No one is safe. That was the general consensus when, in the middle of 2007 and into 2008, after several years of economic boom, the market reversed itself and the ugly head of the global financial crisis (GFC) was evident for all to see.

Fingers were pointed at the protagonists, but the irony was that those who created the mess were the first bailed out by governments. While a global financial meltdown affects the livelihoods of almost everyone, the beneficiaries of the bail out, although guilty, could have brought financial markets further to their knees had they not been privy to parts of the trillion dollar packages governments were offering.

While some industries were affected more than others, the plumbing industry seems to have survived, in spite of being immediately impacted by the building sector which was a major cause of the meltdown in the US.

Certainly in Australia, while the impact has been felt particularly with the downturn in construction, the plumbing industry continues to function strongly, as plumbers and engineers look to new markets including the green sector. The plumbing sector has had a significant business boost over the past three years in the way of graywater systems, tank storage and solar hot water incentives delivered by Government. This has given the industry a fill-up in the leaner times across the domestic market.

To counter the crisis in Australia, monetary policy and interest rates are at 40 year lows, while the government has funded first-home owner housing schemes, meaning new starts are only 20% down with prices holding up remarkably well.

Yet, like the rest of the world construction figures are suffering and will take some years to recover. This has immediate impact. Employment is nudging 6% and is expected to rise a further 1.5 to 2% in the next 18 months with one of the casualty areas being trade workers (plumbers) coming off large construction projects that are close to completion.

Typically, many contracting businesses are sheltered from market downturns due to regular maintenance contracts and initiatives by entrepreneurial owners.

Overall, 2009 has been a tough market for many and the concern about 2010 lies with the larger construction sector that requires bank finance for project commencement.

Working smart
Robert Burgon, director and secretary of the Scottish and Northern Ireland Plumbing Employers’ Federation, says the impact of the GFC has been patchy across Scotland and Ireland, with Ireland being the worst hit.

“It has been dependent on the type of work carried out and to some extent on the geographical location of the business (with Northern Ireland being worst hit than Scotland and the east coast of Scotland being less affected than the central belt and west coast).

“The first indication of problems came around May/June 2008 when new housing sites effectively closed overnight – firms which specialized in this type of work effectively saw their workload dry up immediately. These tended to be the larger contractors in Scotland and many businesses now have a workforce 50% smaller than they had at that time.