Consult Australia’s new Enabling Digital by Default white paper presents a practical, industry-informed roadmap to seamlessly integrate digital practices across the infrastructure sector.

Australian governments have committed $647 billion for major public infrastructure over the next five years. Yet, construction productivity lags other sectors, costing an estimated $62 billion annually. Australia ranks 16th globally in digital readiness, according to the IMD World Competitiveness Centre.

“Billions of dollars of infrastructure projects around Australia are still being delivered with paper plans, wet signatures and PDFs,” says Consult Australia Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Cartledge. 

“Everyone knows our industry must change. We can all see the consequences of being slow off the digital mark – decades of sluggish productivity and lost data insights that could help us make better decisions and build better infrastructure.”

In June 2023, Consult Australia released the Digital by Default Green Paper, exploring how to boost productivity and maximise infrastructure investment outcomes. 

Following this, Consult Australia held more than 100 engagements with 50-plus government agencies and businesses representing 17,000 infrastructure professionals to explore the Green Paper’s findings, and to uncover best practices and common challenges. 

This consultation process emphasised the ‘perils’ of a federated approach to infrastructure delivery. Conversations shaped five recommendations that offer a practical roadmap for governments to harness best practices to create an enabling environment that catalyses change. These five recommendations are:

“We cannot afford to squander nearly half a trillion dollars in lost productivity over the next decade. A digital by default approach is essential,” Jonathan says.

“Businesses are waiting for governments to lead the way. Governments are waiting for market forces to determine the pathway forward. We need everyone to come together, and this is why Consult Australia is leading collaboratively.”

Consult Australia will be hosting a series of industry roundtables in 2025 and will be presenting the findings of the consultation to governments around Australia. In the meantime, members are encouraged to download the Enabling Digital by Default White Paper.

Enabling Digital by Default was possible thanks to the support of our valued partners