McNab has announced a significant investment in Gold Coast-based modular manufacturer ModnPods, marking a strategic partnership designed to accelerate residential construction and help address the growing demand for scalable modular housing solutions across South East Queensland.
McNab joins QIC, the Arc31 family office of Cathie Reid AM and Stuart Giles, alongside ModnPods founder John Christie and the broader ModnPods leadership team as investors in the business.
ModnPods will continue to manufacture its established range of modular homes including single storey dwellings, duplexes and terrace housing, which remain a core part of the company’s production pipeline.
McNab Chief Executive Officer Kunjan Ganatra said the move aligned with McNab’s long-term housing strategy, providing deeper operational collaboration rather than simply taking a passive financial stake.
“Independent data confirms Australia’s housing undersupply is structural rather than cyclical, with systemic supply constraints unlikely to ease without productivity reform,” Mr Ganatra said.
“Labour shortages and cost volatility will continue to challenge traditional construction delivery models.
“At McNab, when we see sustained systemic pressure in the market, we respond with strategy and investment, and this partnership is a clear example of that.
“This collaboration gives McNab direct access to a modular manufacturing platform capable of delivering the existing ModnPods product range of single dwellings, duplexes, terraces and low-rise housing, while also supporting the development of new medium-rise modular solutions across social and affordable housing, build-to-rent and residential projects.
“Modular construction enables us to deliver these homes faster and with consistent quality, while expanding the types of projects we can support.
“Importantly, this sits alongside our traditional construction model. Modular construction provides an additional delivery pathway, allowing us to respond to different project requirements while continuing to build through conventional methods. The two approaches are complementary and together expand our ability to deliver housing at scale.”
Mr Ganatra said over the past two years McNab and ModnPods had invested millions in modular design development, global research and Queensland compliance frameworks, overcoming both the design and regulatory barriers that have historically limited modular construction, particularly in the medium-rise space.
“Together McNab and ModnPods have co-developed a proprietary medium-rise modular system and, by investing in ModnPods, we are now poised to industrialise housing delivery in Queensland while creating local jobs and unlocking faster, more certain project outcomes.”
ModnPods Chairman Stuart Giles welcomed the new partnership with McNab amid strong market demand for faster, more certain delivery models, particularly across social and affordable housing.
“We believe the ModnWay is up,” Mr Giles said.
“That philosophy runs through everything we do, whether that’s upskilling our team members and supporting their career development, uplifting the accommodation experience for our customers, or continuing to grow the scale of projects modular construction can deliver.
“ModnPods has built its reputation delivering high-quality modular homes including single dwellings, duplexes, terraces and low-rise developments, and those markets remain incredibly important to our business.
“This partnership with McNab allows us to continue growing those core areas while also developing the capability to deliver larger projects over time.
“It’s incredible that modular construction now allows us to provide housing at scale, including the potential to use land more efficiently and deliver housing solutions for more of the most vulnerable in our community, while maintaining the quality and certainty that governments, developers and communities expect.”
“Having McNab come on board brings significant operational capability, a wealth of delivery experience and valuable industry relationships.
“Combined with our established manufacturing facility, technical expertise and existing product range, this positions us to expand in response to the growing demand for modular construction.”
The partnership will manufacture modules locally on the Gold Coast, supporting regional employment and enabling a more diverse workforce through controlled, factory-based environments.
Factory-based construction also provides workers with greater certainty, allowing them to work from a single location with predictable hours. This creates opportunities for a more diverse workforce and enables people to better balance work and family commitments.
QIC Private Equity Head of Asia Pacific Crystal Russell said the partnership reflects growing conviction in modular construction as a scalable solution to strengthen Queensland’s housing supply.
“QIC has a clear mandate to invest in innovative local businesses that can lift productivity and deliver meaningful impact for Queenslanders,” Ms Russell said.
“There is no greater economic and social impact than delivering more housing, and vertical modular solutions are proving increasingly important to addressing structural supply challenges. Partnering with an established national contractor of McNab’s calibre provides ModnPods with the operational might to elevate their product offering and scale to a multistorey model.
The investment follows significant momentum for ModnPods in recent months, including a major contract win to create 29 affordable modular homes across North Stradbroke Island for the North Stradbroke Island Aboriginal and Islanders Housing Co-Operative.
Mr Giles said ModnPods continues to work with developers, builders and government partners across a wide range of housing projects and sees significant opportunity to support the delivery of new social and affordable housing across SEQ.
“This investment reinforces our long-term strategy to modernise construction, drive productivity reform and ultimately deliver homes faster for Queenslanders,” Mr Giles said. To learn more about McNab visit www.mcnab.net.au and for information about ModnPods visit www.modnpods.com.au. For more information about QIC visit www.qic.com.
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