Future of Housing Construction Centre of Excellence

Future of Housing Construction Centre of Excellence

The Centre is a national initiative to help address Australia’s housing challenges by accelerating the construction industry’s adoption of modern methods of construction (MMC).

As Australia’s population grows, we need more homes, built faster and more affordably. At the same time, those homes must be climate resilient, energy efficient, and aligned with our national goals to reduce emissions and waste. 

Helping to shape the future of Australia’s housing industry

The Centre has been shaped by industry for industry, to encourage innovation and overcome skills gaps to meet Australia’s current and future housing construction challenges. 

The Centre is a joint initiative with the Australian and Victorian Governments, as part of the National Skills Agreement. With a physical hub at Melbourne Polytechnic’s Heidelberg Campus, the Centre will act as the national focal point for:

• Training and capability uplift, guided by the needs of industry
• Applied research and innovation
• Collaboration across the national TAFE and vocational education and training ecosystem
• Showcasing modern construction technologies and methods

Building a future-ready workforce 

The Centre is helping to create a new generation of workers with skills in modern methods of construction, including modular, prefabricated and digital construction.

Through short courses, micro-credentials and embedded VET pathways, the Centre is upskilling existing workers and training new entrants to become part of a more diverse, next generation workforce - all developed and delivered in direct collaboration with industry.

The initiative is also driving greater participation from under-represented groups, offering inclusive pathways into rewarding careers in a modernised construction industry.

Powered by collaboration

The Centre demonstrates how collaboration between government, education and industry can drive system-wide change. It connects:

• Employers seeking skilled workers and new technologies
• Current workers wishing to upskill
• Students wanting modern, future-focused training
• TAFEs across Australia and other vocational training providers focused on construction skills development
• Industry bodies, unions and community partners shaping a more modern and diverse workforce

Together, we are driving a more productive, sustainable and future-ready housing construction sector.