Crane activity remains elevated across the country
The 27th edition of the RLB Crane Index® records 845 cranes in operation nationwide, a slight rise from 840 in Q1 and significantly above the long-term average of 775. This marks the eighth consecutive edition with more than 800 cranes, confirming ongoing levels of building activity.
Oceania Director of Research and Development Oliver Nichols noted: “The Australian construction sector holds firm. Activity is steady, not surging, but we are seeing a clear shifting of cranes across regions and asset classes.”
Regional snapshot
Melbourne: Steady at 199 cranes, supported by large-scale projects like the $36b North-East Link, which leads the country with 46 cranes.
Brisbane and Gold Coast each added 8 cranes, indicating strong growth in mixed-use and civil sectors.
Adelaide (26), Gold Coast (67), Wollongong (20): all reached record highs.
Canberra: Decreased from 22 to 12 cranes, following the completion of civic and institutional projects.
The largest single deployment is at Palmers Road data centre, Truganina, with six fixed cranes. Smaller markets showed mixed results: Adelaide (+7), Wollongong (+5), Darwin (+2), while Newcastle and the Sunshine Coast experienced declines.
Sectoral shifts
Residential remains the main driver of activity, increasing from 484 to 498 cranes (58.9% of all deployment). Mixed-use developments grew from 103 to 108, and data centres rose from 29 to 32. The health and hotel sectors saw modest gains. Meanwhile, the commercial (-12), civic (-6), aged care (-5), and civil (-4) sectors declined as projects were completed.
Economic alignment
ABS data for the June quarter showed total construction activity rising 3.0% to $76.12 billion:
- Engineering: +6.1% to $37.08 billion
- Building: +0.2% to $39.04 billion
- Residential: +0.1% to $24.19 billion
- Non-residential: +0.3% to $14.85 billion
Approvals also demonstrate resilience, with 47,063 dwellings approved (an 18% year-on-year increase) valued at nearly $24 billion, and non-residential approvals rising 30.6% year-on-year to $21.8 billion, driven by education, office, industrial, and data projects.
Oliver concluded: “Despite year-on-year softness, the Index and wider data point to a stable sector, reallocating resources towards infrastructure, density, and digital capacity. Regional hotspots and sectoral shifts are shaping Australia’s next phase of growth.”
Explore our in-depth analysis and an interactive breakdown of the cranes and projects here.
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