invoice finance | TAKe ANOTHeR LOOK A guide to Invoice ... · to Invoice Finance and how it helps your client’s business cash flow invoice finance ... clients, followed by 81.3%

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A guide to Invoice Finance and how it helps your client’s business cash flow

invoice finance | TAKe ANOTHeR LOOK

Asset Based Finance Association

eNTeR>

Talk to your funding provider for more information about invoice Finance and ask them to come in and talk to you and your team about how invoice Finance could be helping your clients’ business cash flow. Or visit ABFA.org.uk to find out more.

visit the aBfa website:www.abfa.org.uk

call us:020 8332 9955

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http://www.abfa.org.uk/


http://www.abfa.org.uk/accountants/


Asset Based Finance Association

(Source: Financial Marketing Limited. Survey of 2,063 accountants)

of accountants said clients have reported an increase in late payments in the last 12 months78%

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1. Invoice Finance - a smart choice for growing SMEs

2. ABFA the industry specialists3. ABFA the stats4. Win an iPad Mini5. Invoice Finance Industry in

Numbers that Matter 6. Advantages of Invoice Finance7. FAQ8. Case Studies9. Video - ‘What is Invoice Finance?10. Find out more

Able Services

BR Pharmaceuticals

Brookvex Technical

Hamilton Bradshaw

Hankinson Painting Group

Hughes Safety Showers

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Offices & General Environmental Services Ltd

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List of Invoice Finance Providers

invoice finance | TAKe ANOTHeR LOOK

For an opportunity to wiN a brand new iPad Mini, just complete the survey on the link below and once it has been submitted you will be automatically entered into the prize draw.

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www.abfa.org.uk/accountants*Terms and conditions apply


http://www.abfa.org.uk/accountants/video.html

http://www.abfa.org.uk/members/membersList.asp

www.abfa.org.uk/accountants

invoice finance | TAKE ANOTHER LOOK Asset Based Finance Association

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invoice finance A smart choice for growing SMEs

according to the 2012 late payment index published by experian, the global information services company, uK businesses are settling outstanding debts on average 25 days beyond agreed terms.

The ProblemCompanies providing lengthy terms to their creditors i.e. 90 days, will not see settlement for up to 115 days on average. This brings pressures on cash flow for business owners seeking support for day to day business as well as growth.

Your role

As a valued business advisor you play a central role in providing information on the funding streams available to your clients. The challenge for your clients is to understand what finance options are fit for their purposes and it is here the ABFA would like to help.

Available SolutionsAlthough credit is still viewed as tight in the UK, particularly for SMEs, there is funding available including:

• A range of government-backed lending schemes

• Traditional loans and overdrafts

• Invoice Finance and Asset Based Lending

These are available from banks and specialist finance businesses that can provide sustainable working capital, protection against bad debt, late payments and a number of other benefits for clients’ businesses.

About Invoice FinanceInvoice Finance has evolved considerably over the last thirty years and now has a deserved reputation of being able to deliver for businesses during periods of growth and also through challenging times. The ABFA is extremely proud of these strengths. Invoice Finance is a facilitator of growth. It is financially sustainable and has supported many hugely successful UK and Irish companies.

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aBfa the industry specialists

despite the rise in popularity of invoice finance and asset Based lending there still remains a requirement to provide more information to businesses on the benefits of using such products to support cash flow and growth.

About ABFAThe Asset Based Finance Association (ABFA) is the trade body for the Invoice Finance and Asset Based Lending industry, representing about 95 per cent of Asset Based Financiers in the UK. We have over 40 years of experience and are the voice of an industry supplying much needed liquidity to businesses across the UK and Ireland. The industry supports the real economy and has particular expertise in supporting SMEs and also larger corporates.

Benefits of Asset Based FinanceThe proposition for using Invoice Finance and Asset Based Lending (Asset Based Finance is the collective term for both products) is a strong

one and these products are generally enjoying a renaissance within the current economic climate. This is due to the fact that they are based on actual sales, not forecasts or historical figures. ABFA members are able to look through their clients to understand the underlying strengths of the business and base their funding decisions on real factors such as the quality of a client’s customers and the assets the client holds, not just last year’s accounts.

There is also an added value because clients do not just get finance; they get a business partner interested in how the business is performing and who can bring a wider perspective to business operations.

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ABFA members are able to look through their clients to understand the underlying strengths of the business and base their funding decisions on real factors





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2.Demand for working capitalAt a time when the overall UK net lending contracted by 2.6 per cent in 2012 compared to 2011, total funding advanced to clients by ABFA’s members stood at £16.7bn at the close of last year. This was an increase of 6 per cent from the balance at the end of 2011. This growth shows a continued demand for working capital from the UK and Ireland’s SME communities and that firms are increasingly seeing the benefit of Invoice Finance and Asset Based Lending over other forms of funding. Currently, around 43,000 UK and Ireland businesses are using Asset Based Finance. Over 80 per cent of clients have turnovers under £5m/6m and around a third of the industry’s client base are found in the sub £500,000 turnover bracket.

In a recent survey of professional advisors Invoice Finance was viewed favourably. Results of this survey indicate that apart from borrowing from ‘family and friends’, Factoring and Invoice Discounting had the

highest general awareness amongst SMEs as alternative methods of finance. However, the products remain misunderstood with little understanding of how they can be appropriately utilised and the real benefits that they can bring to unlock value and support growth.

Asset Based Finance - Raising the profileThe ABFA is raising the profile of Invoice Finance and Asset Based Lending. We invite you to join us on this journey. It is all about informed choice and giving your clients access to the most beneficial and appropriate financial options available and helping them to understand what the smart choice may be. This e-book is designed to showcase real examples of businesses using Invoice Finance and Asset Based Lending solutions and the positive impact these choices have made on their businesses. The voice of our customers is the most powerful message we have.

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aBfa the stats

aBfa carried out a survey of 2,096 uK professional advisors on the awareness of working capital solutions and issues smes face. Key stats highlighted opposite:

3.stated the biggest challenge their clients face today is the removal or restriction of traditional forms of finance

cited ‘lack of cash’ as a key issue for clients, followed by ‘bad debt’ (61%), ‘declining sales’ (52%) and ‘poor credit management’ (44%)

think the scale of late payments has grown worse in the last 12 months

said effective marketing came out on top as ways clients are looking to come out of recession followed by exploiting market gaps (53.2%)

of advisors questioned would recommend invoice discounting to clients, followed by 81.3% for factoring and 57.8% for asset Based lending

think business owners have a poor understanding of the finance available

80% 86%

54.7%

68.8%

98.4% 66.7%

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your chance to win an iPad Mini

it is all about your clients thinking smarter and understanding the options available to them. the case studies in this e-Book provide a broad spectrum of smes and corporates that depend on and trust invoice finance and asset Based lending. take another look and see that invoice finance and asset Based lending are the smarter choices to support your clients’ business.

4.For an opportunity to wiN a brand new iPad Mini, just complete the survey on the link below and once it has been submitted you will be automatically entered into the prize draw.

win an iPad

Mini*


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invoice finance industry in numBers that matter

from the size of the industry to the momentum behind factoring…

5.

All figures accurate as at end of Q4 2012. Source: ABFA www.abfa.org.uk

+25 days Average number of days it currently takes a business to collect their debts beyond the generally agreed terms of 30 days.

The Big 6Top six sectors that use Invoice Financing products ServiceS ManufacTuring TranSporT reTail conSTrucTionDiSTriBuTion

42,965 Total number of UK businesses using an Invoice Finance facility as at 31st December 2012

3,074

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£0 - £500k

£500k+ – £1m

£1m+ – £5m

£5m+ – £10m

£10m+ – £50m

£50m+ – £100m

Over £100m£4,699m

276

323£1,569m

£4,401m

£1,947m3,606

£2,940m14,367

£572m6,684

£543 million14,635 businesses

£16.671 billion advanced against debt as at 31st December 2012

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top 5 Advantages of Invoice Finance

1 a secure form of finance – the sales

ledger is used to secure access to

funds, so as your business grows so

does the amount of funds that can be

made available to you.

2

access to specialist expertise – Invoice

Financiers take an in-depth view of

your business – this includes taking

into account the entire financial picture

when making a funding decision.

3

it’s finance that grows with you – you

get an immediate cash injection and

an ongoing source of funding linked

directly to current sales. As business

grows and sales increase, so does the

amount of working capital that the

Invoice Financier can make available.

4 improve your profitability – paying

suppliers early allows you to buy in

larger quantities and take advantage of

any volume discounts available.

5

an extensive credit history is not required in the uK – the sales ledger of

the business is used to secure access

to funds. This means those businesses

which may have been turned down for

bank funding have a viable and trusted

funding option.

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top 5 faQs

7.

Will your client lose control of their customer relationships if they use factoring?No, an Invoice Financier will provide a dedicated credit controller who, in effect, becomes an extension of your client’s own team; chasing and collecting payment in the way they want them to. Many providers can also offer a confidential facility, where your client’s customers would remain unaware of how they are funding your business.

faQ1

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top 5 faQs

7.

is it expensive?Invoice Finance is certainly cost-effective compared to other types of business finance. Compared to bank funds, the cost of money advanced through Invoice Finance is competitive. What is often forgotten in a straight comparison of charges is that businesses using Invoice Finance facilities benefit from significant related savings on a number of costly overheads, such as the cost of employing a credit controller, postage, stationery and telephone calls. And because Invoice Finance clients do not have to wait for invoices to be paid, they benefit from healthier bank balances, and save on bank charges.

faQ2

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top 5 faQs

7.

What percentage of my invoices are released upfront?As each facility is tailored to a business’ own needs, this will vary. Generally though an Invoice Finance facility will release anything up to 85% of the value of outstanding invoices as they are issued.

faQ3

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top 5 faQs

7.

how soon after sending an invoice can your clients access money?This can vary from provider to provider but typically funds can be made available within 24 hours of an invoice being received. However, some providers are able to make same day payments depending on the terms and individual circumstances.

faQ4

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top 5 faQs

7.

What if your client doesn’t want the invoice finance provider to chase their invoices?Many businesses still wish to perform their own credit control services, so if your client already has a strong system in place then they may want to consider the funding-only service, which is called Invoice Discounting. This means your client can continue to chase their own customer payments.

faQ5

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case study able services Flexible funding to support business restructure

the managing director of able services pdm limited, robert menzies, started his drainage and plumbing maintenance firm 14 years ago. as a family business able services had been running successfully until 2010 when their biggest customer withdrew their business.

The heavy reliance on one large customer left the business in a precarious position with jobs on the line and no prospect of new business in the pipeline to fill the void.

In consultation with his family and business advisor, Robert took the decision to restructure and re-launch the firm in order to safeguard its future. The strategy from the re-launch in May 2011 was to focus on winning new business and the Invoice Finance facility in place gave Able Services the funding support it needed at that time, enabling Robert to achieve a smooth cash flow and invest for growth.

Robert said: “The challenge we faced was that we had all our eggs in one basket in effect, and when we lost our major customer the business was at risk.

“But, we were able to restructure and focus on targeting new business leads which saw us achieve a number of

significant contract wins. This meant we were able to keep all of our staff on through that process.

“We took on new business from major breweries such as Marston’s PLC and Mitchell’s & Butler PLC, and even won back the contract from our biggest customer.

“The past year has seen a huge rejuvenation for the firm and with the support of the Invoice Finance facility we have been able to secure our cash flow but also access on-going funding as and when needed.

“The self-funding nature of our growth plan means that with new business secured and with most of the investments made following the current consolidation period our future is looking profitable and secure.

“Initially our aim had been to achieve business turnover of £100,000 a month, but we’ve seen a 30 per cent rise in staff and now we’re actually turning over £130,000 a month. Our aim now is to grow that to £200,000 a month.”

The business now has an annual turnover of £1.6million with a 7 per cent increase in profits year to date.

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case study Br pharmaceuticals IF recommended through accountant

leeds-based Br pharmaceuticals has been using a multi-facility asset Based lending package to assist further business growth. Br was established in 1996 by yorkshire business entrepreneur, phillip Byrne, who spotted a gap in the uK healthcare market, especially the pharmacy sector.

Phillip’s quest for the latest product innovation to bring to market is continuous and BR boasts ten top health and supplement brands as part of its growing portfolio, including market leaders Valupak, Reveal and Isostar. Access to a flexible working capital facility has been a critical aspect of the firm’s UK and international growth strategy and BR have achieved this through a substantial funding facility which uses the financing of UK invoicing and also the firm’s export debt.

Managing Director at BR Pharmaceuticals, Phillip Byrne, comments: “Cash is the lifeblood of any business and the new funding line has made a significant contribution to our cash resources which we can now utilise for working capital and product development. This is a tough business environment and we have been delighted with the flexibility that Invoice Discounting provides.”

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case study Brookvex technical To be an industry recognised infrastructure managed services leader

raising finance effectively and managing cash flow are vital to any growing company. and for those experiencing fast growth it can be challenging and require fast results as Brookvex technical services, a leading provider of infrastructure managed solutions, found when it began to grow its offering.

The firm faced a major challenge in securing a reliable cash flow stream to help with its expansion plans. Furthermore, the management team found that its core service – contract work – came with slow payment, sometimes taking an extremely long time.

Mike Davidson, Managing Director of Brookvex Technical Services, explains, “We needed a Factoring company which would help us to advance monies against invoices in order to help our new business grow and develop, whilst also maintaining liquidity. For example our Brookvex Eco Division is currently working with the London Underground. Our initial trial was with Charing Cross Station and it was a great success. The Factoring facility was instrumental in this procedure because it supported our cash flow which really helped to establish and grow our business. This will be even more important next year, as we grow the business and expand the number of trials with new clients.”

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case study hamilton Bradshaw Instrumental tool for growth

Working capital management is essential for any business no matter what size and for hamilton Bradshaw invoice finance has been instrumental in the growth of the business and supporting its day to day operations.

Hamilton Bradshaw is a small closed private equity fund that has grown over the last seven years to become a leading player in the acquisition of recruitment assets and human capital assets predominantly in the UK with some international coverage. The firm was established around 2005 and started to operate in the stressed M&A market - looking at businesses that were in some form of distress, going into some sort of recovery position that they could use their operational expertise to build those business back out again.

Tristan Ramus, Hamilton Bradshaw explained:

“Invoice Finance offers a practical wayto fund growth because it accessescapital through the sales ledger. I amsure that we would not have achievedthe acquisition growth that we havecontinued to enjoy without the InvoiceDiscounting facility. I am a convertand see that is has a key role to playin supporting future growth andacquisition activity within our companyportfolio.”

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case study hankinson painting Group Funding new business acquisition

every business is focused on growth and looking at ways they can evolve and this has been a really important part of the business strategy for hankinson painting Group. it is one of the largest independent painting groups in the uK, providing specialist services to commercial and industrial clients, such as office or factory painting and historic bridge restoration projects.

The firm has a combined £1.5m Invoice Finance facility which they have found invaluable because it has been used to release cash flow and free up funds to purchase two newly acquired businesses.

Group Chief Executive, Stephen Hankinson, explains that he required a finance partner that would provide the right type of funding to support his newly acquired business, Whittle Programmed Painting, and their growth ambitions.

Mr Hankinson said, “We have a great working relationship with our funder and I know that we now have a solid partnership to help us grow the business.”

A £500,000 Invoice Discounting facility was structured which supports the business with its daily working capital. In addition, Mr Hankinson had a secondary requirement for funding the acquisition of another company and was offered a £1 million Factoring facility, resulting in Mr Hankinson taking ownership of EP Painting Ltd.

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case study hughes safety showers Enabling export with Invoice Finance

hughes safety showers (hss) is europe’s largest manufacturer of emergency safety showers, eyebaths and decontamination equipment.

Based in Stockport, the company has supplied industry worldwide for more than 40 years and has built a reputation for excellent engineering design, stringent quality standards allied with unrivalled customer service and support.

When the company was receiving huge orders from foreign territories, resulting in the need for increased credit HSS needed a facility to match their export drive. They switched to a product that could provide on the basis of HSS’s strong sales ledger. Invoice Discounting has unlocked cash from the business sales and as a result delivered a robust funding package worth £2.3million.

Managing Director Tony Hughes said: “As a result of using Invoice Discounting our cash flow is much improved and that has enabled us to get the export business that just wasn’t physically possible before. The economy needs manufacturing businesses to export, and that is what we can now do with the support of the Invoice Finance facility. Our funding model is much more efficient and professional, allowing us to keep marching forward with the business”.

Hughes Group enjoyed an excellent year to end of 2012 with sales increasing by 15% and exports now accounting for over 60% (57% 2011) of the Group which, without the support of the Invoice Finance facility the business would not have been able to deliver in 2012.

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case study muntons British manufacturer’s passion for growth

With an order book boasting major blue chip clients worldwide and sales of over 180,000 tonnes of malt annually, muntons, the British based malt and malted ingredients manufacturer is firmly focused on growth.

Innovation and expansion are at the heart of the Suffolk-based business and they are using an Asset Based Lending (ABL) facility to support exporting activity as well as its operations in Britain which include strengthening their purchasing power of barley. The cost of barley has doubled in the last few years due to poor harvests and increases in demand. The ABL line is helping Muntons to meet the challenges the market brings and the volatility of the cereal market.

Muntons supply major blue chip clients across the food and drinks industry that require malt for a variety of products ranging from whisky and beer to confectionary and a variety of foods. They are proud to be a true British firm in every sense being British owned, British based and using British barley. The fast growth of the business is highlighted in its turnover figures having posted a significant increase in the last five years with a turnover in 2007 of £54m rising to

over £80m last year. The firm is on track to record a turnover of over £100m this year.

Alan Ridealgh, Managing Director at Muntons, explains: “The UK has experienced some unique weather over the past few years, with long periods of drought and then seemingly non-stop rain, which brings challenges not only for the farmers but also industries such as ours that rely on a ready supply of good quality cereals. With extreme weather comes cereal price volatility. We buy in excess of ¼ of a million tonnes of malting barley each year and when the price doubles having access to sufficient funding is essential. The new ABL arrangements we now have in place will provide us with the flexibility to cope with these demands and will enable us to grasp opportunities to grow our business profitably.”

Muntons has also recently become the first maltster in the world to gain the ISO50001 standard for Energy Management and was recognised as the most sustainable manufacturer in 2011 by ‘The Manufacturer’ and were placed in the top rankings in the prestigious Sunday Times Best Green Company for the last four years.

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case study oak exports Taking Oak Exports coast to coast

When starting the business in 1987, company directors stuart dunbar and richard harvey saw a gap in the market for exporting British foods to foreign shores. now, 22 years down the road, oak exports is a successful exporter of non-perishable British food and drink, including the uK’s favourite chocolate and sauces, to retailers, wholesalers and distributors across 36 overseas markets, including singapore, the far east, australia and recently the us.

However, as with many things, exporting does not come without its own challenges. Stuart soon discovered there was a gap to be bridged between the 30 days payment terms he had with his British suppliers, and the 60 day payment term his overseas customers worked to.

“Differing payment terms across the world are only to be expected, but we needed to address the problem quickly to maintain excellent relationships with our suppliers” Stuart explains.

Stuart found an Invoice Finance package to be the perfect solution for Oak Exports because it allows them to fulfil their entire customer orders on time and as smoothly as possible.

Stuart explained: “The service means our cash flow is totally freed up by releasing a percentage of our invoice value providing a smooth, consistent source of funding that grows in line with our sales. Moreover, we have been able to grow the business without the usual headache of handling our own credit control.”

Business is going well for Oak Exports and though Stuart is cautious to jinx it bearing in mind the current economic climate, it looks set to continue. With sterling particularly weak at the moment, Oak Exports has been moving more products to the Far East, allowing it to expand its offering to a region previously difficult to trade in due to the products typically being too expensive to retail.

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case study office & General environmental services London firm cleans up with two acquisitions

for more than 20 years office & General environmental services have worked with property owners and managers to design and deliver tailored cleaning and support services solutions in many of london’s best known buildings. it is a fast growing business who recently strengthened their service offering through the acquisition of altius property services and agent orange.

Invoice Discounting has been used by the business to fund these acquisitions which have enhanced the firm’s market position as one of the UK’s leading independent cleaning and support services companies.

Director Jonathan Smith explains: “Each business complements the other and we’re looking forward to delivering even better services to customers and growing together. We have funded the acquisitions by accessing working capital through our Invoice Discounting facility. We have used Invoice Discounting for over 10 years and thought it would be a good route to fund the acquisitions. Having access to finance has been key to our growth. Both acquisitions were completed within days of each other. We see Invoice Discounting as an important mechanism to grow and develop the business. I am keen to identify further acquisition opportunities which will allow us to provide a complete property service solution for our clients.”

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case study omnitool Cash flow management is key to success

fast growth can put working capital under pressure and when one specialist manufacturer needed to finance the purchase of three new machines to support increased sales, a factoring facility enabled the business to free-up cash to make the necessary investment.

Irvine-based Omnitool are specialists in providing high-end machined components to blue-chip clients in the oil and gas, renewable and nuclear sectors. The company has grown considerably since it was set up in 2005 by Managing Director John McKell.

The Factoring facility has provided much more than working capital, having also opened up new business horizons. As well as purchasing new machinery the company recently relocated to new premises which have doubled the size of their previous unit. Its workforce has also grown from eight to 25 in the past eight years. John’s sons Kenny and Mark, now both Directors, are among the 25 members of staff.

John McKell, Managing Director at Omnitool explains: “I could not sustain the growth without the Factoring facility. Cash flow has been tight but our financial provider have been flexible and helped me to maximise the facility to support the growth of the business. As sales started to increase we needed to purchase a mill/turn machining centre but I didn’t realise that we could use the Factoring line to free up capital to do this. Our provider took the time to understand what the business needed and as a result was able to provide the funding I needed.”

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Able Services

BR Pharmaceuticals

Brookvex Technical

Hamilton Bradshaw



Muntons

Oak Exports


Omnitool

Paperfree

Prestressed Floors

RF Global Solutions

Speedy Hire


case study paperfree To lead the way in technology of this kind

paperfree is a forward looking business that has pioneered the development of the e-portfolio in the uK. like any new business, especially one that revolutionises an established way of doing things, the early years have been tough, with a number of cash flow challenges.

MD Bob Smart, explains: “Many of my clients are colleges and while they are not going bust, they take forever to pay — it’s public money, they have to follow procedures, and I can wait sixty or seventy days. I can’t sell stock, or materials, to raise cash. All I’ve got is a few staff, I can’t lay them off, but they need paying! So cash flow has been a major headache. I have found Invoice Finance to offer more flexibility and creativity which is so refreshing, and I thought ‘Wow, that’s exactly what I want!’”

“In the past people would look down their nose at Factoring” Bob explains “but they have a very blinkered approach — it’s not what they think it is. I don’t even regard it as finance. My provider is just buying an asset from me, on a risk basis that we’ve agreed between us.”

“The way I look at it, I’m buying a service. I can outsource my admin, I can outsource my programming, why not outsource my accounts department? I can’t do as good a job in-house, it would cost me more money. I don’t have to send the nasty letters, make the nasty calls, and when I raise an invoice I have nothing to worry about — you can’t put a price on that! Even as the business gets bigger I’d be stupid to change that arrangement.”

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Able Services

BR Pharmaceuticals

Brookvex Technical

Hamilton Bradshaw



Muntons

Oak Exports


Omnitool

Paperfree

Prestressed Floors

RF Global Solutions

Speedy Hire


case study prestressed floors Taking the stress out of finance

a Wirral based concrete flooring company has taken the stress out of managing its finances after its accountant recommended factoring to support cash flow needs and issues around debtor payment days.

Prestressed Floors Ltd supplies pre-stressed concrete floor beams (used in beam and block flooring), concrete wideslab flooring, staircases and terracing to the construction industry. Based in Brombrough, they offer a complete design and manufacturing service for developments ranging from residential housing to apartment blocks, offices and nursing homes.

The business was established in February 2009 and has grown steadily over the past three years.

Managing Director Joanne Elliot explains the challenges facing a growing business in a tough market: “One of our ongoing challenges is keeping on top of our cash flow. We typically need to pay our suppliers on 30 days, but it sometimes takes customers longer to pay us, especially if stage payments form part of their contract. We met with our accountants to discuss the issue and they recommended we consider Factoring. I must admit that I hadn’t considered Factoring previously and had always thought of it as a very bespoke facility. However, I can now see that it provides an excellent way for a growing business to overcome its cashflow conundrum without having to rely on overdrafts or loans.”

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MicROsiTe >

case

stu

dies

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Able Services

BR Pharmaceuticals

Brookvex Technical

Hamilton Bradshaw



Muntons

Oak Exports


Omnitool

Paperfree

Prestressed Floors

RF Global Solutions

Speedy Hire


case study rf Global solutions RF Global Solutions growth surge

rf Global solutions provides low cost radio frequency (rf) repairs and refurbished rf equipment into the semiconductor and medical industry. the firm is keeping innovation and growth at the forefront of its thinking after it recently doubled the size of its facility to 5,000 sq ft with a recent move to new additional premises in east Kilbride. this is part of rf Global solutions’ ongoing growth strategy which has been supported by factoring facilities that are helping to support the management of the firm’s cash flow.

RF Global Solutions have fully utilised this Factoring service which also includes credit control - whereby the provider handles the issuing of invoices and management of the statements and collection of monies owed. It is a facility popular with many SMEs because it provides a complete credit control service that allows companies to concentrate on the day to day running of the business and provides peace of mind against potential late payment issues.

Alastair Stuart, Company Secretary at RF Global Solutions, explains: “The Factoring facility has enabled us to manage effectively our working capital and concentrate on the day to day running of the business because our financial provider also handles the credit control which means we don’t have to chase payment. We also like the international legal cover and Bad Debt Protection (BDP) facilities which provide us with that extra peace of mind. The factoring works really well for us and I think it’s competitive and reasonable value for money when you compare it to using an overdraft and the costs involved with employing someone to manage our credit control.”

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BAcK< NexT >

Thrive





MicROsiTe >

case

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Able Services

BR Pharmaceuticals

Brookvex Technical

Hamilton Bradshaw



Muntons

Oak Exports


Omnitool

Paperfree

Prestressed Floors

RF Global Solutions

Speedy Hire


case study speedy hire Enabling growth using ABL

speedy hire plc, the uK’s largest provider of hire equipment, is aiming for future success thanks to asset Based lending (aBl).

Headquartered in Merseyside, Speedy Hire plc has more than twice the market share of its nearest competitor. In addition to its traditional construction based business Speedy Hire plc is active in supplying the energy, water, waste and transport sectors. Business has developed beyond hire to offer training and advice to de-risk their client base.

CEO Steve Corcoran has a dynamic strategy for growth, driven by equipment upgrades and focusing on key customers. The Asset Based Lending facility is enabling the company to further invest in its plant and machinery fleet to facilitate this planned growth.

Steve Corcoran explains: “We are delighted with the ABL facility. The support of our banks in providing the facility is a great vote of confidence. It illustrates both the strength of our balance sheet and the quality of our asset base. We now have certainty with regard to our medium term funding; this is another key step in our recovery and will underpin our strategy to grow the business in the years ahead.”

That means Speedy Hire plc can focus on serving the needs of equipment hire customers across Britain.

8.

BAcK< NexT >

Thrive





MicROsiTe >

case

stu

dies

arti

cles




Able Services

BR Pharmaceuticals

Brookvex Technical

Hamilton Bradshaw



Muntons

Oak Exports


Omnitool

Paperfree

Prestressed Floors

RF Global Solutions

Speedy Hire


find out more

talk to your funding provider for more information about invoice finance and ask them to come in and talk to you and your team about how invoice finance could be helping your clients’ business cash flow. or visit aBfa.org.uk to find out more.


call us:020 8332 9955

talk to your funding provider for more information about invoice finance and ask them to come in and talk to you and your team about how invoice finance could be helping your clients’ business cash flow. or visit aBfa.org.uk to find out more.


call us:020 8332 9955

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