This year, inflation hit hard. Every industry has felt the full force of the blow, and construction is no exception. Amid labor and supply chain shortages, subcontractors’ already thin margins are only getting tighter. In some cases, material prices are rising higher than the sub’s estimate before the project even breaks ground. We’ve seen a 127% jump in the price of steel mill products and a 500% hike in the price of oriented strand board (OSB), among countless others. Now more than ever, subcontractors need resources to support them.
That’s why Billd, StructShare, Flashtract, PlanHub, Stack and eSub – six companies dedicated to serving subcontractors – are doing everything in their power to lend assistance and help subs catch a break. We’ll explore how each company is offering a new, unique program to help subcontractors fight inflation. However, many of these programs are set to end in August or by the end of summer, so if you want to leverage them, act quickly.
Table of Contents
Billd – 4% Cash Back on Materials
What They Do: Billd is a payment terms provider built for subcontractors. After seeing how subs often waited over 90 days for payment, with supplier invoices due after just 30, they launched their flagship service: material financing. With MF, Billd buys the project materials from your supplier upfront, then gives you 120 days to pay them back. Billd also offers pay app advance, a service where they fund a portion of your pay app, helping you free up cash flow and execute with confidence.
How They’re Helping You Fight Inflation: Through the month of August, Billd is offering up to 4% cash back when you purchase a minimum of $50K worth of materials. You’ll instantly be eligible after you purchase, and there are no long waiting periods, caps on what you can earn or hoops to jump through.
How It Works:
- Enroll with Billd or, if you’re already using Billd, submit a purchase.
- Tell your sales rep you would like to take advantage of cash back.
- Get your cash back once you’ve repaid your balance.
StructShare – 25% Discount
What They Do: StructShare is a fully digital solution for purchasing and material management. Our SaaS tool is designed for specialty contractors and self-performing GCs connecting the field to the office to vendors to streamline the entire purchasing process. Benefits include improved process visibility, standardized workflows to maximize efficiency and project savings. Users of StructShare have seen improvements in: staff productivity, coordination with suppliers, invoice reconciliation, elimination of double entry, inventory management, and much more.
How They’re Helping You Fight Inflation: Through the month of August, StructShare will take 25% off of your subscription.
How It Works:
- Contact StructShare: Contact Form, Email Sales@StructShare.com or Call 929-567-3357.
- Let us know you are interested in the “Billd Promo.”
- We will quickly review with you StructShare and help get you set up for your first project.
PlanHub – 20% Discount
What They Do: PlanHub is a leading bidding software for construction professionals who want to expand their networks, find more projects and win bids. They help subcontractors maximize their time and spend less effort bidding on projects. With PlanHub, you get all the information needed to create a winning bid. You’ll have easy access to hundreds of new projects posted daily, the ability to scan blueprints and plans by a specific keyword, competitive advantage analytics for any project and the ability to simultaneously submit bids to all GCs on a project.
How They’re Helping You Fight Inflation: Through August 31st, Planhub is offering 20% off any PlanHub Premier Plan for your first year. You need projects with better margin to offset increased costs, and PlanHub helps you find them
How It Works:
- Create a Planhub Account.
- Purchase a Planhub Premier Plan.
- Use the discount code BILLD20.
STACK – Up to $1,000 Off
What They Do: From project evaluation to bid submission, you can use STACK’s cloud-based preconstruction software to help run your business and maximize your profits. STACK’s all-in-one preconstruction solution lets you perform lightning-fast takeoffs, create accurate, detailed estimates, and submit bid-ready proposals in record time. You can get 30% more bids out the door, and be confident in hours – not days – with STACK’s intuitive, easy-to-use interface and unmatched support.
How They’re Helping You Fight Inflation: Through the month of August, STACK is offering up to $1,000 off for every 2 users you upgrade to a paid subscription. When costs are rising, a streamlined and accurate preconstruction process is more important than ever. STACK helps you stay ahead of the competition.
How It Works:
- Create a free STACK Account.
- Schedule time with a STACK representative.
- Save $1,000 for every 2 users.
eSUB – 20% Discount
What They Do: eSUB puts an end to chasing down project updates, RFIs, change orders and other documents. eSUB’s user-friendly mobile tools give project foremen and supers the ability to easily submit time and materials, daily reports and schedule resources. You’ll gain greater visibility into project profitability and labor productivity, while preventing project delays, cost overruns and re-work.
How They’re Helping You Fight Inflation: To get you started as quickly as possible, eSUB is offering Billd customers a 20% discount between now and the end of the summer. eSUB’s combination of field reporting, advanced tracking and document control are integral to keeping your projects on-time and on-budget, two factors that directly influence how the GC evaluates your performance, your ability to get more jobs and overall bottom line. Efficient project management support is vital in a time of financial uncertainty.
How It Works:
- Just fill out a quick demo request form or give them a call at 512-921-2282.
- Mention “eSUBSummer”.
- Redeem your 20% discount.
Flashtract – 6 Months Free
What They Do: Flashtract is a construction software company, offering pay app software tailored for subs. They offer Flash Specialty, a product built to help subcontractors automate the pay app and lien waiver process, saving time when they bill GCs. Flash Specialty automatically generates AIA style and GC custom pay app forms based on current period values. Subcontractors can electronically sign and notarize all documents inside Flashtract, and track approvals in one central location.
How They’re Helping You Fight Inflation: In an effort to help subs, Flashtract is offering the first 6 months of Flash Speciality completely free. Cash flow becomes even more important when costs increase, making it all the more pressing to get paid by GCs as quickly as possible. Flashtract helps you ensure that the process is seamless, and they’re doing it for 6 months at no cost.
How It Works:
- Email sales@flashtract.com to schedule your live demo.
- Mention the discount code “Summer2022”.
- Redeem your 6 free months.
Price increases that began in 2020 have largely persisted, with no signs of returning to pre-pandemic levels. Subcontractors need help, and Billd, StructShare, Flashtract, Planhub, Stack and eSUB are here to offer it. With the programs above, you can offset inflation, boost your bottom line, cut costs without making compromises, protect your business from uncertain times and directly offset increasing material costs.