The risks and rewards of international construction from an Australian perspective

Very little research has been carried out regarding the risks and rewards of the international construction industry/market from an Australian perspective. A survey was sent to Australian based construction companies known to be operating internationally, to obtain their insights and perspectives on the risks and rewards of the international construction industry/market and international construction projects. Australian based companies have expanded their operations in order to benefit from inducements such as growth, profit and diversification. Continuing globalization and the openness of new markets has also provided significant opportunities to expand for Australian companies. Those Australian construction companies that have been operating abroad have been doing so for 20+ years in the Asia-Pacific and Australasian regions. This is significant as it shows that easily accessible markets are a stepping stone for further overseas expansion. The most commonly rated rewards for operating overseas were growth and profit; which matched the initial reason most companies chose to expand overseas. It was established that the ability to increase long term profitability through diversification was the biggest inducement for Australian construction companies expanding their operations overseas. When asked to rate the risks associated with international construction not one risk was rated significantly higher than the rest which supports the conclusion that the types of risks and rewards associated with each market rarely vary; only the severity and likelihood of occurrence. From an overall Australian perspective this research has established that the reasons and rewards for expanding overseas were the identical. Further that the risks associated with international construction were established as being different and varied depending on the market.<br />