The risk intelligence system built for mining & resources services businesses
Not a generic business dashboard. A 7-zone, 21-KPI financial risk model calibrated specifically to the economics of WA mining & resources services. where net margins run at 3.9%, depreciation runs at 9.9% of revenue, and a single client relationship can represent 60% of your income.
What is Site FRI™?
Site FRI™ is the Financial Risk Index built specifically for WA mining and resources services contractors. It measures, quantifies, and tracks the financial risk profile of a business operating in this sector, producing a single composite score between 0 and 100.
The model evaluates 21 KPIs across 7 risk zones. Each zone is weighted to reflect the specific financial dynamics of the sector, and every KPI is benchmarked against WA industry data.
A Site FRI™ score tells a business owner, board, or lender not just how a business is performing today, but where the risk is building and what it is likely to cost if left unaddressed.
7 Risk Zones. 21 KPIs.
One number that tells the truth.
Each zone targets a specific financial vulnerability that mining & resources services businesses face. Click any zone to see the KPIs, benchmarks, and the signals we watch for.
The primary survival dimension. 100% of mining services contractor failures are cash failures. Not unprofitability. The structural problem is the weekly payroll / monthly collection gap. A contractor with $8M revenue and 142 FIFO employees is paying $228K in wages every fortnight while waiting 45+ days to collect from their biggest client.
Revenue concentration is the most underestimated risk in WA mining services. Iron ore has declined 12.6% over five years. Lithium dropped 87.4% from its 2022 peak. One insourcing decision from a major miner can eliminate 40–60% of revenue with 30 days notice. Most contractors know they're dependent. they just don't have a number attached to it.
In the sector where wages average 31.2% of revenue, labour is the largest controllable cost. and the hardest to control on remote FIFO sites. A 3-point drift in labour as a percentage of revenue can eliminate net profit entirely in a 3.9% margin industry. Unplanned overtime above 15% of the wage bill signals a roster management failure, not a one-off event.
In a 3.9% net margin industry, every percentage point of gross margin matters more than in almost any other sector. Fixed-price and day-rate contracts signed 12–18 months ago don't automatically adjust for wage inflation, fuel increases, or WorkCover premium movements. Margin compression is silent. It does not appear in your bank account until it has accumulated over months.
Mining & resources services businesses are capital intensive. Depreciation running at 9.9% of revenue creates high fixed obligations regardless of revenue. Equipment finance on drills, dozers, excavators and light vehicle fleets locks in monthly repayments that don't flex with contract wins and losses. DSCR below 1.2× triggers lender review. and most contractors don't know their current ratio.
The most insidious risk in mining services: profitable on paper while cash deteriorates. High depreciation, accrual revenue recognition, and growing WIP balances create accounting profit that overstates real financial health. The gap between net profit and operating cash flow is the single most important diagnostic signal. It is also the one most directors never examine.
The predictive layer. The difference between an accountant and a CFO is this view. Accountants tell you what happened. A CFO tells you what is going to happen: specifically, which week in the next 13 your cash position becomes a problem, and which contracts you need to close in the next 90 days to prevent it.
Where we are experts.
Six segments. One platform.
Site FRI™ is calibrated by industry segment. Each segment carries different risk weights, different benchmark thresholds, and different alert logic. A shutdown contractor's financial risk profile is nothing like a labour hire business.
High capital intensity, heavy equipment finance, and fixed-price contract exposure. Depreciation typically runs 11–14% of revenue. Fleet utilisation is the critical lever. one idle D11 dozer represents $8,000/day in sunk depreciation cost.
Primary Risk DriversCommodity price sensitivity is uniquely acute. junior explorer budgets evaporate when gold or lithium turns. Drill rig utilisation and metre-per-shift rates are the core operational KPIs. Consumables represent 15–22% of direct cost.
Primary Risk DriversIrregular, lumpy revenue from shutdown events creates acute cash flow volatility. A business can invoice $2.4M in one month then $180K the next. Mobilisation costs are paid weeks before any invoice can be raised.
Primary Risk DriversWages represent 70–85% of revenue (versus 31% sector average), making margin management the defining challenge. The payroll-to-invoice gap is the primary cash driver. You carry the wage liability regardless of whether the client pays.
Primary Risk DriversHighest capital intensity in the sector. vessel ownership or long-term charter is the dominant financial obligation. Utilisation risk is existential. A vessel off-hire for 30 days costs the same as one fully deployed.
Primary Risk DriversLower capital intensity but higher WIP risk. milestone billing creates large gaps between work performed and revenue recognised. A single disputed variation claim can represent months of profit.
Primary Risk DriversA transparent model.
Nothing hidden.
Every score is explainable, auditable, and traceable back to your actual numbers. Not a black box. A structured calculation you can verify with your accountant.
The free tool shows the shape.
The full assessment shows the numbers.
The free diagnostic gives you a directional risk profile from self-assessment. The Site FRI™ Full Assessment runs the same model on your actual verified financials. Every KPI calculated from real data, benchmarked against the WA sector.
Know your risk score before your banker does
4 minutes. 12 questions. Built for WA mining & resources services businesses. Get your Site FRI™ score, your Risk Driver Network, and your two priority actions. Free.
