How Do Engineering Consultants Fund Project Work in Progress?

Why engineering consultancies fund differently

Engineering consultancies carry project work in progress and stage payments against a steady salaried team, so the cash strain sits in the gap between doing the work and billing for it. With little in the way of machinery or property to secure against, the funding question is not 'what asset do we buy?' but 'how do we bridge the gap between spending and being paid?'. That points toward working-capital facilities and unsecured lending rather than asset finance.

The facility that usually fits

For this trade the natural route is invoice finance against staged fees. It is designed for the recurring, temporary gaps that asset-light businesses live with, and — in the case of invoice finance — it grows with the invoices as the business grows. Credicorp's unsecured lending to limited companies carries no personal guarantee, which matters when there is no asset to pledge. Read the underlying guide before committing.

Size it against real figures

Model the gap with our 13-week cash-flow forecast and the invoice finance structures on Learn. For asset-light firms the key number is how long cash is tied up between paying costs and collecting fees — get that right and the facility sizes itself.

How lenders view the trade

Our sector page for engineering consultancies sets out what a lender looks at when there are few hard assets, and the general answers on whether your sector affects borrowing and what lenders check give the wider picture. When ready, you can apply. General information, not an offer of finance.