STEEL FIXING QUESTIONS,
ANSWERED.

What is steel fixing, and what does a steel fixer do?

Steel fixing — also called reinforcement installation or reo fixing — is placing, tying and positioning steel reinforcing bar inside formwork before a concrete pour. The reinforcement gives structural concrete its tensile strength, so slabs, walls, columns and footings carry their design loads without cracking under tension.

Crews work from structural drawings and bar schedules, placing bar at specified spacings, laps and cover depths. Accuracy matters: incorrect cover or a missing bar can affect structural integrity and stop an inspection.

What does "labour only" mean, and how is it different from supply-and-fix?

Labour only means the subcontractor supplies the crew, not the steel. The builder or head contractor buys the reinforcement and has it delivered to site, and the fixing crew places and ties it. Supply-and-fix bundles the material into one price.

MJK is labour only. We do not supply materials and we do not install post-tensioning. On the Gipps Road job in Keiraville the reinforcement was supplied to site by ARC and our crew fixed it.

How is steel fixing labour priced?

Three ways, and which one suits depends on how settled the scope is.

• Day labour — you pay for productive time on site. Suits an evolving scope, or topping up a crew you already have. Flexible resourcing, quick mobilisation, crew size scales, supervisor included.
• Quoted scope — a fixed price against drawings and a delivery timeline. Suits a well-defined reinforcement package where accountability matters.
• Tonnage or rate-based — suits larger civil and infrastructure packages where tonne-based pricing matches the nature of the work.

How long does the reinforcement take on a house slab?

It depends on the detailing more than the floor area. On a multi-unit residential job at Gipps Road, Keiraville, our crew fixed roughly 18.5 tonnes in four days on site — a retaining wall, three separate stair flights, planter and blockwork balustrade reo, then the ground slab in stages: bottom reo, beams, starters and Z-bars, top reo.

That came in seven separate call-offs, each one fixed and signed off before the next was useful. A job with the same floor area and none of that detailing would take considerably less.

How many fixers should be on my job?

A different number on different days. Reinforcement is not a fixed-headcount trade — three stair flights do not take the same crew as the lead-up to a slab pour. A crew booked at one size for the week is either standing around or short, and the builder pays for both.

At Keiraville the crew was sized to what each day's call-off actually needed. At the Mittagong residence, where the ground floor ran as one continuous structure, four fixers stayed on it start to finish, weekends included, to hold the pour dates.

What do I need to send to get a price?

Drawings or a bar schedule, a rough scope description, and your programme timing. Inside 48 hours you get a price, a crew size and a straight answer on whether the dates are achievable.

For day labour or urgent workforce support, call and we will talk through mobilisation.

What compliance does a reo subcontractor need on a NSW Government job?

More than a private build. On the Land and Housing Corporation project in Wagga Wagga, MJK was pre-qualified on a NSW Government housing project, every worker was inducted through HammerTech before setting foot on site, SWMS were submitted and approved per task, insurances were current and verified, plant was registered, and progress was claimed monthly against an agreed contract.

All crew hold a current White Card. Insurance and WHS documentation is available on request.

Do you install post-tensioning?

No. MJK fixes conventional reinforcement only. No materials supply, no post-tensioning.

Who buys the steel?

The builder or head contractor does, and has it delivered to site. MJK fixes it. On Gipps Road, Keiraville the supplier was ARC.

Where does MJK work?

Wollongong and the Illawarra, Greater Sydney, the Southern Highlands and the Wingecarribee, and Wagga Wagga and the Riverina. MJK Contracting Pty Ltd was established in 2021 and the registered office is 10 Regent Street, Wollongong NSW 2500.

Three jobs are written up in full — scope, sequence, tonnage and time on site: Gipps Road, Keiraville · Mittagong Residence · LAHC Wagga Wagga.