Queensland architects – how good are they?
Published Tuesday, 03 June, 2008 at 04:57 PM
Minister for Tourism, Regional Development and Industry
The Honourable Desley Boyle
Queensland architects are being urged to participate in a free online business benchmarking tool which will let them measure their success against their peers.
Tourism, Regional Development and Industry Minister Desley Boyle said the Creative Business Benchmarker would target Queensland’s creative industries with local architects first in line.
“Queensland architects may be firmly in the international spotlight, particularly when it comes to design for tropical and sub-tropical environments, but as with any industry there is always room for improvement,” Ms Boyle said.
“There are almost 2,800 architectural firms in Queensland and they all come under the umbrella of creative industries, a sector currently experiencing a global boom.
“In fact, the World Bank has identified creative industries as one of the top five fastest growing sectors worldwide. Our architects are poised to ride this wave but would benefit from working together a little more.
“The Creative Business Benchmarker will gather information from participating companies and report back to them, highlighting trends and opportunities on areas including employment, exports and intellectual property.
“It’s really important that our architects embrace it by participating in the initial survey.”
Ms Boyle said the Creative Business Benchmarker was being run by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation at the Queensland University of Technology with funding of $316,000 from the Department of Tourism, Regional Development and Industry.
She said it would be a way of measuring and tracking Queensland’s creative industries and ascertaining just what they contribute to the State’s economy.
According to the Minister, the project included a web-based creative industries sector survey every six months.
“The creative industries sector, which encompasses architects, musicians, writers, designers, photographic artists and animators, is worth more than $3 billion a year,” Ms Boyle said.
“Yet it’s an industry that doesn’t have in place tangible tools to measure its success. The Creative Business Benchmarker project is set to change that and as an added bonus, it will provide the Queensland Government with guidance on how we can further develop the sector.”
Gail Babbage, director and practice manager of Riddel Architecture, has expressed her support for the concept.
“I think the Creative Business Benchmarker will be a great resource for the Queensland architecture industry,” Ms Babbage said.
“Like all databases, it will rely on commitment from within the industry. It’s time Queensland’s creative industries had access to trends and information about our businesses. How else are we going to keep growing and improving?”
Architects can access the Creative Business Benchmarker survey at www.benchmarker.org.au
MEDIA CONTACT: Marcus Taylor (3225 1005 / 0419 025 326) or Kirstie Maier (3224 2007 / 0448 135 195)
3 June 2008
Tourism, Regional Development and Industry Minister Desley Boyle said the Creative Business Benchmarker would target Queensland’s creative industries with local architects first in line.
“Queensland architects may be firmly in the international spotlight, particularly when it comes to design for tropical and sub-tropical environments, but as with any industry there is always room for improvement,” Ms Boyle said.
“There are almost 2,800 architectural firms in Queensland and they all come under the umbrella of creative industries, a sector currently experiencing a global boom.
“In fact, the World Bank has identified creative industries as one of the top five fastest growing sectors worldwide. Our architects are poised to ride this wave but would benefit from working together a little more.
“The Creative Business Benchmarker will gather information from participating companies and report back to them, highlighting trends and opportunities on areas including employment, exports and intellectual property.
“It’s really important that our architects embrace it by participating in the initial survey.”
Ms Boyle said the Creative Business Benchmarker was being run by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation at the Queensland University of Technology with funding of $316,000 from the Department of Tourism, Regional Development and Industry.
She said it would be a way of measuring and tracking Queensland’s creative industries and ascertaining just what they contribute to the State’s economy.
According to the Minister, the project included a web-based creative industries sector survey every six months.
“The creative industries sector, which encompasses architects, musicians, writers, designers, photographic artists and animators, is worth more than $3 billion a year,” Ms Boyle said.
“Yet it’s an industry that doesn’t have in place tangible tools to measure its success. The Creative Business Benchmarker project is set to change that and as an added bonus, it will provide the Queensland Government with guidance on how we can further develop the sector.”
Gail Babbage, director and practice manager of Riddel Architecture, has expressed her support for the concept.
“I think the Creative Business Benchmarker will be a great resource for the Queensland architecture industry,” Ms Babbage said.
“Like all databases, it will rely on commitment from within the industry. It’s time Queensland’s creative industries had access to trends and information about our businesses. How else are we going to keep growing and improving?”
Architects can access the Creative Business Benchmarker survey at www.benchmarker.org.au
MEDIA CONTACT: Marcus Taylor (3225 1005 / 0419 025 326) or Kirstie Maier (3224 2007 / 0448 135 195)
3 June 2008