2024 Queensland Plumbing Ambassadors Announced At Inaugural Australian Plumbing and Gas Conference

Master Plumbers’ Association of Queensland (MPAQ) has brought together five outstanding members of the plumbing, gas, and drainage industry from all across Queensland to work together to represent and promote the industry to future apprentices, the general public, and other business owners.

The new Queensland Plumbing Ambassadors were named during the World Plumbing Day celebrations on 7 March 2024 at the inaugural Australian Plumbing and Gas Conference (APGC) 2024: Ben Goding from Ben Goding Plumbing, Reed Mackay from Plumbcall, Russell Fingleton from Converse Group, Dee Davenport from A Bailey Plumbing, and Ralph McMillan from Abrik Pty Ltd.

2024 Queensland Plumbing Ambassadors

Plumbers take care of a very important resource that determines the health and safety of Australians: water – and the industry needs support if we want the trade to continue protecting the health of the nation.

The Queensland Plumbing Ambassadors hope to play an active role in sparking conversations that should inspire positive action in the industry, including raising awareness about plumbing as a professional career, engaging businesses to ensure the future of plumbing by training more apprentices, and educating the community about how the growth of the plumbing community can positively impact public health and safety.

Reed Mackay comes from a generational plumbing family that founded and built Plumbcall. While he has had his own ups and downs in his plumbing journey, he wants to channel these experiences and share his learnings to inspire others. He now oversees apprentices in the Rockhampton branch of Plumbcall and supports the strong focus of the business on proper training.

Russel Fingleton has had a long and successful career in household plumbing maintenance and even mechanical services. Having been in the industry for over 50 years, he has a lot of experience to draw from to help raise the next generation of plumbers.

Ralph McMillan from Abrik Pty Ltd sees the challenges and opportunities in plumbing – not just in Australia, but in the wider world. After the success of his plumbing business in Cambodia, where he helped train and employ over 300 plumbers, he has now set up his company in Australia to help disadvantaged kids, support apprentices, and do good work with organisations such as the Jonathan Thurston Foundation and Transition to Work.

As a third-generation plumber, Ben Goding has always been passionate about plumbing work. A testament to his excellence is him winning the Merv Harris Award during his apprenticeship in 2007. Fast forward to today, he is now successfully running his own plumbing business between Bundaberg and Hervey Bay and is keen to help young people understand and appreciate the importance of the trade.

Equally as important as the work on the tools is the support that comes from the admin and business side of things. Dee Davenport from A Bailey believes that we should start educating kids as early as possible on the importance of plumbing in Australia’s health and well-being and wants to help empower women in the industry.

APGC celebrates World Plumbing Day

The 2024 Queensland Plumbing Ambassadors were named at the APGC 2024, where hundreds of members, stakeholders, and key decision makers in the plumbing and gas industry came together to join the flow of innovation.

Every year, World Plumbing Day is recognised all over the world on 11 March to celebrate and promote the link between good quality plumbing, health, environmental sustainability and, increasingly, economic prosperity. This international celebration was established by the World Plumbing Council (WPC), an international organisation that aims to achieve the best possible plumbing for the world through growth and development of the world’s plumbing industries.

This year, MPAQ celebrated World Plumbing Day on the morning of day two of the Conference. It kicked off two eventful days, packed with industry knowledge, insightful conversations, purposeful networking, and a trade exhibition that hopes to push the industry forward into a sustainable and responsible future.