Province to launch ‘cluster’ for construction industry

The Quebec government is launching a new program aimed at making the province’s construction industry more competitive.

The construction industry “cluster,” which will officially launch in early 2019, is intended to provide a platform for industry members to discuss sector-wide issues and work together on areas of mutual interest.

“We want to make sure that this industry can really co-ordinate its efforts to modernize itself, to think about innovation, to implement new processes,” said Dominique Anglade, Quebec’s economy minister. “It’s going to happen in the winter of 2019, but we have laid out all the different steps in order to get there and make sure that all the actors get to participate in the creation of this cluster.”

With more than 230,000 people working in the province’s construction industry, it’s particularly important to Quebec’s economy, Anglade said.

The government will work with the Conseil du patronat du Québec to launch the cluster.

The employer’s group has witnessed a need for modernization in the construction industry for several years, said Benjamin Laplatte, vice-president for public affairs and communications at the CPQ.

He said the construction industry is particularly exposed to the cycles of the global economy and the volatility of public and private investment that comes with that.

The industry is also facing increased competition from international companies that are now expanding into Quebec, he said.

While the government is working with employers, construction unions will “absolutely” be involved in the cluster, Anglade said.

The plan calls for stakeholders in Quebec City and Montreal to meet in October, November and December. Anglade said unions will be represented at those meetings.

She said the cluster could help avoid conflicts such as the recent strike by crane operators — which was in response to changes in training requirements.

“The more we talk, the more we’re able to see the best practices in other sectors, the more we’re in a position to avoid this type of situation,” she said.

A study will also be conducted before the launch of the cluster.

Eighty-five per cent of general contractors in Quebec have fewer than five employees each, said Éric Côté, executive vice-president of the Corporation des entrepreneurs généraux du Québec, which can make in-house innovation by individual companies a challenge.

“Construction needs to upgrade and we need to do it right away,” he said.

“Lots of small companies don’t have the money to innovate, to do research, but if we work together and we form a cluster and work with the government, these people will have access to these technologies.”

This is the 11th cluster launched by the Quebec government.