13-week cash-flow forecast for construction

For: Construction, Civil Engineering, Specialist Trades

The problem

Your accountant gives you a P&L. The bank wants a cash-flow forecast. They're different things and the second one is much harder, especially when half your invoices have 5% retention held for 12 months and you're paying CIS deductions on every subcontractor.

How EF-CapFlow solves it

Three steps. One outcome.

Auto-pull from valuations and POs

EF-CapFlow reads your application valuations, certified amounts, retention schedules, and outstanding POs. It models when cash actually arrives, not when it's invoiced.

Layer in CIS, VAT, payroll

CIS deductions on subcontractor payments, VAT due to HMRC, payroll on the 25th, pension on the 22nd — all scheduled correctly. Bank covenants and finance facilities included.

See the dip before it bites

Rolling 13-week view, week-by-week. EF-CapFlow flags weeks where you go below your minimum cash buffer and shows what would fix it (chase that retention, defer that PO, draw on facility).

The outcome

What you should expect

See cash trouble 13 weeks out, not 13 days out
Defensible forecast for the bank, the board, and HMRC TTP requests
Stop the surprise of "we won the job but we can't fund it"
Includes retentions and CIS — not generic SaaS templates

Common questions

Frequently asked

Does it handle CIS gross status changes?▼

Yes. EF-CapFlow tracks each subcontractor's CIS status (gross, 20%, 30%) and applies the correct deduction, including monthly CIS300 returns to HMRC.

Can I model a "what if we win this tender" scenario?▼

Yes — drop a hypothetical contract into the forecast with its valuation profile, and see the cash impact. Save scenarios for board discussion.

What about JCT vs NEC contract differences?▼

EF-CapFlow has templates for JCT, NEC4, FIDIC, and bespoke contracts. Each models its own retention release, defects period, and certification pattern.