If you ask any builder or subbie what is the most aggravating part of their job there’s a fair chance constant pre-qualification and compliance when quoting / tendering would be near the top of the list. 

It’s frustrating and time consuming to get all the paperwork sorted, and it can be out of date nearly as soon as you submit it so you have to start the process all over again.

And if a builder is caught missing a change to a subbies pre-qual and compliance, it can see fines in the tens of thousands of dollars and a badly damaged reputation.

New software has been launched that provides a digital passport for sub-contractors, which keeps all their pre-qualifications and compliance information up to date and easily shared with builders.

While builders can get a dashboard which monitors their sub-contractors details to ensure they comply with regulations.

It’s the brainchild of Brisbane business Know Your Trade, which is also the name of the software.

Founder and CEO Eden Spencer said the aim is to turn one of the biggest time consumers in the building industry into a set and forget.

“We’ve created a digital passport for the sub-contractor where they can add and enter all the information required for either a residential and/or a commercial pre qualification, and they only have to do it once,” Mr Spencer said.

“On top of that we’ve also set up integrations with the ABR, with the licensing bodies, with ASIC, with creditor watch, and we pipe in a whole heap of relevant data.

“So when the passport is complete, a builder can get real and accurate information, but the subcontractor doesn’t have to continue to do it, because once their passport is set up, they can share this passport with any builder they want, and it meets the requirements of basically every builder in the country. 

“So we’ve now saved them a couple of hours time and they can even share it with their customers if they’re going to do a renovation or something like that.”

“On the builder side of things, we’ve created compliance dashboards so they can set up their own subcontracting network and we overlay that with a number of different dashboards. 

“Every month we check the licenses, and every six months we’ll check their credit and asset information, and there’s a whole series of alerts and notifications to notify them when insurances are due and when they’re expired. 

“So we give builders a proactive compliance solution to be able to make sure that all their subcontractors are regulated the way they need to be, and reduce that risk of getting fines because of unlicensed tradies on the worksite. 

“For Sub-contractor, the greatest advantage is, firstly, a huge saving in admin time once they set this up. It can be used for any builder that they want to work for, which means that they can be pre qualified in seconds, not hours and days of admin time.

The other benefit from the subcontractor is there is minimal repetition, because one of the things they have to do every year is certainly update their insurances with their builders. By doing this in one place, it then immediately sends that information out to all the builders they’re connected with. So it saves them time.”

Builders’ Verdict

We talked to some builders who trialled the product before it went to market.

Damien Todd, Managing Director Sunbuilt

“Obviously, we want to be able to streamline the process between ourselves and the subcontractors and suppliers,” Mr Todd said.

“We’ve brought the app in to further risk manage our procurement process, and that gives a lot of satisfaction for our investors. 

“It certainly minimises the risk, because we’re able to assess the financial viability of each of the subcontractors on a regular basis.

“I think, from an implementation side, it’s in a really good position, but yes, organically, as it evolves, there will be tweaks and changes over time, but from an initial platform, we feel it’s very good.” 

Managing Director of CoStruct Brendan Dale

“Obviously early days, but so far, the uptake has been really good, positive from the subbies and suppliers around having their information in one place and being able to streamline the process so they can not waste time.

“That time thing is the big thing. It’s hours of savings for our admin staff. 

It’s great to see new tech helping take some of the paperwork out of the builder / contractor relationship.

Know Your Trade can be found here, https://knowyourtrade.com.au/home, if you end up using the app let us know what you think about it!

Author: The Good Builder

The Good Builder is a media platform that provides news and insights for Australia’s home building industry. From exclusive stories and curated insights to bold industry perspectives, we deliver the news and updates that keep builders, suppliers, and the entire home building industry inspired and ahead of the curve.