Back office help for underground utility contractors
Outrigger Back Office handles the office work for small underground utility contractors: daily reports, unit price billing, change orders for conflicts and field changes, pay apps, lien waivers and crew paperwork. You run the pipe crew, and we keep the paper trail that gets you paid.
Why underground utility contractors call us
Utility work is billed by what goes in the ground. Linear feet of pipe by size, manholes, inlets, services, valves, tie-ins. If the quantities in your billing do not match what the GC or the engineer counted, your pay app stalls until someone sorts it out. The paper trail that settles those questions starts in the trench, with a daily report and photos, not at the end of the month.
We set up a simple daily report your foreman can fill out on a phone, with photos saved to the job folder automatically. We use those reports to keep running quantities by job, prepare your monthly billing, and write up change orders when the field finds something the plans did not show. You approve everything before any of it goes out.
What usually falls behind
Quantities that do not match
The GC counts one number of feet or structures and you count another. Without daily records to back up your count, you end up arguing instead of getting paid.
Conflicts worked around but never billed
An unmarked line or a plan conflict forces a reroute or a deeper run. The crew handles it, the day ends, and the extra cost never makes it onto paper.
Daily reports that live in a truck
Field notes on a clipboard or in a foreman's head are hard to find when a GC, inspector or owner asks what happened on a certain day months later.
Safety and crew paperwork piling up
Job safety forms for trench work, incident reports, new-hire packets and timesheets all need to be filled out, filed and found again, usually by someone with no time to do it.
What the office side of a utility company really looks like
A small utility company's office runs on quantities. The contract usually has unit prices: so much per foot of each pipe size, so much per manhole, per service, per fire hydrant assembly. Each month someone has to add up what was installed, compare it to the bid quantities, and bill it on the GC's pay app form with a lien waiver. On top of that are the field records GCs, inspectors and owners ask about later: what went in on which day, where the tie-ins are, which locate ticket covered the dig, what got inspected and when.
Then the ground gets in the way. An existing line that was not on the plans, a conflict that forces a deeper run or a reroute, rock in the trench, a structure that changes size. Those are real costs, and they are easy to lose when the crew just works around them and keeps going. Add safety paperwork for trench work, new hires for a crew that grows and shrinks with the work, and pipe supplier invoices, and the office side can bury an owner who is already in a trench all day.
How we handle it
- Daily reports on a phone, filed by job. Your foreman fills out a short daily report on a phone with quantities installed, locate ticket numbers, notes and photos. It files itself by job, and we get an alert if a report flags a problem.
- Unit price billing from your field records. We keep running installed quantities by job from the daily reports and use them to prepare your invoices or pay apps, so your billing has records behind every line.
- Change orders for field conflicts. When the field hits something the plans did not show, text or email us the details and price. We write the change order the same day if we get it by 2 pm, and it goes out after you approve.
- Crew paperwork kept in order. We keep job safety forms and incident reports filed by job, send new-hire packets, keep personnel files organized, and remind you about I-9s and other documents that come due.
Where we start
Field Forms
Daily reports, job safety forms and incident reports your crew fills out on a phone, with photos attached, filed by job automatically and flagged to you when something needs attention.
Learn moreChange Orders
Text or email us 5 details from the field. We write the change order the same day, you reply APPROVED, and it goes to the GC from your billing email.
Learn morePay Apps & Lien Waivers
We set up your schedule of values, prepare monthly pay applications for you to sign, track retainage, and prepare and collect the lien waivers that go with each payment.
Learn moreUnderground Utility Contractors FAQ
How do I keep track of pipe footage for billing?
The easiest way is a daily report your foreman fills out on a phone with what was installed that day. We set that up on free Google Forms, or keep using the field app you already have. We add up installed quantities by job from those reports and use them to prepare your invoices and pay apps, which you review before anything goes out.
Do you work with utility contractors outside Georgia?
Yes, we work with underground utility contractors anywhere in the U.S. The service is remote, by phone, text, email and shared Google folders, so your location does not matter. Rules on locates, trench safety, lien waivers and new-hire reporting vary by state, so we follow the forms and requirements you, your GC or your advisors give us.
Which plan fits a small utility company?
Utility companies that bill GCs with monthly pay apps usually fit the Standard plan at $999 a month, which includes pay apps, up to 3 extra field forms and payroll for up to 10 workers. Plans start at $699 a month with Essentials, which includes daily report, JSA and incident forms. Bigger crews often choose Full Office. See the Plans page for details.
Can you tell me if my trench safety paperwork meets the rules?
No. We set up and file your job safety forms, daily reports and incident reports, and we alert you when a report flags a problem, but we do not give safety or legal advice. Which rules apply to your work depends on the job and the state, so check with your safety advisor or the agency that oversees your work.