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Software is as integral to your business as foundations are to your building projects, yet the bewildering array of options available to businesses makes choosing your ideal job costing system a nightmare! If you’re after an ‘entry level’ solution for your small business, the decision becomes even more complex. Do you opt for generic accounts systems that will meet most of your needs, or specialist software that might require a greater investment, but will contain every feature you could ask for?

If you consider almost any sector of the economy, it’s easy to see how technology has had a huge impact. For example, high street retailers now have to compete with online giants and use self-service checkouts. Twenty years ago, those two technologies barely existed. In the construction industry, we’ve been a little slower to adopt revolutionary technologies. Perhaps the biggest change in the industry is related to software – job costing systems are now the norm, even for SMEs.

Here on the Integrity Software blog, we’ve been talking about skills shortages in the construction industry for many years – yet the problem shows no sign of easing. In the past, we’ve discussed some ways to mitigate the effects of rising labour costs, particularly by utilising construction costing software. Today, we look at another potential solution to these rising costs: apprenticeships.

Each year, the UK government budget brings regulation and tax changes – some of which affect construction companies. With the recent result of the EU referendum signalling another period of uncertainty and rapid regulatory change, firms are faced with a struggle to remain compliant.

During the busiest time of year for your company, your construction accounting software will be working in overdrive. You might have a dozen staff using the system simultaneously, with hundreds of rows of data added to the system each day.

Deciding on the right accounting software package for your business isn't an easy task – although here at Integrity, we hope we make the decision a little easier for those in the construction industry.

In last year's autumn statement, Chancellor George Osborne announced a £3 billion 'tax' on big business – which went almost entirely unnoticed by the mainstream press.

Two-thirds of UK adults now own a smartphone. We spend twice as long using the internet on a smartphones as we do on our laptops and PCs. We're now just as 'connected' on the move as we are at home.

Despite government efforts to improve the payment situation in the construction industry and elsewhere in the economy, late payments rose by 27% in 2015. The construction industry is notorious for its payment issues along the whole supply chain.  We delve into the harrowing statistics and see if any lessons can be learnt from them.

There's no 'one size fits all' software package. For example, generic accounting systems don't work for everyone. In the construction industry, your payment structure is more complex than those used in typical business transactions. Additionally, those basic accounting systems won't offer construction-specific features such as allowing for retentions and applications.

There's plenty of variation in how your accounting software can be used.  In this article, we explore software 'worst practices'. If you don't want to receive a return on investment, or if you enjoy annoying staff, here's how you should use your new accounting system...

You didn’t take the decision to upgrade your accounting software lightly – but you’ve decided to take the plunge and upgrade your old system now that its begun to show signs of age.

It took you some time to search through your options and collect recommendations from friends in the industry, but you’ve finally chosen your new software provider and you’re looking forward to the upgrade.

However, there’s a final hurdle to overcome before you can start seeing your software’s benefits: the implementation stage. This crucial period defines how successful the switch is: will it go smoothly and without a hitch, or turn into a disaster that damages your business?

These tips will help you achieve the first outcome.

Plant and equipment are essential to the completion of every construction job. Plant is also one of the biggest costs in construction companies’ accounting systems, yet many businesses fail to manage plant efficiently.

The UK may not have to put up with monsoons and decade long droughts, nor months of complete darkness, but adverse weather conditions still bring our country to a standstill. Whilst many of our industries operate whatever the weather, in construction, we’re a little more reliant on the elements to complete projects on time. 

A new tax year has begun. It’s time to start a new file in your accounting software and look forward to another year in operation. 

Anticipating market conditions over the next year, five years, or several decades is extremely challenging – particularly for an industry whose fate depends on the whims of ever-fickle governments. 

Here at Integrity Software, we set ourselves apart from the crowd with top quality customer service provided by individuals who know the sector inside out.

On average, productivity in the UK is 20% lower than in other industrialised countries such as the US, France and Germany. 

Now that the dust from this year’s government budget announcement has settled, we can look behind the headlines and analyse the finer detail. 

Every day, your business might create and access hundreds of documents in dozens of different formats. From paper-based documents to PDFs, we’re accustomed to managing many types of ‘paperwork’ on a daily basis – but inevitably, mix-ups occur.

The construction sector is notorious for late payments and cash flow pressures. Given the industry’s asymmetrical payment structures versus work completed, contractors often find difficulty in balancing cash flow requirements with paying creditors.

A stitch in time saves nine....

Return on investment (ROI) calculations are used by business and government to determine the potential value of investments.

It’s no secret that labour costs in the UK construction industry are rising quickly, thanks in no small part to the ever-worsening skills shortages that the sector faces.