FRACTIONAL CFO FOR SWPPP AND EROSION CONTROL CONTRACTORS.
We manage the finance function for SWPPP and erosion control subcontractors doing $1M to $12M: job costing aligned to the way you estimate, a 13 week cash flow forecast, monthly WIP, and a CFO in the room every month. Pricing starts at $1,900 per month.
SWPPP is a portfolio business dressed as a construction trade, so cost per site is the first report we build. A book is dozens of small recurring sites, and route density, drive time, inspection minutes, and BMP material burn per site decide margin far more than the contract rate does. One verified $5.2M erosion control contractor went from $24,000 to $1,105,000 in net profit after taxes on that ledger alone, with per-site job costing and cash control. We also build a rain-event rate class, because most permits require inspection within 24 hours of a 0.25 inch storm across every permitted site at once, and surge capacity billed at routine rates is a donation to the weather.
SPM is a construction CFO for SWPPP and erosion control subcontractors from $1M to $12M in revenue. See how a fractional CFO for construction works month to month.
THE THREE THINGS THAT DRAIN THE CASH.
The $56,460 Clock
Stormwater penalties reach five figures per day per violation, stop-work orders come along, and the paper trail is the only defense. The SWPPP contractor sells that protection, which means the contractor's own documentation system is the product.
The Quarter-Inch Trigger
A 0.25-inch storm obligates 24-hour inspections across every site at once. Surge capacity priced at routine rates is a donation; the rain-event rate class is how the sky's schedule gets paid for.
The Route Ledger
Dozens of small sites live or die on cost per site: drive time, BMP burn, inspection minutes. A verified $5.2M erosion contractor went from $24K to $1,105,000 net after taxes at a 30 percent margin before taxes on exactly that ledger.
FROM 10% TO 13.5% NET.
At $1M to $5M, the average SWPPP and erosion control sub earns 24% gross margin and spends 14% of revenue on overhead, which leaves 10% net profit before taxes (Run On CFOS Trade Benchmark Reference). The CFOS target is 13.5% before taxes, the SWPPP and erosion control average plus 3.5 points and never below 10%, where the book CONTROL's 12% is the rule of thumb across trades. It is not the industry average.
The target takes two moves. Overhead comes down 1 point to 13%, and gross margin comes up 2.5 points to 26.5%, so 26.5 minus 13 leaves 13.5. The gross margin points come from the three leaks above, priced and billed, not absorbed. On a $3M year, every point is $30,000.
WHAT WE CHANGE.
These are the SWPPP and erosion control problems we put a number on first. Each one gets its own cost code, its own line on the schedule of values or its own line in the 13 week cash forecast, so you can read it in the monthly meeting while the job is still open.
- The fine that dwarfs the contract
- The rain-event clock
- Portfolio economics
- Feast-famine
- The NOI gate and the paper trail
THE SWPPP AND EROSION CONTROL GAP CALCULATOR. AVERAGE AGAINST TARGET, IN DOLLARS.
Put in your annual revenue. You get gross margin, overhead and net profit for SWPPP and erosion control contractors your size: the industry average and the CFOS target, in dollars a year. Nothing you type leaves this page.
Another trade too? The gap calculator for every trade.
Your figures show here once you put in your revenue.
Why aim for the target. An average is the middle of the pack: about half of companies do worse. And about 6 in 10 construction businesses close within 10 years (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: about 40 percent of construction businesses opened in 2013 were still open in 2023). So the business in the middle is one of the ones that close. On those numbers, average is a business that closes within 10 years. That is why the CFOS target is a requirement.
Want your own numbers against these? The Financial Health Snapshot builds a CEO Report from your last 12 months and sets every figure against your trade.
FLAT MONTHLY FEE. NO SURPRISES.
Priced by trailing 12 month revenue. No hourly billing. No payroll. The one-time onboarding fee is right here in the table.
Type a number and your band and its prices show here. The full table is below.
Built for subs doing $1M to $12M. Above $12.5M we quote.
| Last 12 months revenue | Core | Strategic | Platinum | One-time onboarding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under $1M | $1,900 | $3,100 | $3,300 | $2,500 |
| $1M to $3.5M | $2,600 | $4,100 | $5,300 | $4,500 |
| $3.5M to $6.5M | $3,800 | $5,900 | $8,300 | $6,000 |
| $6.5M to $9.5M | $5,100 | $7,600 | $11,800 | $7,500 |
| $9.5M to $12.5M | $6,100 | $8,900 | $14,900 | $9,000 |
| Above $12.5M | Quoted | Quoted | Quoted | Quoted |
The onboarding fee covers migrating your books back to the start of your last taxable year and getting you fully operational in 60 days. It's billed once, with your first invoice. It's the same for all three tiers, and it moves with your revenue band. Your first month is prorated, and your monthly engagement starts on the first of the first full month.
Just want the setup? Onboarding only is the same onboarding work with no monthly service after it, one time, at the onboarding fee plus $2,000. Start a monthly engagement later and $2,000 counts toward it. It starts at $4,500, and the price for every band is on the pricing page.
The three tier columns are the whole price. Which one fits depends on how much of the work you want off your desk. No payroll. No hidden line items. The onboarding fee is right here in the table.
- Online software only: QuickBooks, Sage, Viewpoint and similar. No VPN or hosted desktop.
- Not in any tier: payroll, pay applications, collections on receivables.
- Pricing valid through 2027.
What Core, Strategic and Platinum each include is on the pricing page.
FREQUENTLY ASKED.
How SWPPP and erosion control CFO firms compare: the SWPPP and erosion control firm study, with every score and its source.
MORE PROBLEMS WE PUT A NUMBER ON.
Feast-famine (construction-season revenue, year-round crews)
Erosion control contractor maintenance profitability · Feast famine cash flow
Active-construction SWPPP demand tracks the building season; inspection contracts smooth it.
Portfolio economics (cost per site is the whole business)
BMP material cost tracking by site
A SWPPP contractor's book is dozens of small recurring sites: inspection routes, BMP maintenance, and materials per site, against per-site contract pricing. Route density, drive time, and BMP material burn decide margin. Per-site job costing turned $24K of net into $1,105,000 after taxes, a 30 percent net margin before taxes, on $5.2M of revenue.
a verified erosion control client, $5.2M erosion control, $24K to $1,105,000 net after taxes, 30 percent net margin before taxes. (Verified, CONTROL Ch8)
SWPPP AND EROSION CONTROL PROBLEMS, ONE PAGE EACH.
SWPPP and Erosion Control is one of 14 trades in the sitework and civil family on our CFO for subcontractors page. Nearby trades with their own page:
