Rapid growth brings opportunity, but it also increases operational risk. For organisations in regulated, project-driven environments, scaling without the right systems can expose inefficiencies, compliance gaps and pressure across the supply chain
For OCU Group, a utilities and digital infrastructure specialist operating across electricity, gas, water, rail and telecoms, growth became the catalyst for change.
Founded in 1994 and headquartered in Greater Manchester, OCU Group reported £866m in revenue for the financial year ending April 2025 – a 42% increase on the previous year. With around 5,000 employees and a growing project portfolio, the business faced a familiar challenge: managing rising volumes of subcontractor applications for payment efficiently and compliantly.
The solution was to digitise and automate its application for payment process using software from Payapps.
When manual processes no longer work
As project volumes increased, so did the number of subcontractor applications requiring assessment and payment. Manual processes based on spreadsheets, email and paper became difficult to manage at scale.
These workflows created bottlenecks, reduced visibility and risked delays in subcontractor payments. More importantly, they exposed the business to potential non-compliance with the Construction Act.
“Before Payapps, our team was drowning in paperwork and spreadsheets, which resulted in constant inconsistencies and delays,” said Peter Vevers, commercial director of utility services at OCU Group.
A lack of transparency added to the problem. Teams could not easily track application status, particularly when staff were absent, increasing the risk of missed deadlines.
Peter explained: “If someone was away from the business, we couldn’t see whether an application had been responded to, which not only delayed subcontractor payments but put us at risk under the Housing & Grants Act.”
With recruitment challenges across the industry, increasing administrative headcount was not a viable solution. OCU Group needed a way to improve throughput while reducing risk.
Strengthening governance through digitisation
Although OCU Group maintained strong governance, leadership recognised that manual processes remained vulnerable to error and inconsistency.
“The process for paying the supply chain was very manual… it gave us a lot of risks and exposure to legislation challenges,” said group commercial director Chris Corrie.
Digitisation became essential – not only to improve efficiency but also protect compliance and support growth.
By implementing Payapps, OCU Group created a single, centralised platform for managing applications for payment. This replaced fragmented workflows with structured processes, giving stakeholders real-time visibility of application status, deadlines and outcomes.
Integration with accounting systems further streamlined operations. Certified payments now move directly into finance systems, reducing manual handling and improving accuracy.
A key benefit was improved alignment between commercial and finance teams.
“When a payment is certified in Payapps, it moves directly into our accounting software,” said Peter.
“It then goes through a separate compliance check before flowing through for payment. This all happens now without any printing, scanning or emails – and it’s working really well.”
Compliance embedded by design
Ensuring legislative compliance was a key driver behind adopting Payapps. Automated workflows ensure applications, payment notices and certifications are completed within required timeframes, significantly reducing risk.
“The protection the software brings by ensuring our legislative compliance was certainly a big focus for us,” said Chris.
“And we’re an acquisitive business, so the intuitive workflows in Payapps ensure businesses new to us quickly integrate and adhere to our robust processes.”
Since going live in November 2024, adoption has been rapid, with £270m in payments processed through the system – demonstrating the ability of Payapps to support diverse operations.
Transforming day-to-day operations
The move to a single platform has improved daily operations across teams.
For commercial teams, replacing email-based workflows with a centralised system has improved organisation and accountability.
Senior quantity surveyor Josh Warburton described the difference: “In the past, everything came through via emails, which are easy to lose track of. Whereas with Payapps, it’s all in one system. You get an email notification when an application for payment comes in, so you can’t really miss anything, even if someone is off.”
Finance teams have gained better visibility across reporting, forecasting and cashflow management, while the platform has also supported training and development for junior staff.
Measurable gains in accuracy and productivity
Standardisation has delivered clear results. By enforcing consistent application formats, Payapps reduced rejection rates from 60%–70% to under 5%.
Common issues such as missing information and formatting errors have largely been eliminated, improving invoice accuracy and reducing rework.
“Now the certifications are visible to our subcontractors in Payapps, there’s no need to send them spreadsheets in which rounding errors and other minor inaccuracies often occurred,” commented Lee Jones, energy commercial director.
Productivity gains have also been significant. Over 12 months, the finance team increased certifications processed from around 800 to 2,000 without increasing headcount.
“This is largely down to the accuracy of data flowing into our systems,” said OCU’s subcontractor payments manager, noting integration with Microsoft Dynamics ERP.
Strengthening supply chain relationships
Beyond efficiency and compliance, Payapps has strengthened trust across OCU Group’s supply chain.
As a Fair Payment Code signatory, the business is committed to paying subcontractors on time. The Payapps platform provides transparency, allowing subcontractors to track applications and payment timelines in real time.
“You know exactly when you’re due payment and what you’re due – it gives me full transparency,” said Imi Hyde, director at H&E Telecoms, an OCU Group subcontractor.
Improved visibility has also reduced disputes and improved collaboration.
Chris summarised the impact: “Dispute levels have fallen and Payapps really helps us have a cleaner transition from what can be an adversarial position at times.”
Built for continued growth
For OCU Group, implementing Payapps was a strategic investment aligned with long-term growth.
“Payapps offers great peace of mind along with its scalability,” Chris concluded.
“We chose software that could be implemented quickly, because OCU is a business that moves quickly… we’re hopeful that Payapps will continue with us on that journey.”
With robust governance, scalable workflows, improved efficiency, and greater transparency now embedded alongside strengthened supply chain relationships, OCU Group is well positioned to support continued expansion while maintaining control and compliance.
For more information, visit www.payapps.com
The post Driving scalable growth: How OCU Group enhanced governance and supply chain strength appeared first on Planning, Building & Construction Today.
