Civil engineering firms can use trade finance to pay for pipes, aggregates and concrete upfront on long contracts, keeping cash free while public clients pay slowly.
Civil engineering ties up cash for longer than almost any other trade. Drainage runs, highways work and groundworks at scale need pipes, rebar, aggregates and ready-mix ordered in bulk, often months before a valuation is certified and paid. Public sector and tier-one clients are reliable but slow, so the money is out the door long before it returns.
Trade finance funds those material orders directly, letting a firm commit to a programme without locking up its own reserves. On bigger schemes it pairs naturally with construction finance for the project as a whole, while the trade facility keeps the supply chain paid so work never waits on a delivery. That certainty lets a firm price and take on larger schemes without overstretching its own balance sheet.
The structure of civil work almost guarantees a cash flow squeeze, and materials sit right at the front of it. The same recurring issues tend to stack up across the life of a programme:
Tando works the way civil contractors prefer, with a dedicated account manager who reads the contract and the programme rather than an automated platform. Decisions usually arrive in three to five days, the brokerage is NACFB accredited, and funding comes through FCA-regulated lending partners. Past credit trouble does not rule a firm out.
A civil engineering firm starting a drainage package could use a facility to buy pipes and aggregates before the first valuation is even submitted, then repay when it is certified. Once the work is billed, invoice finance can release cash held in slow-paying valuations.
Direct funding for the cost of goods based on a confirmed customer order.
A globally recognised guarantee of payment to your supplier upon verification of shipping documents.
Optimising cash flow by allowing you to pay suppliers early while extending your own payment terms.
Yes. Trade finance is well suited to civil work precisely because the contracts are long and material-heavy. The facility funds each bulk order as it is placed, then unwinds as valuations are certified and paid. That means a firm can commit to a multi-month programme without its own cash being locked in aggregates and pipe for the duration of the scheme.
That is exactly what the facility is for. Suppliers are paid when materials are ordered, and you repay once the valuation covering that work is certified and settled. The timing follows the contract rather than a fixed date, so the cost of funding lines up with how civil payments actually flow rather than working against your monthly cycle.
Slow-paying public sector and tier-one clients are common in civil work, and lenders expect it. A reliable client on a long contract can actually strengthen an application, since it shows the income is coming. Your account manager will factor the client and the certification cycle into how the facility is structured, rather than treating slow payment as a problem.
Tando usually arranges facilities from 75,000 to 500,000 pounds, which fits the material spend on most mid-sized civil packages. Firms turning over 200,000 pounds or more a year are the typical fit. For very large infrastructure programmes, the account manager can structure trade finance to work alongside project funding so the whole scheme is covered.
Tando frequently arranges funding for firms that have had bad credit or a bounced payment, which many brokers avoid. The contract and the order carry more weight than a past difficulty. Funding goes through FCA-regulated lending partners who assess the business as it stands now, so a previous rough year does not automatically close the door.
Yes. Many civil firms run multiple live sites, each with its own material orders, and a facility can be sized to cover that overlap. The account manager looks at your combined order book rather than a single job, so funding does not run dry when a second or third package starts before the first has been paid.
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Tando Capital Limited (trading as Tando Capital), registered at Suite 74 Paycocke Road, Basildon, SS14 3HX . Tando Capital is not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority and can only complete non-regulated introductions. We work with a Panel of Lenders whose particulars will be supplied upon request. ICO Number ZB748553- We will receive commission from lenders. Different lenders pay different amounts depending on different commission models. For transparency we work with the following commission models: percentage of the amount you borrow and rate for risk (this is based on the risk profile of the business). Further details of the commission model, calculation and amount will be disclosed to you throughout your customer journey.’
