Local suppliers, such as Dan Posch of Monaro Windows, say homeowners are bearing the cost of low-quality imports. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
The collapse of Australia’s last remaining manufacturer of architectural flat glass is a symptom of a troubling trend in the country’s construction and manufacturing industries, which experts say is accelerating.
Monaro Windows managing director Dan Posch is among Canberra suppliers troubled by last year’s collapse of Oceania Glass, a 169-year-old company whose shutdown resulted in over 150 job losses after the company couldn’t afford a $21 million plant upgrade and struggled to compete against cheap imports.
He said rising costs were leading more Canberrans to buy building components directly from overseas manufacturers, but that this was sleepwalking Australia into the loss of its manufacturing base.
“It’s a concern because you can see the pattern emerging — we’re dealing with the same issues they were, the government didn’t support them, and now Australia can’t make glass,” he said.
“It’s only getting worse year on year. This should concern anyone who cares about Australia’s ability to make things and sustain itself, because it seems the lessons we learned about the importance of our sovereign manufacturing capabilities during COVID have fallen away.”
China remains the largest manufacturer and supplier of goods imported into Australia, and dominates the supply of electronics, machinery and textiles. Massive scale, an enormous labour pool, extensive supplier networks, and efficient infrastructure contribute to this capability, as do government support and less stringent regulations. The result is low-margin, high-volume production, but often at a different kind of cost.
Dan said ensuring overseas-manufactured building products comply with Australian standards was inherently more complex than regulating local suppliers, because the current system relied largely on certificates and test reports to demonstrate compliance, rather than direct oversight of manufacturing or testing processes.
“Builders and certifiers are not required to independently verify every product, but this document-based approach can leave gaps where non-compliant products pass through the system undetected,” he said.
“So ultimately, you might be paying 25 per cent less for a product from China, but you’re trading in quality, and ultimately, it may end up costing you more.
“I hear horror stories from builders who have purchased imported windows, and the quality is so poor, often it’s not even up to Australian standards. We’ve had many builders ask us to quote individual items because windows imported from China either broke or failed, and they couldn’t get replacements in time.
Dan says without change, more Australian businesses will head the way of Oceania Glass. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
It’s an experience Mark Sheppard of Mark Sheppard Bathrooms and Renovations can relate to.
He said few consumers knew the true quality of products manufactured overseas and selected based on price only. What’s more, any issues that arose with them were difficult to address.
“Chinese companies have been increasingly focused on overseas markets due to a slowdown in the Chinese economy. They are geared toward large-scale manufacturing, and quality has been increasing. However, they may not necessarily be compliant with local standards and warranties can be a really big problem,” he said.
“There is legal recourse against local suppliers if a product is not up to standard. It can be very hard to enforce that on imported products, unless there is a local rep for those products.”
Australian manufacturers and suppliers of domestically made products are calling for government intervention to level the playing field for local suppliers.
“It’s straightforward — if we want to protect our manufacturing, anything we produce in Australia should be heavily taxed to import,” Dan said.
Mark said government policies that make running local businesses prohibitively expensive need urgent review.
Rising insurance, workers’ compensation, compliance, and taxation costs are squeezing these businesses, leaving them unable to compete.
“Then add in the mix competing with products that are made under a very low tax, pro-business, low labour cost and pro-export environment and local Australian consumers that are under budget pressures,” he said.
Beyond government, consumers can play a major role in the success of local manufacturing.
“Don’t be afraid to ask your suppliers if the products they’re using are locally made,” Mark said.
“If you make the conscious choice to support locally made products, it might cost you a little more up front, but you’re most likely saving money on the replacement of inferior products, and contributing to keeping Australian manufacturing alive at the same time.”
