Requirements checklist
What to ask for when choosing software for building material suppliers.
A checklist built from how building material suppliers work, to print or save as a PDF and bring to any supplier meeting.
What the software should cover
Tick each one that matters to your business.
- Phone and WhatsApp order entry
- Delivery note with photo proof
- Contractor and site-wise ledger
- Rate list by date and landed cost
- Lorry trips, hire and freight
- Yard stock by brand and size
- Collections and post-dated cheques
Roles that need their own access
Who logs in, and what each person may see or change.
- For owners
- For counter clerks
- For yard supervisors
- For drivers
- For accounts assistants
Reports to ask for
Ask to see each one with your own sample data.
- Outstanding by contractor and site, with ageing
- Loads delivered, with part loads still open
- Rate history for cement, steel and aggregate
- Yard stock by brand, grade and diameter
- Returns and credit notes for the month
- Collection list for Saturday, oldest bills first
- Sales and purchase summary for the tax return
Systems it may need to connect to
Note which ones you already run.
- Accounting package export
- SMS
- Card, transfer and payment gateways
- Transport document data through your provider
- Weighbridge printouts
Questions for any vendor
Put these to every supplier you are comparing.
- Can it stop a load going to a contractor who is over the limit?
- How are part loads handled?
- Can it prepare transport documents?
- Will our accounts stay in our own package?
- Can our contractor balances be brought across?
- Can drivers manage the phone screen?
- Who owns the ledgers and delivery records?
- What does it cost?
- Is it too much for a small yard?
- How soon can the yard work from it?
- What do we have to gather beforehand?
Where the work usually breaks today
Circle the ones you recognise. They set the order of the project.
- Signed delivery notes never come back
- Credit limits are hidden at order time
- Part loads are left open
- Old rates are billed
- Outstanding by site is unclear
Prefer to talk it through? See the building material suppliers page.