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Bidding on a Bigger Job: Proving Finance Capacity Before You Tender

You've priced a big job. The client wants a start date, a program and a site establishment plan, and your numbers say you can win it. Then you ask the question that sinks a lot of tenders: where does the gear and the cash come from if we get it?

Plenty of crews leave that question until after the award letter. By then the client wants you on site, the supplier wants a deposit, and a lender needs weeks to look at your paperwork. This article covers scaffolding tender finance, meaning how to sort your funding before you submit, not after you win.

Why finance has to come before the tender

A bigger job puts pressure on you in three places at once. You need more gear on site earlier. You need more labour on the tools before the first progress claim is paid. And you carry the gap between the two until the client pays.

If you only go looking for money after you win, you're negotiating from the back foot. You take whatever structure is on offer because the start date is fixed. Lenders can also tell when a request is rushed, and a rushed request is harder to assess.

Sorting it first means you can price the job knowing what your funding can carry. You can also say yes to the client without crossing your fingers.

What pre-approval does (and doesn't) do

A pre-approval is a lender's indication, based on the information you've given them, of what they might be willing to consider. It's not a guarantee. Conditions still apply, and the final decision depends on the details of the actual job and equipment once you have them.

Even so, it's useful before a tender, because it:

• Gives you a realistic ceiling to price against, so you don't bid a job your funding can't carry.
• Shows you early which documents a lender wants, while you still have time to fix gaps.
• Cuts down the scramble between award and mobilisation.
• Lets you speak to the client's procurement team with more confidence when they ask about capacity.

Lenders typically consider your trading history, your financials, your existing commitments and what the funding is for. Whether a particular pre-approval is possible for your business is something a lender assesses. Nobody can promise it up front.

Work out how much gear this job needs

This is the step crews skip, and it's the one that matters most. Don't guess. Build it from the drawings and the program.

1. Take off the gear by stage. Standards, ledgers, transoms, boards, stair towers, ties and loading bays. Whether it's ringlock or kwikstage, list it by stage, not as one lump.
2. Overlay the program. Peak demand rarely matches the total. If you strip and re-use gear between stages, your peak is lower than the sum.
3. Subtract what's idle in your yard. Be honest about what's committed to other jobs, and what's damaged or due for inspection.
4. What's left is your gear gap. That's what you buy, hire in or fund.
5. Add the extras. Tray truck or crane truck capacity, EWP hire if it's in scope, SWMS prep time, and site establishment costs.

Then decide per item whether it's better to buy, hire or fund. A one-off peak is often better covered by hiring gear in. Gear you'll keep using across the next few jobs is a stronger case for equipment finance. Our wet hire vs dry hire guide helps when you're weighing hire against labour cover.

Map the cashflow gap, not just the gear

Gear is only half of it. On a big job the pressure usually shows up in the cash you carry before money comes in.

Lay out the first few months week by week:

• Wages, super and labour hire going out every week.
• Gear deposits, freight and cartage at the start.
• Your progress claim cycle, and the real days-to-pay from this client, not the contract terms.
• Retention held back, and when it's actually released.

The gap between those lines is the working capital you need. Retention catches a lot of crews out. It's your money sitting on someone else's books while you still pay for the gear and the crew. If long payment terms are the main issue, look at invoice finance for scaffolders as one option for the receivables side.

Line up your paperwork early

Lenders look at the business, not just the job. A bigger tender is a good reason to get your documents in order while there's no deadline pressure.

What lenders typically look at:

• Recent financial statements and tax lodgements.
• BAS and, where relevant, your ATO account position.
• A current list of existing loans, leases and hire purchase commitments.
• Work-in-progress and a schedule of what's owed to you.
• Details of the gear you want to fund: type, supplier quote, age and condition.
• Evidence of the contract or tender, such as the scope, program and payment terms.

If you're new to this, our guide to scaffolding business loans explains the options. A broker can also help present the whole picture in a way a credit team can follow. That's often worth more than shopping around yourself and leaving a trail of enquiries.

Common mistakes with scaffolding tender finance

From what we see in deals, the same few problems come up again and again:

• Asking after the award. The start date is fixed and your options shrink.
• Funding the gear but not the gap. You own the ringlock and still can't cover wages in week six.
• Leaving out the payment cycle. Contract terms and actual days-to-pay are often different.
• Overbuying for a single peak. You end up with idle gear and a repayment to carry.
• Messy paperwork. Unlodged returns or unclear commitments slow everything down.

Treat scaffolding tender finance as part of the bid, the same as labour and materials. It isn't a task for after you win.

Pre-tender checklist

1. Take off the gear by stage and find your peak demand.
2. Subtract the gear you genuinely have free.
3. Decide per item: buy, fund or hire in.
4. Map wages, labour hire, deposits, progress claims and retention week by week.
5. Work out the working capital gap, with a late payment built in.
6. Gather financials, BAS, a commitments list, WIP and supplier quotes.
7. Talk to a broker about what a lender may consider before the tender closes.
8. Price the job against what you can actually carry.

If you'd like to talk it through before your next tender, start with our scaffolding finance page and get in touch.

This is general information only and isn't credit advice. It doesn't take your personal circumstances into account, so consider whether it suits your situation. Any lending is subject to a lender's assessment and criteria.

Related guides: Scaffold Equipment Loans in Australia: How They Work and What Lenders Fund · Progress Claims and Retention: Why Scaffolders Wait 60 Days and What to Do About It · Sale and Leaseback: Unlocking Cash from Scaffolding You Already Own · Refinancing Scaffolding Equipment Loans: When the Structure Is Wrong · Equipment finance · Invoice finance · More on scaffolding finance from Scaffold Finance.