Running a construction business is tough because the money doesn't flow in a straight line. You buy materials weeks before they're needed. Subcontractors send bills on their own schedule. Clients only pay when a stage is done. And by the time you work out whether a job was profitable, it's often finished and gone.
Vendra gives every contract its own project in the system. Every cost — materials, subcontractors, labour — gets tagged to that project. You invoice the client at each milestone. And you can see the profitability of any live job at any point, not just when it's wrapped up.
Each contract is a project with task stages
When a construction contract is won, a project is created in Vendra. The project is broken into task stages that mirror the physical phases of construction:
- Site preparation and start of work
- Foundation and substructure
- Superstructure and roofing
- MEP (mechanical, electrical, plumbing) rough-in
- Internal finishing and fit-out
- Snagging, inspection and handover
Each stage contains tasks assigned to site supervisors, team leaders or specific tradespeople. Tasks carry deadlines, planned hours and notes. Project managers see the full picture on a kanban board or Gantt-style timeline — no separate project management tool required.
Material cost tracking via purchase orders
Every material order — cement bags, reinforcing steel, sand, timber, roofing sheets, hardware — is raised as a purchase order in Vendra with the project reference attached. When the supplier's invoice arrives, the vendor bill is matched to the purchase order and automatically tagged to the same project. No manual cost allocation needed.
The project profitability report pulls together all purchase costs tagged to a project and compares them against the invoiced revenue at any point during construction — giving site and finance teams a live view of budget consumed versus budget remaining.
Subcontractor billing and vendor management
Subcontractors are set up as vendors with their own payment terms. When a subcontractor sends a progress bill, you enter it as a vendor invoice and link it to the project. Retention deductions go on as negative lines or separate credit notes. You can pull a report at any time showing exactly what you owe each subcontractor and how overdue it is.
Milestone invoicing to clients
Construction clients don't get monthly invoices — they get invoiced at each stage. The contract value sits on a sales order linked to the project. When a stage is complete — slab done, roofing finished, practical completion — you raise the invoice for that milestone from the sales order. The invoice references the stage so the client can see exactly what they're paying for.
Site worker payroll
Site workers and supervisors are employees in the payroll module with their own working schedules and salary structures. Attendance can be tracked through project task timesheets. When payroll runs, it calculates gross pay, statutory deductions and net pay per employee. Payslips go out in batch and can be sent digitally.
Contract as project
You create a project for each contract. Add task stages, assign them to your team, and track progress from the first day on site to handover.
Material purchase orders
Every material order is tagged to the project. When the supplier's bill arrives it matches to the purchase order automatically — no manual cost entry.
Subcontractor billing
Enter subcontractor bills as vendor invoices linked to the project. Track retention, partial payments, and what's still overdue per subcontractor.
Milestone invoicing
When a stage is complete, you raise the invoice for that milestone. It pulls from the contract value and shows the client exactly what they're paying for.
Project profitability
See what you've spent vs what you've invoiced on any live job. Materials, subcontractors, and labour all roll up into one number.
Site worker payroll
Run payroll for site workers from the same system. Process payslips monthly or weekly, with statutory deductions calculated automatically.
Equipment and site expense tracking
Site managers submit expense claims for equipment hire, fuel, transport and small site purchases through Vendra's expenses module. Each claim tags to the project and attaches the receipt. After manager approval, the cost posts directly to the project. You see equipment and expense costs in the project profitability report alongside materials and labour.
Multi-project management
If you're running several contracts at once, the project dashboard shows all of them. Each project card shows how far tasks are completed, how much of the budget has been used, and what invoices are outstanding. Filter by project stage, region or project manager to quickly spot which jobs need attention without clicking through each one.
Which plan does a construction company need?
Most construction businesses start on the Pro plan at $27/month, which covers projects, purchasing, invoicing, payroll and full accounting. Companies with separate legal entities per project, joint ventures or multi-country operations benefit from Pro Plus at $50/month for multi-company management and consolidated reporting across all entities.