Quick answer
Concreters mostly borrow to bridge the gap between paying for ready-mix, steel, formwork and wages around a pour and getting paid by the builder weeks later, and to buy plant such as line pumps, skid steers, tippers, power trowels and saws. Equipment finance suits plant, while invoice finance or a line of credit covers slow builder payments. Banks favour established concreters with clean books; non-bank lenders fill the gaps.
Key points
- A single slab pour can commit concrete, steel, pump hire and a full crew's wages in one day, often a month before payment arrives
- Concreting plant holds resale value, which makes equipment finance the cheapest route for pumps, loaders and trucks
- In Queensland, QBCC licences carry a maximum revenue limit tied to your financial position, so fast growth can bump into it
- Saw-cutting and grinding concrete fall under tighter crystalline silica rules from 1 September 2024, which means budgeting for dust control gear
Concrete waits for no one. Once the trucks are booked and the slab is formed up, the pour happens, and so do the costs: ready-mix, reinforcing steel, pump hire, a full crew on site and, often, a finisher working into the evening. The builder’s payment for that work might not land for 30, 45 or 60 days. That single fact explains most of the finance questions concreters ask.
What does pour day actually cost a concreter?
Consider a typical house slab for a project builder. The concreter has usually committed to the following, in roughly this order:
- Excavation and set-out. Machine time, fuel, sometimes tipper loads of fill.
- Formwork, membrane and steel. Mesh, bar, chairs and vapour barrier, often on a supplier account.
- Pump booking. Either your own pump or hire, paid when used.
- Ready-mix delivery. Billed per cubic metre, usually on a trade account due within 30 days.
- Labour. A placing and finishing crew, paid weekly.
- Saw-cutting and curing. Often the next day.
The supplier’s account comes due before the builder pays on many jobs. Run six or eight slabs a month and the gap can reach well into six figures. Our cash flow gap calculator lets you estimate how much you’re carrying at any one time.
How do lenders view concreting businesses?
Concreting is essential work across housing, commercial, civil and agricultural projects. Lenders see the skills and the demand. They also see the risks:
- Builder dependence. Many concreters do most of their work for a few builders. When one slows payments or fails, the concreter feels it immediately. ASIC’s insolvency data shows construction accounted for roughly a quarter of all companies entering external administration in 2025–26.
- Weather. A wet week scraps pours and shifts income down the calendar, yet wages, leases and repayments carry on.
- Plant-heavy balance sheets. Good if the plant is owned and holds value; less good if it’s all on finance with balloons due together.
- Cyclical demand. Residential slabs follow housing approvals, which rise and fall with interest rates and the market.
A concreter with a mix of builders, some direct residential work (driveways, patios, shed slabs) and a clean ATO record usually presents well.
Which plant do concreters finance, and how?
| Plant | Typical finance | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Line pump or truck-mounted boom pump | Equipment finance or chattel mortgage | Big ticket; lenders like evidence of pumping work already booked |
| Skid steer or compact track loader | Equipment finance | Strong resale; bundle attachments |
| Tipper or tray truck | Truck finance | Include body and tow hitch in the contract |
| Ride-on power trowels, laser screeds | Equipment finance | Specialist gear; some lenders prefer new |
| Concrete saws, grinders and dust extractors | Short equipment loan or bundled | See the silica section below |
| Utes and crew vehicles | Chattel mortgage | Commonly financed together with racking |
Equipment finance keeps cash free for supplier accounts and wages, and the plant itself secures the loan. For your working capital gap, compare invoice finance against an overdraft to see which suits your builder mix.
Weekly pours, monthly payments and a supplier asking questions? Send a quick enquiry and we’ll look at bridging the gap. Asking doesn’t involve any look at your credit file.
How do Queensland’s licence revenue caps affect growth?
Plenty of Queensland concreters only discover this rule when a big contract lands. In Queensland, concreting work worth more than $3,300 needs a QBCC concreting licence, which covers formwork, reinforcement and placing concrete. Every QBCC licensee also has to meet minimum financial requirements, and each licence category comes with a maximum annual revenue.
According to the QBCC, the self-certifying categories (SC1 and SC2) cover licensees with maximum revenue up to $800,000. Above that, Categories 1 to 7 apply, with formal financial reporting. Licensees in all categories still need to meet their net tangible asset requirements.
Why it matters for borrowing:
- Growth can hit a ceiling. If a big builder contract would push revenue past your category limit, you may need to move up a category first.
- Debt structure affects your figures. How loans and assets sit on your balance sheet influences net tangible assets. A loan that suits your cash flow but weakens your licensing position isn’t a good loan.
- Lenders may ask. A lender funding a Queensland concreter’s expansion may want to see that the licence can support the extra revenue.
Talk to your accountant before taking on a large facility to fund growth in Queensland.
What do the silica rules mean for your gear budget?
Concrete contains crystalline silica. Cutting, grinding, drilling and polishing it releases respirable dust. WorkSafe WA notes that from 1 September 2024 stronger regulation of all crystalline silica substances took effect, requiring every process involving them to be controlled and a risk assessment done, with extra duties if a process is assessed as high risk. The other states adopted similar changes.
In practice, that pushes concreters toward wet cutting, on-tool extraction, industrial vacuums and proper respiratory protection, and away from dry cutting with no controls. That equipment is worth financing alongside your saws and grinders rather than skimping on it.
Which documents speed up an approval?
- Recent statements for your business account, half a year at minimum for bigger amounts
- Your aged receivables list by builder
- Supplier account statements showing limits and terms
- BAS and your ATO portal balance, including any payment plan
- Plant quotes or tax invoices, with serial numbers for used gear
- Licence details, and in Queensland your licence category
Example: a Brisbane concreter adding a line pump
A fictional example, built only to illustrate. A Brisbane concreting business pours house slabs for three project builders and does driveways for homeowners on the side. It hires a line pump for nearly every slab and wants its own, plus a second tipper, at about $160k all up. Revenue is approaching its QBCC category ceiling.
The owners speak to their accountant first, who confirms they can move up a category with current net tangible assets. A specialist equipment lender funds the pump and truck through a chattel mortgage, leaning on a year of pump hire invoices to show the saving. A separate invoice finance facility over the project builders’ invoices covers the ready-mix gap, with a limit that rises as revenue does.
Funding your concreting business
Concreters build the base everything else stands on. Your finance should do the same: steady, matched to how builders actually pay, and sized so a wet month doesn’t hurt.
The form takes around sixty seconds. Lodging it doesn’t involve a credit search, so it has no bearing on your score. Your details aren’t sold on or circulated, so there’s no stream of unknown numbers ringing afterwards. A person with lending experience reviews it and gives you a ring. Accurate figures for turnover, your builder mix and the amount you need help us put the most suitable option in front of you straight up.
Frequently asked questions
How do concreters cover ready-mix bills before the builder pays?
Most use a trade account with the concrete supplier plus either invoice finance or a line of credit. Invoice finance advances most of a builder invoice once it's issued; a line of credit can be drawn for any purpose and repaid as payments arrive. Which suits depends on how concentrated your builders are.
Can I finance a concrete pump?
Yes. Line pumps and truck-mounted boom pumps are commonly financed through a chattel mortgage or equipment loan, with the pump as security. Larger boom pumps are significant purchases, so lenders will want to see existing pumping income or signed work to support the repayments.
Does the QBCC maximum revenue limit affect borrowing?
It can. Your QBCC licence category sets the maximum revenue you can earn, and moving up a category requires meeting stronger financial requirements, including net tangible assets. How you structure loans affects those figures, so talk to your accountant before taking on large debt to fund growth.
Do lenders worry about concreters more than other trades?
Concreting is closely linked to new home and commercial construction, so lenders watch builder concentration and payment terms carefully. A concreter with several regular builders, some direct homeowner work and clean tax affairs presents well.
Should I approach my bank first?
If you have two years of profitable trading and good security, yes. Banks often offer the cheapest finance for plant and working capital. If your bank declines or can't move quickly enough to secure a contract, a non-bank lender can usually assess you on statements and existing work.