Why we built Complys: The story behind construction's most affordable compliance software

I didn't set out to build a software company. I built Complys because I was tired of the way construction compliance actually works — and frustrated that nobody had fixed it.

The problem I was living with

I run DDC Scaffolding. We do real work. Scaffolding on live sites, Network Rail projects, complex jobsites where mistakes don't just cost money — they cost lives.

I needed RAMS (Risk Assessment and Method Statements). I needed them good, specific to each site, correct. Not templates. Not copy-paste. Not generic fill-in-the-blanks that I'm half-sure are accurate.

So I tried the market. HandsHQ. Citation. swiftRMS. All the tools everyone uses.

Every single one had the same problem: they were all templates.

You'd open them, see generic sections, fill in your company name, and you'd still have to write huge chunks yourself. Or worse, you'd find yourself copying RAMS from an old job and tweaking them slightly. And suddenly you're not being specific to the actual site hazards. You're being fast. And in construction, fast compliance is how accidents happen.

I watched this happen in my own business. A scaffolder finishes a job, the next job comes in, and instead of doing the thinking — really analyzing the site, the weather, the neighbours, the timeline — we'd grab the last RAMS, copy it, change a few names, and send it. It worked. Sometimes. But I knew it wasn't right.

And then came the rejections.

The moment I realized the system was broken

We submitted RAMS to Network Rail for an Exeter College project. Professional work. Detailed. We thought it was solid.

It got rejected.

The assessors came back with gaps. Not typos. Not formatting. Actual completeness failures. Cross-document inconsistencies. Things that, on a real site with real hazards, could have been dangerous.

We had to redo them. We looked unprofessional. I wasted time. And I realized: the tools I was using weren't helping me avoid this. They were just forms. Empty shells. The hard work — the actual thinking about what could go wrong — was still on me. And I wasn't always getting it right.

Worse, I had to use multiple systems. One for RAMS. One for compliance tracking. One for project management. One for worker training records. One for... on and on. Each subscription. Each login. Each place where data didn't talk to the others.

I was spending money on five systems. Time switching between them. And risk because none of them knew what the others were doing.

That's when I decided: this is broken. And I can fix it.

What I built instead

I built Complys to solve three core problems:

First: Actually good RAMS, not templates.

Complys doesn't give you a blank form. It asks you questions about your site. Your trade. Your hazards. Then it generates the RAMS using AI trained on real, correct, UK-specific compliance frameworks. CHAS. SafeContractor. SMAS. Network Rail. CDM 2015. Not generic. Specific.

And when a RAMS gets rejected by an assessor — which still happens, because sites are complex — you don't start over. You feed the rejection notes back into Complys. It regenerates the RAMS with the feedback baked in. No rewriting. No guessing what the assessor meant. Just correct, updated RAMS.

Second: Everything in one system.

RAMS. Compliance tracking. Worker training. Site projects. CRM for customer follow-ups. Toolbox talks. Health & Safety policies. Accident logs. Document upload. All in one dashboard. All talking to each other.

When a worker's CISRS card is expiring, Complys knows. When you need to update a Toolbox Talk because something in your RAMS changed, Complys knows. When you're onboarding a new client, you're not toggling between five systems. You're in one place.

Time saved. Cost saved. Risk reduced.

Third: Pricing that doesn't punish small businesses.

HandsHQ, Citation, the big players — they price for enterprise. For large contractors with admin staff. A solo scaffolder or small roofing firm? You're paying enterprise prices for starter features.

I built Complys so that a one-person operation and a 100-person firm can both afford it. You don't have to choose between compliance and cashflow.

Why this matters beyond just speed

I talk to trades constantly. Scaffolders. Roofers. Electricians. Groundworkers. Plasterers. I ask them: what systems do you have? What's missing? What's broken?

Every conversation pointed to the same gap: nobody was solving compliance the way it actually needs to be solved in construction.

And the stakes are real. My workers aren't just filling in paperwork. They're working at heights. With heavy equipment. Near electrical installations. On live sites. A RAMS that's vague or copy-pasted isn't just unprofessional — it's dangerous.

That's my responsibility. Every worker who leaves here needs to know exactly what the hazards are on their next job and exactly what to do about them. Not a generic template. The specific truth.

What I'm building next

Complys started with construction trades because that's where I know the pain is deepest. CHAS. Network Rail. SafeContractor. SMAS. CDM 2015. These aren't theoretical — they're the actual compliance landscape I live in.

But compliance isn't unique to construction. Every business needs it. We're expanding Complys so any business can use it. One operating system for compliance and business management.

And we're linking it to accounting platforms (Xero, QuickBooks) so compliance, operations, and finances all talk to each other.

If you're still doing RAMS the old way

If you're copying RAMS from old jobs. If you're using five different systems. If you've been rejected by an assessor and had to start over. If you're unsure whether your procedures are current and site-specific.

That's not your fault. The tools haven't been there.

Now they are.

Complys is built by someone who actually runs a construction business. Who's lived the rejections, the frustration, the time wasted, the risk. Who talked to dozens of trades to understand exactly what you need.

It's not a template. It's not generic. It's built for the way construction actually works.

Try it free for 90 days. Generate a RAMS. See if it's different from what you've been using. See if you save time. See if your workers understand the hazards better.

If it helps your business run safer and faster — and saves you money doing it — then I've built what I set out to build.