Versatile Structures swoops in to save Superior Coaters from closure

Brisbane-based Versatile Structures has pulled off a dramatic rescue mission, announcing on Monday the acquisition of Superior Coaters just weeks before the Dulux-accredited powder coating facility was set to close its doors forever.

The last-minute buyout reads like a business thriller – when Versatile Structures learned in April that their key supplier was shutting down within a fortnight, the company’s directors sprang into action to prevent what could have been a manufacturing disaster.

Superior Coaters wasn’t just any old supplier – it handled a whopping 30 per cent of Versatile’s work, including showstopper projects like the Bridgeman Downs basketball structures (pictured) and Dreamworld developments.

“Superior Coaters handled up to 30 per cent of our jobs, including major projects like the Bridgeman Downs basketball structures, Dreamworld Projects,” said Jamie Howard, director and co-founder of Versatile Structures.

“We didn’t just buy a business—we solved a problem by protecting our own future and that of our suppliers and clients.”

The stakes were high – Superior Coaters is one of only three Brisbane companies with the golden ticket of Dulux accreditation for powder coating mild steel with mammoth 14-metre capabilities. Losing that would have left a gaping hole in Brisbane’s industrial coating landscape.

But this rescue story gets better. Every single Superior Coaters worker kept their job, including some veterans who’ve been perfecting their craft for over two decades.

“When I walked through the facility and spoke to each team member one-on-one, it was clear how much pride they took in their work—and each other. It was like a family. I knew then we had to keep it together,” Howard added.

Even Superior Coaters’ biggest customer – a national pole manufacturer spending over half a million annually – cheered the acquisition, proving sometimes corporate rescues really do have happy endings.

Picture: credit Versatile Structures

Bridgeman Downs basketball structure