ERP Software Built for General Builders
Several supplier accounts, a handful of sub-contractors, a customer who keeps changing the spec, and a phone that rings while you’re on the tools. IBIOS tracks every supplier order and records every variation from one platform. Coming soon: AI call answering to capture new enquiries.
Why builders have the most complex supply chains in the trade
More suppliers, more sub-contractors, more things that can go wrong
A general builder running domestic extensions and refurbishments might have accounts with a builders’ merchant, a timber yard, a plumbing factor, an electrical wholesaler, a roofing specialist, and a plant hire company. Each account has its own pricing, credit terms, and ordering process. Keeping track of what has been ordered and what has arrived — across several suppliers for several jobs at once — is a full-time admin job if you are doing it on spreadsheets.
Sub-contractor coordination is the second layer of complexity. The plumber needs to know when the first fix is ready. The joiner needs to know when the structural work is complete. The tiler needs to know when the plumber has finished. Managing that sequence by WhatsApp and phone calls works until it stops working — usually when someone turns up a day early or a day late and your customer is watching.
Variation orders are a chronic source of lost margin. A customer says “can we add a skylight” on a Tuesday and you say yes, you price it in your head, and it never makes it onto a formal document. Months later, you cannot remember what you agreed, and neither can they. You eat the cost because you have no paper trail.
IBIOS gives you that paper trail, and puts all your suppliers in one place so you can actually see what the job is costing.
How IBIOS helps general builders
Six things that bring order to a complex building business
From multi-supplier order management to variation order recording, built for the realities of running a multi-trade building operation.
All Supplier Accounts in One View
Builders merchant, timber yard, plumbing factor, electrical wholesaler, plant hire — every supplier account tracked in IBIOS with its own pricing, lead times, and order history. Raise purchase orders from the job record. No more logging into a separate portal for each supplier.
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Job-Level Profit and Loss
See the margin on every active job: total quoted value versus total supplier cost to date. When materials costs start climbing past the quoted figure, you know before the job is finished — not when you reconcile at month end. Role-gated so only managers see cost data.
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Sub-Contractor Access Roles
Give plumbers, electricians, and joiners on your jobs a restricted IBIOS login. They see job details, delivery schedules, and site notes. They cannot see your supplier pricing, your margins, or your other customers. Coordinate a multi-trade job without a daily WhatsApp chain.
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Variation Order Recording
Customers change their minds. Extensions get bigger. Kitchens get upgraded. IBIOS records each variation order against the job with a description, cost impact, and customer acceptance. Your contract value stays accurate, and you have a written trail if a payment is disputed.
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Quote-to-Job Conversion
A builder’s quote is the start of a project, not just a price document. When a quote is accepted, IBIOS converts it into an active job record: customer linked, specification locked, supplier orders ready to raise. No re-keying from the quote into a separate job sheet.
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AI Receptionist for New Enquiries (coming soon)
Coming soon: builders are on-site all day, so IBIOS’s AI Receptionist will answer calls for new project enquiries, capture the scope and contact details, and log them as leads. You will return the call when you are free, with the customer’s requirements already written up.
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Why generic CRM tools miss the builder’s workflow
General builders have the most complex supply chains and sub-contractor relationships in the trade. Most software handles one of them. IBIOS handles both.
All suppliers in one view
Every purchase order across every merchant account in one dashboard. No logging into a separate portal for each supplier to check what has arrived.
Job cost alert before it’s too late
Real-time materials cost vs. quoted value on every active job. You know you’re running over before you finish, not after you invoice.
Variation order paper trail
Every scope change recorded with description, cost impact, and customer acceptance. No disputed invoices because there is a written record.
Sub-contractor access without data exposure
External trades see what they need for the job. They do not see your pricing, margins, or other customers.
AI Receptionist (coming soon)
Coming soon: will capture new project enquiries while you’re working and log each lead with contact details and scope, ready to call back.
See pricing
Founding prices for waiting-list members are explained on the pricing page.
Go to the pricing pageBuying guide
Choosing software for a building firm: estimates, variations, merchants and subcontractors
Written by the IBIOS team. IBIOS was built inside a working bathroom showroom in Northern Ireland, where it runs the business day to day. Last updated 18 October 2026.
How do you choose software for a building firm?
Start from the size and shape of your jobs. A firm doing extensions and refurbishments for homeowners needs quotes, staged payments, merchant orders and a schedule. A main contractor on commercial work needs valuations, retentions and contract administration. Very few tools do both well.
- Domestic or commercial. Homeowner projects and commercial contracts need different software. Decide which pays your bills.
- Quotes and variations. A clear original quote, and every change after it recorded and agreed, so the final bill matches what the customer accepted.
- Staged payments. Deposit, stage payments and a final balance, each recorded with its reference against the job.
- Merchant orders per job. Materials from several merchants, ordered against the job, with deliveries checked in.
- Trades and subcontractors. Who is on which site and when, and what each can see.
- What stays in your accounts. CIS, payroll and VAT returns usually belong in accounts or payroll software. Know where the line is.
How should variations be handled?
Most disputes on domestic building jobs come down to what was agreed and when. Every change should be a revised quote the customer can see and accept, with the original kept alongside it.
IBIOS keeps revisions of each quote and lets the customer accept online. An accepted quote can also become a contract the customer signs online; you send the signing link from your own email.
Which rules and schemes affect a builder’s paperwork?
Construction design and management duties apply across the UK, under the CDM Regulations in Great Britain and their Northern Ireland equivalent, including on domestic jobs. Building approval works differently in each nation: building regulations approval in England and Wales, a building warrant in Scotland, and district council building control in Northern Ireland.
If you pay subcontractors under the Construction Industry Scheme, that is an HMRC scheme across the UK and is usually run from accounts or payroll software. Keep it there; your job software should hold the job, not replace your payroll.
When is construction-specific software the better choice?
If you run commercial contracts with interim valuations, retentions and formal contract administration, construction project software is built for that and IBIOS is not. Say so to yourself before any demo.
If your work is domestic projects with materials from merchants and a few trades on site, IBIOS fits: bookings for site visits, quotes from merchant prices, deposits and balances, supplier orders, goods-in and scheduling.
Construction project software, field-service suite, spreadsheet or IBIOS?
How the usual options tend to work out for a building firm.
| Option | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Construction project / estimating software | Commercial contracts with valuations, retentions and detailed take-offs. | Often more than a domestic builder needs, and priced to match. |
| Field-service / job-management suite | Repair and maintenance work with short jobs. | Long projects with several merchants and staged payments can feel squeezed into a call-out model. |
| Spreadsheet and accounts package | A small builder with a few jobs at a time. | Variations and merchant orders live in emails, and the final bill becomes an argument. |
| IBIOS | Domestic builders who quote from merchant prices, record variations, take staged payments and order per job. | Early access by waiting list. Not built for commercial valuations or retentions. Timesheets and mileage, and QuickBooks and Xero sync are coming soon, not live yet. |
What you need in place before you switch
- Your standard quote terms, including how variations are priced and agreed.
- Your staged payment pattern for a typical job.
- Merchant accounts and the price lists or quotes you get from each.
- A list of your trades and subcontractors, and what each may see.
- A clear line between what lives in the job system and what stays in accounts or payroll, such as CIS.
What it costs
For builders the big losses are unagreed variations that never get paid and materials ordered twice or not at all. Weigh software on whether it would have caught those on your last few jobs.
Founding prices for waiting-list members are explained on the pricing page. You can start with quoting or order management on its own.
Last reviewed October 2026.
What people get wrong
- Agreeing variations on site by word of mouth and pricing them at the end.
- Buying commercial construction software for a domestic business.
- Letting each site order from merchants with no record against the job.
- Giving subcontractors access to cost prices and margins.
- Assuming building approval works the same in every UK nation.
- Expecting job software to run CIS and payroll.
Related reading
- Quoting software buying guide
- Supplier orders
- Managing subcontractors in the UK
- Workforce scheduling
- Late payment interest calculator
Builder software FAQs
Can IBIOS record variations to a quote?
Yes. Each change is a revision of the quote, and the customer can accept it online.
Does IBIOS handle CIS deductions?
No. Keep CIS in your accounts or payroll software; IBIOS is for the job itself, and QuickBooks and Xero sync are coming soon.
Is IBIOS suitable for commercial contracts?
Not really. IBIOS is built for domestic and smaller projects, not for interim valuations and retentions.
Can I order from several merchants against one job?
Yes. Each supplier order sits on the job, and goods-in is recorded against it.
Can subcontractors use IBIOS without seeing my margins?
Yes. Access rights are set per role and per person, and payment details are visible to managers and owners only.
How do I get IBIOS?
Join the waiting list. IBIOS is in early access and there is no free trial.
Domestic projects or commercial contracts?
Tell us what a typical job looks like. If you need valuations and retentions, we will say IBIOS is the wrong tool; if you run homeowner projects, we will show you one end to end.
IBIOS Limited · company no. NI743167 · 10 Ballyclare Road, Doagh, Ballyclare BT39 0PE · Production is hosted in the UK.
Ready to see exactly what your jobs are costing?
Join the waiting list for early access. Or book a demo and see multi-supplier order tracking and job-level P&L in action.