What is the cost to build a shearing shed?
How can I save money on my shearing shed project?
How do I budget for a new shearing shed?
If you are planning a new shearing shed build and are asking any of these questions, then this is the article for you.
With the AWI safe shed program being widely promoted and an increased industry focus on safety, sheep farmers across Australia are being encouraged to find ways to improve their shearing sheds and facilities. This includes making an existing shed safer or building a new shed.
This focus on safety has seen some impressive new shearing sheds built – like the 12 stand shearing shed at Telopea Downs.
A new shearing shed can be significant investment and requires careful planning and budgeting, which is why have written this article.
Simply looking for ways to make your existing shearing shed safer? Check out this article – How safe is your shearing shed?
However, if you are wondering about current shearing shed prices and how much it costs to build a new shearing shed, read on!
Learn about how much a new shearing shed will cost and what influences the cost.
How Much Does It Cost To Build A Shearing Shed?
On average a new shearing shed build costs between $150,000 – $170,000 including erection, footing concrete and GST.
This does not include the cost of the fit-out component. You will find information on budgeting for a fit-out further on in this article.
This range is also based on the average cost of shearing sheds over the past twelve months. So, it covers a wide range of shearing shed projects and prices.
For example, a smaller scale shed can cost around $100,000 while a large facility can cost more than $400,000.
So, below are some popular sizes and approximate prices to give you a better idea of how much your shearing shed project could cost.
Popular Shearing Shed Sizes & Price List
The price estimates for the project examples listed below include footing concrete, erection and GST. They do not include the cost of the shed fit-out.
- A 16m x 12m x 4.5m shearing shed (suitable for a 3-stand fit-out and around 110 sheep undercover). Costs approx. $65,000 – $90,000.
- A 24m x 15m x 4.2m shearing shed (suitable for a 3-stand fit-out and around 230 sheep undercover). Costs approx. $100,000 – $130,000.
- A 32m x 12m x 4.2m shearing shed (suitable for a 3-stand fit-out and around 350 sheep undercover). Costs approx. $105,000 – $135,000.
- A 32m x 24m x 5m shearing shed (suitable for a 5-stand fit-out and around 500 sheep undercover). Costs approx. $165,000 – $205,000.
- A 25m x 15m x 4.5m shearing shed with an adjoining yard cover (suitable for a 3-stand fit-out and around 230 sheep on grating plus what can be fitted under the yard cover). Costs approx. $165,000 – $205,000.
- An 88m x 24m x 5.5m single gable shearing shed and covered yards (suitable for a 5-stand fit-out and around 500 sheep undercover and another 2,500+ under the sheep yard cover). Costs approx. $345,000 – $415,000.
- A 68m x 27m x 5.2m single gable shearing shed and covered yards (suitable for 6-stand fit-out and around 530 sheep undercover and another 2,500+ under the yard cover). Costs approx. $320,000 – $385,000.
As you can see from these examples, the prices for a new shearing shed does depend on factors like size and design features.
If you found these price ranges helpful, keep reading. You will find out how you can estimate the cost of a fit out.
How To Budget For A Shearing Shed Fit-Out
The board design, the fit-out suppliers and flooring are some of the key things to consider when budgeting for a shearing shed fit-out.
1
The Fit-Out Supplier
We work in with a fit-out suppliers to deliver a complete shearing shed facility
Our building consultants are in regular conversation with these companies, so we can provide advice on popular designs. We can also provide an idea of prices for common fit-outs and board designs.
Firstly, for a high-quality fit-out (like a ProWay Livestock fit-out), we generally recommend allowing $40,000/stand. This will depend on how much grating area you require.
Secondly, a modular-style shearing shed fit out (like the Commander modules) will cost less. These usually cost around $20,000/stand (excluding install).
Engaging a local builder? The cost of using a local builder for your shed fit-out is generally on-par with a ProWay-type fit-out.
Alternatively, you could purchase the materials yourself and then engage a carpenter to just do the labour component.
If you do choose to work with a local builder or carpenter, it is important to ensure they have had experience doing shearing shed fit-outs. This is because although they may do a very neat job, if the fit-out isn’t designed properly you will have issues – like poor sheep flow when loading the shed. These issues could cost you more in the long run.
2
The Board Design
As a quick overview, straight boards are the most cost-effective option. A curved board design is usually the most expensive.
Having said that, curved boards are still the most popular board design because the shearers can see each other. Curved boards are also very convenient for the roustabouts as less walking is required.
L-shaped saw tooth boards are common too – like the one pictured . This is because they are also convenient for the rousies, and the set-up means less twisting for the shearers.
For more information on board design, download the 2024-2025 Shearing Shed Guide.
3
Flooring
A concrete slab through a shearing shed is the most common flooring option, however, wooden flooring is popular in working areas. This is ideal for reducing the strain on rousies and wool classers.
A timber wool room floor still has a concrete slab underneath it but it is usually only 100mm thick to make it 50mm lower than the rest of the shed. The joists and tongue and groove flooring will then bring it up the 50mm so that it is level with main shed slab.
To give you an idea of how much the slab and flooring may cost for your shearing shed, a concrete slab usually costs approx. $120/m². A wooden floor for the working areas will cost approx. $275/m².
We hope these points help you with your fit-out budgeting. It is also a good idea to keep in mind that the majority of the fit-out cost is in the grating area. This is why we recommend doing the minimum grating area required, and then covering some external yards for more dry sheep cover.
How Much Do Covered Sheep Yards Cost?
As a guide, the average sheep yard cover costs approx. $100,000 – $130,000 including erection, footing concrete and GST.
You will find more information in this article – How Much Does It Cost To Cover Sheep Yards?
Factors That Influence Your Shearing Shed Costs
It is important understand the different factors that will influence how much your shearing shed will cost. These factors include shed size and design, the fit-out supplier you choose and the complexity of the project – amongst others.
We discuss three of the main factors below:
1
Size
The size of the shearing shed that you choose to build determines the amount of materials and the labour that is required for the project. This will directly impact the price.
However, this is not necessarily the only way that the shed size influences the price of the project.
For example, in Victoria, a shearing shed may have some additional requirements that will have to be satisfied for the project to receive council approval to go ahead. This could include fire tanks which can cost approximately $25,000. Amenities such as toilets can also be required if there aren’t any existing ones nearby. These design changes result in extra costs for your project.
The team at Action Steel are able to manage the complete permit process on your behalf. We are more than happy to advise you on permit requirements for your project in the initial design and planning stages.
You can also find out how much permits cost in this article – How Much Do Farm Shed Permits Cost? Or watch the video below.
2
Project Complexity & Customisation
How complex the project is and how you choose to customise your shearing shed will also directly influence the cost of the shed.
For example, designing your shed to work in with existing infrastructure may incur extra engineering costs. Or, if the access to the site is restricted, it will take longer for the shed to be built. This could mean that installation costs are higher than usual.
When it comes to customising your shearing shed, additions like covered yards, sliding doors and skylights will increase the price.
Keep in mind though that these additions make your shearing shed design much more useful and practical. It is often said that bad design costs money which is certainly true. The opposite is true too. A good shearing shed design can save you money in the long run by increasing safety and productivity. So, keep this in mind before deciding whether to cut costs on design.
That leads us to our third factor to consider: materials.
3
Materials
Materials are clearly a key component to any construction project. Therefore they make a significant impact on price.
For shearing sheds these include:
- The current steel prices
- The cladding you choose for your shed
- Hot-dip galvanising costs
Steel Prices:
Action sheds are a heavy-duty UB columns and open-web trusses construction.
This means that cost to build a shearing shed is influenced by rise and fall of steel prices.
In the case of steel price rises there are some ways we can reduce the impact on your project. This includes negotiating with our suppliers, holding higher levels of stock and forward planning so that we can pass savings onto our customers.
Learn about steel prices – Steel Prices In 2024 – Up Or Down?
Shed Cladding:
The cladding you choose for your shed will also have an impact on the project cost.
Zinc cladding is the more cost-effective option of the two and is used for the majority of farm shed builds. You may want to use Colorbond cladding if your shed is near the coast, though, for extra corrosion protection.
You might find this article helpful – Which Farm Shed Cladding Should I Choose?
And the cost of corrosion protection also needs to be considered in the price of a shearing shed.
Corrosion Protection:
An Action Steel shearing shed is fully hot-dip galvanised after manufacture – both the columns and trusses. While this provides the most effective corrosion protection possible, it is the more expensive option compared to painted or pre-galv coatings
However, as the saying goes, you get what you pay for. Hot-dip galvanizing is the most effective and long lasting coating. This also means it has the lowest long term cost.
Corrosion protection is something we don’t recommend compromising on. You can read why in these articles:
- Why you should avoid sheds with painted columns
- What is the difference between hot-dip galv and pre-galv?
Looking for ways to save money on your project?
How Can I Save Money On My Project? What Is A Cost-Effective Design?
There are a number of decisions that can be made in the design stage of a shearing shed project that could potentially save you money.
Some of these cost savings include choosing a standard span size, incorporating machinery storage, covering yards and installing skylights.
Working to a strict budget? We discuss each of the ways that you could potentially save money on your shearing shed project, below.
1
Choosing A Standard Shed Span
A standard span can be a significant cost saving. So, what are standard spans?
In our factory we have a range of jigs that we use to fabricate our roof trusses in. These jigs are designed to fabricate trusses in 3 metre increments from 12 metres and upward.
Although we can do spans outside of this standard range, we do have to allow time for altering our jigs to accommodate this. This increases the price and the lead time of your project.
Our standard spans are the result of years of research and you can learn about them here – What Are The Standard Spans For Farm Sheds?
2
Including Machinery Storage
It might be a good idea to upsize your wool room.
Using the wool room for machinery storage when not in use, makes your shearing shed a versatile investment and provides good value for money.
3
Covering Yards & Reducing Grating
As we have already mentioned, shearing shed grating is expensive.
Instead, it is more cost-effective to cover your yards than it is to have more sheep on grating.
Covering your yards is also the more practical and versatile option too. This is because it also allows you to drench or draft sheep out of the weather.
If you do choose to cover your yards, a single gable configuration is usually most cost-effective.
4
Installing Skylights
nstalling skylights to take advantage of the available natural light can help reduce electricity costs.
Watch the video below to learn more about skylights.
We hope this overview of cost-savings and ideas has been helpful. We dive deeper into this topic here – How To Create A Cost-Effective Shearing Shed Design
So, that’s a wrap on the cost to build a shearing shed! We have listed some additional resources below to help you with your project budgeting.
Useful Resources
- Shearing Shed Modules Versus Custom Fit Outs
- Raised Board Shearing Sheds: Pros, Cons & Prices
- How To Budget For Your New Farm Shed Build
For more information on shed prices, design and materials, check out our Learning Hub which has the latest articles, videos and brochures.
Disclaimer: The prices included in this article are approximates and are indicative costs only – and are subject to change. This article is only to be used as a budgeting tool, for a more accurate costing, please request a formal quote.
