Devin Grant

Builder Devin Grant has achieved more in his 28-years than many tradespeople manage in a lifetime – and he’s not done yet.

The ambitious Emerald resident started out as an apprentice carpenter with builders including Hedger Construction. In 2011 he was crowned Master Builders Apprentice of the Year and then followed up by winning a $10,000 Master Builders Foundation Scholarship in 2013.

And in a full circle, now with his own housing business Granted Constructions, Devin has nominated apprentice Daniel Zeibig in the Employee Nominated category of the 2017 Apprentice of the Year awards, to be announced on Friday.

“Being Apprentice of the Year got me a good site managing job through the exposure. The exposure and opportunity to talk to people in the industry about what my goals were and be guided on how to achieve that was really valuable,” he said.

Making the most of these opportunities, Devin used the scholarship to buy a new computer, software and to pay the TAFE fees enabling him to attain his Diploma of Building from Swinburne.

“The $10,000 went a long way towards getting my license, otherwise it would have been hard to afford a diploma, get a good computer and software as an apprentice let alone get registered,” he said.

“If you have goals to go further in the industry, you may as well go for a scholarship because it will help you make that next step.”

This in turn led Devin to become a Domestic Builder Unlimited. Not wanting to rest on his laurels, he started his own business doing carpentry contracting until the DBU was completed.

“Once I got registered that really started opening the doors for things like decks and renovations,” he said.

The next step was a unit development.

“My wife Suzanne and I always wanted to do a unit development. So we bought a block in Boronia and knocked down the house, got a planning permit and then built four townhouses,” Mr Grant explains.

“That showed to clients I could actually deliver that kind of project and things have just progressed from there. So now we have five projects on, either two unit developments or single homes.”

Currently working in Balwyn, Mont Albert, Yarra Glen and Emerald, Mr Grant hopes the business will expand to cover the Yarra Valley. His wife, Suzanne, works for the business and he says it’s “it’s coming up to a year now and we haven’t looked back.”

Surrounding himself with a tight knit group of like minded tradespeople, his brother Lucas is his electrician and then his best mate Scott Reeves and Ben Groves are his roof plumber and plumber.

“It’s really important to have that good, core team around,” he says.

The business also employs a full time site manager in Reuben Smit and has three apprentices.

Not only has Mr Grant made the most of Master Builders offerings for apprentices and new businesses, since becoming a full member

he has continued to make the most of what’s available to help his business prosper. 

Constantly wanting to strive for more, Mr Grant entered the Excellence in Housing Awards for the first time in 2016. He said that despite not winning an award, he was still able to learn a lot from the experience.

“It was good to learn from the judges who had fresh eyes and were able to tell us how to improve,” he said.

“It was good to be tested and challenged against other businesses in the industry and to learn what the standard is and to keep getting better and not to just stay comfortable with where we’re at.” 

When asked about a project that he is most proud of, Mr Grant described an unexpectedly grand bathroom renovation that he almost didn’t pursue.

“I went to the project hesitant because it was just a bathroom renovation and sometimes they are more trouble than they are worth. Suzanne encouraged me to go because it had come from a referral, so I went along and it ended up being a lot more than that. The project ended up being worth about $100,000. The clients had planned it for about three years and they knew exactly what they wanted, it came up stunning,” he says.

He describes the dome like Inverloch ‘sand dune house’ that won Martin Builders the Master Builder of the Year title in 2013 as his favourite piece of Victorian architecture.

“The simplicity makes it difficult. It’s the kind of house I want to build. Heavily carpentry oriented and something different. Something that’s never been done before, coming up with new ways of doing it,” he said. 

Mr Grant wants to continue to improve with the help of his Master Builders membership.

“My five year goal is to win Young Master Builder of the Year. That’s been a personal goal for me since starting Granted Constructions,” he said.

“In 10 years I want to be building architectural new homes. I like working with people who are building their family homes, and retirees. I relate to them very well and they generally have a great idea of what they want in a home and can appreciate energy efficiency in a house. I’m aiming to become more aligned with that market,” he said.

“My 20 year goal is to become Master Builder of the Year. My old boss, Hedger Constructions, has won regional awards and I see him as a benchmark for myself. Most importantly though, I just want to enjoy what I do.”

Mr Grant seems to thrive on the work he does and his enthusiasm for the industry is palpable. When he wants to wind down though, Mr Grant likes scuba diving, dirt bike riding and playing for Yarra Glen football club.

Nicholas Zaccardi, Suzanne, Devin, John Rus (center rear), Reuben Smit (right of Devin), Daniel Zeibig (far right)