Theindustryleaderinfastpaymentsforsubcontractorsandsuppliers

The survey by the Gold Coast Bulletin said Hutchies paid 94.6 per cent of invoices received within 30 days, which was faster than any other builder.

Builders included in the survey were Metricon Homes, Mirvac, Coral Homes, Philip Usher Constructions, Multiplex, McNab, Meriton, Homecorp, Raptis, and Tomkins.

Chairman Scott Hutchinson said it had been difficult to maintain a high level performance in payments during tough economic times which had seen 2,213 builders go into administration during the past year alone.

“It is important that we keep the cashflow going from clients to subcontractors and suppliers of goods and services so we all support each other to stay afloat,” he said.

“But to keep the cashflow going, Hutchies sometimes needed to draw on our own cash reserves to get by.

“Unfortunately, many builders don’t have sufficient cash reserves and fail."

This is an enormous responsibility the business owners carry to ensure they are able to pay their people and subcontractors what they are owed on time.

“We rely on good projects and trustworthy clients to sustain our strong balance sheet which has been built up over decades,” he said.

“Hutchies has survived six bad years but it is a fine line for builders to decide which projects to take on and which ones to decline."

Many Australian builders have struggled with loss-making projects during the construction boom which sent labour and material costs soaring on fixed price contracts.

Scott said that, although revenue jumped 17 per cent in the year to June, costs rose 19 per cent, halving the gross profit margin from 2.4 per cent to just 1.2 per cent. 

“A very poor result,” he said.

“But we have learned over the years that payments being made on time create a loyal following of reliable subbies and suppliers who are valuable to our team and our clients.”

Scott said Hutchies’ prompt payment policy evolved in the 1960s when Jack Snr saved the family company from financial ruin.

“His creed to ensure subbies got paid on time, every time was vital for recovery and that is a philosophy we have tried to follow ever since,” he said.