The true hourly cost of a worker, including wages, benefits, payroll taxes, and overhead. Subcontractors use it to set profitable bill rates for clients. Bidding below your loaded labour rate guarantees a loss on every hour worked.
Loaded Labour Rate
Related Terms
Tolling Agreement
Cash FlowA contract where a subcontractor processes or treats a client's raw material using your equipment or facility, without taking ownership of it. You charge a fee for the service rather than buying and reselling the material. Common in midstream and processing work, it directly affects how you invoice and recognise revenue.
Fuel Cost Escalation Clause
Cash FlowA contract provision allowing subcontractors to adjust their billing rates when fuel prices rise beyond an agreed threshold. It protects field service companies from absorbing significant fuel cost spikes on long-term jobs. Without this clause, subcontractors carry the full financial risk of volatile diesel and equipment fuel costs.
EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation)
Cash FlowA measure of a subcontractor's core operating profitability, stripping out financing and accounting costs. It helps field service companies assess whether their contracts and crews are generating real operational value. Clients and lenders often use it to evaluate a subcontractor's financial health before awarding work.
Close-Out
Cash FlowThe final phase of a contract where all work is confirmed complete, documentation is submitted, and outstanding invoices are settled. For subcontractors, delays in close-out often mean delayed final payment. Completing punch lists, timesheets, and lien waivers promptly helps accelerate the process.
Adjusted Ebitda (earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation)
Cash FlowA profitability measure that strips out non-cash costs and one-time charges, showing true operational earnings. For subcontractors, it reveals how much cash your field operations actually generate. Clients and lenders use it to assess your financial health before awarding contracts or extending credit.
Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (dwsrf)
Cash FlowA U.S. federal loan programme funding municipal drinking water infrastructure upgrades. Subcontractors often access steady pipeline and treatment plant work through DWSRF-backed projects. Expect strict regulatory compliance requirements and public-sector billing cycles on these contracts.
Latest Cash Flow News
Claremore Data Center Deal Sends $172M to Oklahoma Schools, County
A Beale Infrastructure data center project near Claremore, Oklahoma will pay $172 million in PILOT funds to local schools and county agencies over 25 years, with Sequoyah Public Schools receiving the largest share at $100 million.
20 hours agoCash FlowUtilities Tighten Large-Load Tariffs With Upfront Fees, Longer Contracts
A new LBNL and Brattle Group analysis finds utilities increasingly requiring upfront payments, exit fees, and ramp schedules for large-load customers like data centers, a shift that will slow project timelines for grid-tie and on-site generation subcontractors.
5 days agoCash FlowTrump Administration Appeals Ruling Blocking Hudson Tunnel Funding Freeze
The Justice Department has appealed a federal court ruling that barred DOT from withholding funds on the $16B Hudson Tunnel Project, though reimbursements and construction continue for now, ENR reports.
12 days agoCash FlowMammoth Energy Still Owed $20M for 2017 Puerto Rico Storm Work
Nearly nine years after Hurricane Maria, Mammoth Energy subsidiary Cobra Acquisitions is still collecting on Puerto Rico power restoration invoices, with $20 million outstanding as of June 2026, OK Energy Today reports.
28 days agoRelated Guides
What Happens to Subcontractor Billing When a Project Stalls, Goes Over Budget, or Never Gets Commissioned
You did the work. The project was cancelled, shelved, or never activated. Here is what subcontractors need to know about billing rights, legal remedies, and how to get paid when no one wants to discuss the invoice.
Cash Flow GuidePost-Completion Warranty and Punch Work: Protecting Your Margins After the Job Ends
Warranty walks, punch lists, and post-completion callbacks eat into subcontractor margins. Learn how MSA warranty clauses work, when you can push back on mobilization costs, and how to document your way out of disputes.
Cash Flow GuideMechanic's Lien Rights for Subcontractors: What to Do When You're Not Getting Paid
A practical guide to mechanic's lien and materialman's lien rights for oilfield and construction subcontractors in Texas, Oklahoma, and Alberta — deadlines, filing steps, and leverage tactics.
Stay sharp on field operations
Industry news and insights, delivered to your inbox.
Subscribe to FieldNews
