When it comes to running a profitable construction business, having a positive cash flow is essential. This post will discuss the fundamentals of cash flow. It will also highlight how you can ensure your construction business is maintaining a positive cash flow.

What is cash flow?

To put it simply, cash flow relates to the amount of money incoming and outgoing from a business. This means that if there is more money coming into the business than coming out, you have a positive cash flow. Securing a stable and positive cash flow will ensure all expenses are covered and help meet projected margins.

In the construction industry there are a lot of moving parts to manage. There are also multiple projects which can make cash flow hard to predict. It can also be impacted by factors outside of your control, such as having to place material orders early. Having a negative cash flow can cause issues with subcontractors and suppliers. Subsequently, this could have a negative impact on successful project delivery.

Having a positive cash flow is vital for any construction business, but don’t worry there are a number of things you can do to help maintain it.

Reporting

To ensure that you stay on top of your cash flow management, you need to have full visibility over your construction business’ operations. Having access to accurate, up-to-date reports is essential when making business decisions. With this being said, if your construction business is still relying on spreadsheets for reporting, it might be time to reconsider your process.

Integrity Software’s construction-specific accounting software, Evolution Mx, allows you to instantly generate business reports. These reports contain the most up-to-date information. By using dashboard technology, you can get an ‘at-a-glance’ view of your construction business’ performance. Having all the information you need on one screen makes reporting much easier. Consequently, keeping track of cash flow is effortless.

Forecasting

When it comes to monitoring cash flow, forecasting is essential. This allows you to mitigate any potential risks before they arise, helping you maintain positive cash flow. This is particularly true in the construction industry when you are dealing with multiple contracts or projects. To be able to accurately predict margins and forecast long-term financial risks, you need to have a single source of information. This source should cover all departments of your business. One way to achieve this is by using an integrated accounting system.

Evolution Mx is a fully integrated accounting system covering all aspects of your construction business. By having easy access to all business data, particularly related to projects or contracts, it becomes easy to forecast. This can help you identify and mitigate any potential risks. By having an integrated system like Evolution Mx, you also have access to historical data. This data can be useful when it comes to forecasting.

Plant and Equipment Management

In the construction industry, plant and equipment costs can have a big impact on cash flow. Being able to effectively manage your plant and equipment costs will allow you to have a better understanding of your overall cash flow. This understanding allows you to make any adjustments needed to keep it positive. When it comes to effective plant management, you need total visibility on availability, costs, locations, bookings, and billings. This gives you an accurate understanding of costs and utilization.

Integrity Software’s Plant Management module, an add-on to Evolution Mx, can help you achieve this. As well as having instant access to all information regarding plant management, you can also use this data to generate reports. You can create profit and loss reviews. This allows you to have a clear overview of the costs associated with plant and equipment, giving you a better idea on how this may affect your construction business’ cash flow.

Summary

As the construction industry has many moving parts, it faces a number of challenges regarding maintaining positive cash flow. By having access to better reporting, more accurate forecasting, and plant management, you have a clearer idea of your construction business’ cash flow. This enables you to keep it positive.

Through digitization, you can have real-time visibility over your business in a fully integrated system. This allows you to control costs and predict margins. To find out more about how our construction-specific accounting software, Evolution Mx, can help your construction business maintain a positive cash flow, please get in touch today and book a free, no-obligation demo.