Specialty contractors—whether they handle electrical work, HVAC, mechanical systems, or plumbing—often outgrow basic bookkeeping tools and need more powerful solutions. Sage Intacct Construction addresses these challenges head-on by automating routine tasks, simplifying complex billing, and providing real-time job costing insights. Here are five ways it transforms accounting for teams seeking a modern approach.

1. Streamlined Project Accounting Without Chart-of-Accounts Overload

Many contractors rely on basic bookkeeping methods or generic accounting tools that force them to create multiple accounts for every new project detail. These workarounds clutter financial records and make accurate analysis difficult. In contrast, accounting software specifically for electrical or plumbing professionals, like Sage Intacct Construction, tags transactions with multiple dimensions (e.g., location, job, or cost type). This approach provides deep, real-time visibility into labor, materials, and overhead—without expanding your chart of accounts into an unmanageable list.

Why This Matters:

• Fewer manual entries and reduced risk of human error.
• More granular project-tracking without ballooning your account structure.

2. Fast and Accurate Change Order Management

Change orders can comprise a significant portion of project revenue, especially for businesses that rely on follow-up work or expanded scopes. Sage Intacct Construction automates the workflow, updates budgets and owner contracts instantly, and ensures you don’t lose track of approved change orders.

Key Benefit:

• Fewer missed invoices and less manual reconciliation.
• Accurate updates that keep your finances aligned with real-world job progress.

MEPs and other specialty trades face industry-specific billing formats—like AIA-style documents—and must juggle everything from retainage to progress payments. Accounting software for specialty contractors should automate these tasks to reduce mundane data entry. Sage Intacct Construction captures invoice details, suggests coding for line items, and ensures expenses related to subcontracts flow into your billing. This automation reduces the back-and-forth between project and accounting teams.

What It Does:

• Auto-populates vendor bills for quick review and approval.
• Flags discrepancies in billed hours or materials before you send client invoices.

4. Flexible Tracking of Retainage and Progress Billing

Retainage and progress billing often cause headaches for specialty contractors. Basic bookkeeping tools hardly offer features to track withheld payments or partial invoicing on large jobs. In contrast, construction-specific accounting software, like Sage Intacct, integrates retainage tracking within the invoicing process. It also handles progress billing, so you can send partial invoices at different stages and see exactly how much of each invoice remains outstanding.

Why It’s a Game-Changer:

• No more wrestling with separate Excel sheets for each customer deposit.
• Fewer delays when releasing funds, since all financial data remains centralized and up to date.

5. Customizable Dashboards and Real-Time Insights

Many contractors struggle with siloed data, making it tough to see which projects generate profit and which drain resources. Sage Intacct Construction brings dashboard capabilities to the forefront. You can display timesheets, cash flow, budgets, and cost projections on a single screen. This unified view lets managers track performance across projects and make smarter decisions about where to invest resources.

Immediate Payoffs:

• Clear financial snapshots for executives, project managers, and stakeholders.
• On-demand metrics that minimize the need for manual data gathering or spreadsheet merges.

Sage Intacct transforms your finance team from a bookkeeping function into a strategic partner. Construction-focused workflows handle partial billing, retainage, or complex job costing without forcing you into manual workarounds. Role-based dashboards let project managers and financial staff collaborate with real-time visibility. Sage Intacct Construction adapts as you add new projects and business lines.

When specialty contractors rely on basic bookkeeping software, they often run into missing capabilities and endless workarounds. Upgrading to accounting software like Sage Intacct Construction eases these burdens and positions your business for faster, more accurate financial management. If you’re ready to leave behind manual processes and hidden errors, consider making Sage Intacct your go-to platform for advanced construction accounting. Contact us today for a personalized demo.