Business owner recognised for contributions to Goldfields building industry

A Kalgoorlie-Boulder business owner has been recognised for his contributions to the region’s building industry. Master Builders Association of WA has named Mitch Fragar 2024 regional member of the year. The award acknowledges members’ contributions to the WA building sector and excellence in the industry. Mr Fragar was selected for his leadership as Master Builders’ Goldfields-Esperance committee chair and achievements as managing director of Next Gen Companies. The business offers construction, modular building installation, and steel framing services under three separate entities — Next Gen Building, Next Gen Transportables, and Next Gen Steel Framing. Master Builders’ chief executive Matthew Pollock said Mr Fragar’s “innovative and pioneering” business and participation in the local industry helped him stand out from other entrants. “Mitch is very involved with modular construction, new methods of construction,” he said. “The way that he manages his business and the leadership that he provides to others in the industry through his role as chair ... is the primary reason why he’s taken out the award for 2024.” Mr Fragar said demand for modular buildings remained strong for mining and commercial applications as they were cost-effective and delivered fast turnaround. “Over the last couple of months we’ve definitely seen a lot of commercial clients requesting (transportable) products,” he said. Mr Pollock said land supply remained one of the biggest challenges facing WA’s housing market. “Land is often the largest cost when it comes to building new homes,” he said. “We’ve got a really strong economy in WA, it’s an attractive place for people to live and ... we’re attracting more people into the State, but we’ve got to house them. “We can put downward pressure on cost of living and housing affordability, and the only way we’re going to do that is to boost supply and build more houses. “In order to meet that demand, we do need to look at different ways of building houses and Mitch’s transportable business brings that capacity to the Kalgoorlie-Boulder region.”