The Build Chain

What The Build Chain does

The Build Chain Ltd is a UK-based SaaS platform, founded in 2021 and headquartered in Doncaster, that digitises procurement of building materials for the UK construction industry. The platform connects contractors, subcontractors, and house builders with a network of over 500 UK merchant branches, allowing a single enquiry to be routed to multiple suppliers with quotes returned and compared in a centralised dashboard in an average of 2 minutes 17 seconds. Cumulative platform throughput is reported at 384,620+ products quoted and the company states it is "trusted by hundreds of contractors". The platform is led by founder and CEO Neil Sheldon and supported by partnerships with the Builders Merchant Federation (covering 5,530+ branches and £43bn in combined member sales) and the National Federation of Builders.

The product is structured around a core procurement platform extended by modular add-ons: a Supply Chain Management module for onboarding existing suppliers, an ESG and Sustainability Reporting module with Scope 3 delivery carbon tracking, a Virtual Exhibition tool that hosts manufacturer showrooms, a forthcoming Marketplace for subcontractor work discovery, and a "Grow Now, Pay Later" line of credit facility providing up to £1,000,000 for subcontractors and £400,000 for contractors via a finance partner. The company holds Cyber Essentials Plus certification and is registered with the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ZB064961), and uses Stripe for subscription billing.

Revenue is generated through fixed-fee subscriptions rather than transaction commissions, with pricing segmented by customer type: subcontractors subscribe from £200 per month or £1,200 per year (£5,000 for unlimited users); merchants pay £1,200 + VAT per user per year; and manufacturers purchase annual Bronze (£5,000), Silver (£10,000) or Gold (£15,000) plans bundling exhibition visibility and sponsorship features. A secondary revenue stream comes from transaction fees on the partner-provided credit facility. The Build Chain has raised approximately £3.5M in cumulative funding across rounds since 2021, with the most recent £1.7M round in June 2024 led by Finance Yorkshire.

Name

The Build Chain

Legal name

The Build Chain Ltd

Website

https://thebuildchain.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Build Chain is a UK SaaS platform that connects construction contractors, subcontractors, and house builders with over 500 merchant branches to digitalise materials procurement, generating recurring subscription revenue across buyers, merchants, and manufacturers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Construction Procurement Software

akta.pro primary industry

Construction, Home Improvement & Building Materials Marketplaces (CRAFABAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Construction Materials & Building Supplies Marketplaces (CRAFAHAB)

Keywords

• Construction procurement software
• Supply chain management
• Materials sourcing platform
• Merchant quote comparison
• Contractor purchasing tools

Headquarters

HQ city

Doncaster

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Subscription Fees - Subcontractors: Fixed-fee subscription model charging contractors and subcontractors a monthly or annual fee to access the platform. No commission is charged on material purchases, ensuring transparent market pricing. Monthly plan at £200 with minimum 6-month contract, or annual plan at £1,200 with 12-month commitment including unlimited users option at £5,000.
2. Subscription Fees - Merchants: Fixed-fee subscription for merchants and suppliers to receive enquiries filtered by location and product offering. Annual plan at £1,200 + VAT per user per year, with unlimited purchase enquiries, quotes, and access to internal/external market metrics.
3. Subscription Fees - Manufacturers: Tiered membership plans for manufacturers: Bronze (£5,000/year), Silver (£10,000/year), and Gold (£15,000/year), each with increasing visibility features including virtual exhibitions, banner advertisements, sponsored posts, and newsletter features.
4. Line of Credit Interest: Revenue generated through finance partner arrangements for the Grow Now Pay Later facility, providing revolving credit lines to contractors and subcontractors for materials procurement.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Build Chain is a cloud-based SaaS procurement platform for the UK construction industry that lets contractors submit a single enquiry routed to a network of 500+ merchant branches and their own onboarded suppliers, returning side-by-side quotes in a centralised dashboard. It layers on a Grow Now, Pay Later revolving line of credit, ESG/Scope 3 carbon tracking, a Virtual Exhibition for manufacturers, and an upcoming Marketplace connecting subcontractors with project work opportunities.

Product overview

The Build Chain is a subscription-based construction procurement platform operating across a unified core platform complemented by modular add-on features. The core platform enables contractors to submit a single enquiry that routes to the platform's network of 500+ UK merchant branches plus onboarded existing suppliers, with all quotes returned and compared in a single dashboard. This core is extended through modules including: a Line of Credit (Grow Now, Pay Later) financing option for cash flow management; ESG and Sustainability Reporting for Scope 3 and carbon tracking; a Virtual Exhibition for manufacturers to showcase products; and an upcoming Marketplace for subcontractor work discovery. The platform is available to contractors (including main contractors, sub-contractors, and house builders), merchants/suppliers, and manufacturers, with pricing tiers for each segment.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Build Chain Procurement Platform for Contractors / Sub-Contractors Cloud-based procurement subscription that lets UK construction contractors and subcontractors send a single material enquiry to a network of 500+ merchant branches and their own onboarded suppliers, then receive, compare and select side-by-side quotes in one dashboard. Priced at £200/month (6-month minimum), £1,200/year or £5,000/year for unlimited users.
• The Build Chain Merchant Enquiry & Quote Platform Subscription offering for UK builders merchants and material suppliers to receive filtered purchase and hire enquiries, send quotes, archive correspondence, and access internal and external market metrics (category and location spend reports). Priced at £1,200 + VAT per user per year with unlimited enquiries and quotes.
• Virtual Exhibition for Manufacturers (Bronze / Silver / Gold membership) Tiered membership product for construction product manufacturers providing a virtual digital exhibition to showcase products, promotions and training videos, with escalating promotional features (banners, sponsored LinkedIn posts, co-sponsored newsletters, exclusive newsletter sponsorship, dedicated emails, guest blog posts). Priced at £5,000/year Bronze, £10,000/year Silver and £15,000/year Gold (+ VAT).
• Grow Now, Pay Later (Line of Credit) Revolving line of credit facility available to The Build Chain users, providing up to £400,000 for subcontractors and up to £1,000,000 for contractors to fund materials procurement with flexible repayment terms of 1 to 12 months. Delivered via a finance partner with revenue recognised as transaction / interest income to The Build Chain.
• The Build Chain Marketplace (Subcontractor Work Opportunities) Marketplace module letting subcontractors find project work opportunities posted by contractors and Tier 1 frameworks on the platform, complementing the materials procurement workflow. Early access free until June 2026, then £100/month.

Quantifiable outcome

• 25% reduction in materials procurement process time
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• MINDcoreOthersThe Build Chain has partnered with MIND to become a national charity partner, donating a percentage of each subscription fee to help support better mental health in the construction industry. This addresses the significant mental health crisis in construction where two people die by suicide every day in the UK. The partnership provides The Build Chain with strong CSR credentials and differentiates their brand in the construction industry.
• Builders Merchant Federation (BMF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBMF represents 800 merchant and supplier companies with combined sales of over £43 billion and employs over 221,000 people. Their 415 merchant members operate from over 5,530 branches across the UK. The partnership provides credibility and access to The Build Chain's target merchant base.
• National Federation of Builders (NFB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe NFB represents builders, contractors and house builders across England and Wales. As one of the UK's longest standing trade bodies, it was created to represent the building profession and promote conditions its members need to thrive. Partnership provides access to contractor members.
• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationStripe is used as the payment platform for The Build Chain's subscription billing, supporting both card payments and direct debits. Stripe processes failed payment notifications and provides the billing portal for customers.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Procore Technologies: NYSE-listed construction management platform spanning project management, procurement and financial tools across the entire build lifecycle. Most relevant as a broad incumbent whose procurement and supplier-bidding modules compete directly with The Build Chain for main-contractor wallet share, though Procore operates globally versus The Build Chain's UK-only focus.
• COINS (Construction Industry Solutions): Long-standing UK-focused construction ERP and procurement suite used by mid-to-large contractors. Comparable to The Build Chain on construction buyer-side workflows and procurement (purchase orders, supplier management), with substantially deeper ERP functionality but heavier implementation footprint.

Direct peers

• PlanRadar: European SaaS for construction site documentation, task and defect management with growing procurement/supplier functionality. Comparable as a SaaS subscription product sold to UK/EU contractors on a per-user pricing model, with overlapping end-buyer personas (subcontractors, site managers).
• LetsBuild: European construction project management SaaS covering site management, quality/safety and procurement workflows. Directly comparable to The Build Chain on the buyer-side, with cross-European geographic ambition similar to a potential next step for The Build Chain.
• Archdesk: UK-based construction operations and procurement SaaS aimed at main contractors. Comparable on procurement, supplier management and project cost control workflows sold to UK construction firms, making it the closest UK-buyer-side competitor.
• Ascora: Trade and service contractor SaaS for quoting, job management and supplier workflows. Compares to The Build Chain on serving specialist trade subcontractors with business operations tooling, including light procurement functionality.
• Sablono: Berlin-based construction project execution and procurement SaaS targeting main contractors across Europe. Comparable as a B2B SaaS in construction buyer-side workflows, with overlapping ambitions to digitise materials and subcontract procurement.

Regional players

• Buildertrend: US-centric construction management SaaS for residential builders and remodelers covering project, customer and purchasing workflows. Comparable on serving small-to-mid builders with subscription procurement tooling, but operating almost exclusively in the US rather than competing in the UK.

Emerging players

• Buildiro: Construction supplier-discovery platform indexing merchant and manufacturer catalogues for trade buyers. Closely comparable to The Build Chain's marketplace discovery use case for materials and merchants, though operating at smaller scale and with a different monetisation model.
• Kreo Software: Construction quantity surveying and take-off SaaS targeting estimators and buyers within UK contractors. Comparable on the buyer-side procurement estimation workflow adjacent to The Build Chain's quote-comparison and supplier-matching capabilities.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/thebuildchain
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UClA0ES8ykXpwM00-YOx9cYg?cbrd=1&themeRefresh=1
• Facebookfacebook.com/thebuildchain
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/thebuildchain
• Instagraminstagram.com/thebuildchain

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Build Chain