Long-cycle submarine and industrial programmes rarely pay like short commercial jobs. Shops fund materials, labour, quality systems, and holding costs while milestones sit months ahead. The balance-sheet effect is a working-capital gap — not a moral failing of the supplier.
Long-lead materials, staged inspection, nuclear-grade or controlled-work documentation, retention, and slow approval cycles all push cash out earlier than cash in. Cross-border work can add FX and documentary delay on top.
This page describes a common pattern. It does not recommend particular lenders, facilities, or structures. Talk to your bank, accountant, or adviser about your own numbers.
Working capital here means the cash tied up in inventory, work-in-progress, and receivables while suppliers wait for progress payments or delivery milestones on long-lead defence-industrial work.
Lead times stretch months or years. Materials, labour, and compliance often go out before cash comes in. That gap is the WC pinch — especially for SMEs without deep credit lines.