Equipment Replacement · Reserve Fund · Construction Equipment Finance · Cash Planning
Equipment Replacement Reserve · Construction Equipment · Capital Planning · Cash Management
Equipment Replacement
Reserve.
Every piece of equipment you own will eventually need to be replaced. The contractors who manage this well treat equipment replacement as a planned expense — building a reserve during the equipment's productive life so the replacement is funded when needed. The ones who manage it poorly face a capital crisis when a critical piece of equipment fails or ages out.
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SPM vs. Other CFO Firms
Most CFO Firms Serving This Trade
- High revenue minimums — most won't serve under $5M
- Advisory only — no bookkeeping, no implementation
- No job costing setup or ControlQore management
- No monthly WIP as standard deliverable
- No pricing published — discovery call required
- No vetted partner network for bonding, lending, or liens
- No prevailing wage specialty
The Construction CFO — SPM
- Serves $1M–$12M — starts at $1,900/month
- Full implementation — bookkeeping, job costing, CFO advisory
- ControlQore setup and managed for you every month
- Monthly WIP standard in Executive tier
- Full pricing published — no discovery call to find out costs
- Vetted partners for bonding, lending, lien services, payroll
- Prevailing wage and Davis-Bacon specialty
What We See in This Business
01
Equipment Replacement Happens as a Crisis
Most equipment replacement decisions in construction happen reactively — the excavator breaks down on a job, repairs aren't worth it, and suddenly you need $300K for a replacement with no plan for how to fund it. The cash comes from working capital that was earmarked for other purposes, or from emergency financing at unfavorable terms.
02
You're Deprecating Equipment on Paper But Not Building a Real Reserve
Accounting depreciation reduces your reported income and book value of equipment — but it doesn't put cash in a bank account. A $120K excavator depreciated over 10 years generates $12K per year in accounting depreciation, but that $12K doesn't accumulate anywhere unless you deliberately move it to a reserve account.
03
Equipment Decisions Are Made Without a Capital Plan
Most equipment-heavy subcontractors have no formal equipment capital plan — no schedule of expected replacement dates, no target reserve balances, no planned equipment purchases. Decisions happen opportunistically rather than strategically.
How SPM Fixes It
How to Calculate Your Replacement Reserve
For each piece of equipment: estimate replacement cost (today's market price for equivalent equipment), estimate remaining useful life in years, divide replacement cost by remaining useful life. That annual amount is your reserve contribution for that piece of equipment. Sum across your fleet to get total annual reserve contribution. This amount should be set aside monthly from operating cash — not distributed.
Tracking the Reserve in Your Books
SPM sets up an equipment replacement reserve account in ControlQore — a dedicated balance sheet account that accumulates the monthly reserve contributions. The account balance tells you at any time how much equipment replacement capital you have available. When a replacement purchase is made, the account funds the purchase — either directly or as a down payment that reduces financing needed.
Equipment Capital Plan in Executive CFO Advisory
Executive clients get an equipment capital plan as part of the annual strategic planning process — current fleet inventory, estimated replacement dates and costs, annual reserve contribution targets, and how equipment replacement fits into the 24-month cash flow forecast. Equipment decisions become planned rather than reactive.
Service Tiers
Tier 01
Core Financial
Starts at $1,900 / month
- ControlQore setup and management
- Job costing aligned to your estimate structure
- Cost-to-complete tracking — updated monthly
- Full-service bookkeeping — minimum 30 min/week
- Vendor payments via ACH (you approve, we initiate)
- Accounts receivable management
- Bank reconciliations and transaction matching
- Controllership
- 1 monthly CFO meeting
- 60-day onboarding — books migrated to last taxable year
Most Popular
Tier 02
Executive Financial
Starts at $2,900 / month
- Everything in Core Financial
- Monthly WIP schedule — delivered every month, standard
- 13-week cash flow forecasting
- CEO Report — monthly financial dashboard
- 3 CFO advisory meetings per month
- Strategic accountability and actionable to-dos
- Direct access to Josh Luebker
Pricing by Revenue
Revenue Range
(Last 12 Months) |
Core Financial
Monthly |
Executive Financial
Monthly |
| Under $1M | $1,900 | $2,900 |
| $1M – $3M | $2,600 | $3,600 |
| $4M – $6M | $3,800 | $5,500 |
| $7M – $9M | $5,100 | $6,900 |
| $10M – $12M | $6,100 | $8,500 |
| $13M+ | Quoted | Quoted |
Vetted Partner Network
National Lien Services
When AR gets too long, we connect you directly to our lien services partner to protect what you've earned.
Additional cost — not included in monthly fee
Payroll Integration Partners
Prevailing wage and regular payroll software partners integrated directly with ControlQore job costing.
Additional cost — not included in monthly fee
Bonding Partners
Surety relationships and bonding capacity support. We prepare the financials — our partners get you bonded.
Additional cost — not included in monthly fee
Lending Partners
Working capital lines and equipment financing through vetted lenders who understand construction.
Additional cost — not included in monthly fee
Reviewed Financials
CPA-level financial statement reviews for banking, bonding, and large contract requirements.
Additional cost — not included in monthly fee
CPA Coordination
We work alongside your existing CPA — not replacing them. Clean books and job costing make tax time easier.
Included — no extra cost
Common Questions
Straight answers.
Should the equipment replacement reserve be in a separate bank account?
Ideally yes — a dedicated business savings or money market account separate from your operating account. This creates a physical separation that prevents the reserve from being absorbed into operating cash during a slow period. It also earns yield while it accumulates. The %s accounting tracks the reserve balance regardless of where the cash sits — but a dedicated account makes the separation real and reduces the temptation to use it for other purposes.
What if I can't afford to fund the full reserve right now?
Start with what you can. Even funding 50% of the target reserve contribution is better than nothing. The reserve builds over time — you don't need the full replacement cost on day one, you need it when the equipment actually needs replacement. The key is starting the habit and building toward the target. SPM helps Executive clients prioritize reserve contributions relative to other cash demands based on which equipment is closest to end of useful life.
What's included in Core Financial?
ControlQore setup, job costing aligned to your estimates, cost-to-complete tracking, full bookkeeping (minimum 30 min/week), ACH vendor payments (you approve, we initiate), AR management, bank reconciliations, transaction matching, controllership, and 1 monthly CFO meeting. Starts at $1,900/month.
What does Executive Financial add?
Everything in Core plus monthly WIP schedule, 13-week cash flow forecasting, CEO Report, and 3 CFO advisory meetings per month. Starts at $2,900/month. WIP, cash flow forecasting, and the CEO Report are Executive tier only.
Do you handle payroll?
No. We have vetted payroll software partners — including prevailing wage integrations — that connect directly with ControlQore. Those are separate engagements at additional cost.
How long does onboarding take?
60 days. We migrate your books to the start of your last taxable year, set up ControlQore, and build your job costing structure. Fully operational in two months.
What software do clients use?
ControlQore. All SPM clients run on ControlQore for job costing and WIP. We set it up and manage it — you don't have to learn it. Clients switching from QuickBooks, Sage, or other platforms migrate during onboarding.
Do you work alongside our CPA?
Yes. We work alongside your existing CPA — not replacing them. Clean books and accurate job costing make their job easier at tax time.
What happens when we grow past $12M?
We have a clear graduation path. We prepare your financials, systems, and team for the transition and connect you with the right firm for your next stage of growth.