What it is:

• American Express, a leader in global business payments, is enhancing merchant value for construction businesses by partnering with a suite of business-to-business (B2B) companies – Levelset (a Procore Company), Billd, and BILT – that help address pain points in the industry, including complex document management, payment delays, and skilled labor shortages.
• Each of these partners are providing services and solutions at a discount for eligible merchants who accept American Express or their eligible customers.

Why it matters:

• The construction industry has historically been plagued by complicated operational processes, such as complex document management, unpredictable working capital, and skilled labor shortages:
  • The construction industry has a complicated payment process, and everyone wants to hold onto their money as long as they can. Manual processes can add to payment delays.
  • Slow pay and limited terms can leave contractors to front labor and material costs.
  • As skilled labor becomes harder to find, construction companies must invest in training programs — but traditional manuals often fail to engage digital natives.
• To help address these challenges, American Express is working with companies that offer modern solutions to bring value to construction companies as they grow. These digital solutions include process automation tools for commercial contractors and building material suppliers, tools to streamline operations and support predictable cash flow, as well as training solutions to efficiently support technicians and help improve consumers’ post-purchase experiences.

American Express on-the-record:

• “The construction industry contributes to the success of many other industries and communities. And construction right now is facing unique challenges, and that calls for unique solutions,” said R.J. Ancona, VP and General Manager of B2B Product, Partnership & Client Management and Merchant Services at American Express. “In addition to the B2B payments solutions that we offer for construction merchants, we’re also introducing referral partnerships to further address industry pain points. These offerings help construction businesses streamline operations, focus on growth, and maintain strong, reliable relationships across the supply chain.”

More detail:

• Lien rights management with Levelset (a Procore Company) can help merchants better manage payments: Levelset, a construction software platform, helps manage documents across the construction payment chain for smooth lien rights processes, easing a major industry pain point with historically manual processes. Eligible merchants who accept American Express can save on lien rights management.
  • “We’re teaming up with American Express to empower finance leaders in the construction industry to streamline lien rights management and automate payment escalation reminders, so merchants can focus on scaling and doing what they do best — building the future,” said Ryan Beason, Head of Sales at Procore’s Levelset. “This collaboration is a testament to our shared vision of empowering suppliers, equipment lessors, and contractors with the tools and resources they need to succeed.”

• Extended, flexible payment terms for eligible commercial contractor buyers through Billd: Billd, a leading construction financial services provider, underwrites commercial contractors and offers up to 120-day financing terms on eligible materials purchases, helping solve for contractors’ working capital and procurement needs.  Eligible American Express-accepting merchants can refer their eligible commercial contractor customers to Billd for extended payment terms and other benefits curated for the partnership.
  • “Billd is excited to partner with American Express on this collaborative effort to help eligible commercial contractors obtain material financing,” said Chris Doyle, CEO of Billd. “Together, we can offer a financial solution that allows merchants to receive quick payments while providing commercial contractors with a working capital option that helps mitigate the unpredictable payment timelines in the construction industry.”

• Mobile interactive instructions for fast training with BILT: BILT Incorporated, creators of the 3D BILT platform, provides 3D interactive instructions with voice, text and animated guidance to help contractors train their workers efficiently. Eligible merchants who accept American Express can access discounts on production costs.
  • We’re working with American Express to help merchants deliver digital training directly to construction workers,” says BILT President & CEO Nate Henderson. “3D-guided work instructions reduce installation confusion, time on task, and callbacks.”

Learn more:

• Merchants interested in learning more about the partnerships with Levelset (a Procore company), Billd, and BILT should reach out to their dedicated American Express client manager for more information.
• To learn more about how American Express backs businesses, including additional discounts via the Business Savings Suite, please visit here.

About American Express

American Express is a globally integrated payments company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. Learn more at americanexpress.com and connect with us on facebook.com/americanexpress, instagram.com/americanexpress, linkedin.com/company/american-express, twitter.com/americanexpress, and youtube.com/americanexpress.

About Levelset

Levelset, a Procore Company, empowers construction industry credit and finance leaders to streamline lien rights management and automate payment processes. Trusted for over a decade, Levelset has protected over eight million projects with over 500,000 users and supports some of the largest construction suppliers in the U.S. Solutions save time, resolve payment issues, and mitigate risk. Critical features like Job Radar provide early risk insights, and the research team delivers unparalleled project data accuracy and depth. https://www.levelset.com/

About Billd

Billd is a partner that truly champions the subcontractor. Founders Christopher Doyle and Jesse Weissburg, industry veterans in both construction and finance, witnessed the detrimental impact to subcontractors of the longstanding broken payment cycle in construction. Their time in the trades inspired them to launch Billd in 2018, bringing the financial power of Wall Street to the construction job site. Billd’s financial and payment products empower subcontractors to bypass project hurdles by providing access to upfront funds to cover their most pressing costs, including materials and labor. Unlike traditional financing outlets, Billd provides flexible tools to accommodate the unpredictability of cash flow in construction and extends their customers up to 120-day terms to align with industry payment standards. Billd has built a variety of industry-specific, proprietary analytic and financing tools to allow subcontractors to stabilize cash flow and more effectively grow their businesses. Learn more at https://billd.com/.

About BILT

Millions of users follow 3D Intelligent Instructions for thousands of products from hundreds of brands. BILT revolutionizes professional training, operational enablement, and the customer experience for assembly, installation, maintenance, and repair. The award-winning platform delivers turnkey interactive instructions for iOS, Android, Windows, and immersive spatial computing instructions on Apple Vision Pro. BILT is accessible, sustainable, and efficient. For details visit BILTapp.com

Feature Image Courtesy of: American Express