Yuluwirri McGrady has launched Mader First, a new majority Indigenous-owned business delivering fixed plant and rail maintenance services nationwide, with a target of up to 10 per cent Indigenous workforce participation on its projects.
The Perth-based company will support mining, resources, rail and industrial operations, drawing on Mader's national workforce network, operational systems, supervision and safety framework built over more than two decades.
"At Mader First, our purpose is bigger than maintenance services," managing director Yulu McGrady said.
"It's about bringing together proven maintenance capability with genuine opportunities for Indigenous participation. We want to deliver exceptional outcomes for our customers while creating pathways for people, communities and Indigenous businesses."
Mr McGrady said he was excited for the journey ahead.
"In particular, I'm looking forward to further strengthening our execution team and partnering closely with Traditional Owner businesses on the lands where we operate," he said.
The launch adds to a fast-growing Indigenous business sector. Research from the University of Melbourne's Dilin Duwa Centre for Indigenous Business Leadership found almost 14,000 Indigenous businesses generated $16.1 billion in revenue in 2022, paid $4.2 billion in wages and supported more than 116,000 jobs. Supply Nation's registered suppliers alone recorded $4.6 billion in revenue in 2023-24, and the sector has grown by more than 50 per cent over five years.
The resources industry is central to that story. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up about 4.6 per cent of the mining workforce at the 2021 Census, up from 1.3 per cent a decade earlier and well above the all-industry average. Mader First's 10 per cent participation target would more than double the sector's current rate.
Modelling suggests the growth has much further to run. The recent BlakPrint report, produced by the Northern Territory Indigenous Business Network with Deloitte Access Economics, found Indigenous businesses added $3.4 billion to the Territory economy in 2024-25, and estimated that growing the Indigenous economy to 30 per cent of the Territory's output by 2035 would deliver a $6 billion annual dividend.
Mader First's service offering spans shutdowns and planned maintenance programmes, mechanical and electrical maintenance, breakdown response, CHPP and processing infrastructure, rail and rolling stock maintenance, track and rail infrastructure, and skilled trades and project workforce solutions.
The company will work alongside Traditional Owners, Indigenous businesses and local community partners to identify employment and skills development opportunities connected to each project, with benefits tied to the work taking place on Country.
Mr McGrady, who started in the mining industry at 24, said the business was built to open the same doors for others.
"Mader First was created to offer that same environment to the next generation," he said.
"We want to help people build skills, gain experience and create pathways into industries that operate on or near their Country. Success is measured by long-term outcomes, stronger local capability and relationships built on trust."
