form-worker’s role (creating the boxing for concreting etc) that is undertaken by carpenters.”

“The site visits gave the students a chance to gain a broad understanding of pathways into the building and construction industry” commented Adrian.

At the Grocon site, Jason O’Hara talked about several Grocon projects, how he started with Grocon as an apprentice and how he worked his way up to be a Project Manager. He also touched on the different trades employed by Grocon. Jason explained the building process and how it differs from domestic building and the scale of their projects which go into the many millions of dollars.

Safety was paramount on both sites and all participants wore the appropriate safety gear including safety vests supplied by Gippsland Trades and Labour Council.

One student said that that “It was a great day, really educational and I found new career pathways I never thought about.”

Jason Szwkjas, Trainer at Lavalla Catholic College said “It was great. The students got the opportunity to see both sites and the difference in buildings, a great opportunity for young people.”

An additional activity was added to the Building Careers program when the Baw Baw Latrobe LLEN partnered with MBAV to assist in the promotion of their Gippsland Careers Night. Several parents and students attended the night which included talks from Jarrod Flanigan, Gippsland Group Training, private construction industry employers, current trainees, Employment Innovations Victoria and the Baw Baw Latrobe LLEN.

Jarrod Flanigan stressed the importance of doing something that you are passionate about and urged young people to get as much practical experience as possible while they are still in school. He highlighted the range of careers within construction and suggested that young people consider all facets of the industry when planning their pathway.

“Building Careers” was established in 2006 due to a strong demand on local employers for work placements. Site visits were seen as an innovative way to expose a larger number of students to a range of construction environments.