Available online at www.CivileJournal.org Civil Engineering Journal (E-ISSN: 2476-3055; ISSN: 2676-6957) Vol. 9, Special Issue, 2023 94 “Innovative Strategies in Civil Engineering Grand Challenges" Impact Factors on Subcontractor's Cash Flow Management Medhat A. Youssef 1* , Ahmed H. Ibrahim 1 , M. El-Sayed El-Badawy Hafez 1 1 Construction Engineering and Utilities Department, Zagazig University, Zagazig, Egypt. Received 07 March 2023; Revised 12 May 2023; Accepted 23 May 2023; Published 13 June 2023 Abstract Objective: This study aims to define how to maintain and protect the subcontractor firms' cash flow from economic fluctuation through legally sustainable solutions. Methods/Analysis: We conducted a case study in the Eastern Delta Region of Egypt. A questionnaire containing a list of 22 impact factors on subcontractors' cash flow was distributed across multiple subcontractor firms with an 82% response rate. It was designed to explore the factors causing cash flow instability and analyze them using SPSS statistics. Findings: The study finds that inflation, late payments, non-compensation for late payments, poor subcontractor cash flow management, subcontractor firms' inclination to avoid disputes, material price fluctuation, and non-compensation terms, as well as suppliers rejection of payment delays, are the most critical factors of subcontractor cash flow problems. Novelty/Improvement: The study suggests adding three sub-articles to Article 57 in "Tender Law" as legally sustainable solutions to protect and maintain the firm's growth rate from inflation, late payment, and the inclination to avoid disputes. Also, the study recommends that the owner ensure that cash is available before procuring the general contractors, as stated in Egyptian Law 182 of 2018. This study will contribute to establishing a sustainable win-win relationship between subcontractors and general contractors. Keywords: Cash Flow; Construction Industry; Subcontractor’s Firms; Subcontracting Contracts; Construction Projects. 1. Introduction A complex construction project requires the participation of many stakeholders, not exclusively owners and main contractors but also subcontractors [1]. Construction project delivery success depends on the successful role of each party [2]. The Egyptian Civil Law 131, Article 662 (the "Law") [3] defines subcontracting as an applied form of a contract agreement between the General Contractor (GC) and another contractor (subcontractor). Subcontracting is a business that performs construction work for a GC [4]. They work with the GC through the subcontracting agreement and handle a large portion of about 85% of all construction projects, which gives them a role in how construction will operate [2, 5]. Their presence in the construction industry is crucial because they provide specific skills, technologies, or materials needed for project delivery. Generally, main contractors select subcontractors after the main tender or during the construction phase. The subcontractor has a significant role in project delivery in planned time, estimated cost, and quality [6, 7]. Subcontracting is used more extensively on building and housing projects than engineering projects. In subcontracting, the GC's scope is limited to primary activities and subcontracts the remainder to various subcontractors [8]. The commitment required is to coordinate with the subcontractors under his supervision and consider management decisions such as budget and cash flow [9, 10]. * Corresponding author: maismyel@eng.zu.edu.eg http://dx.doi.org/10.28991/CEJ-SP2023-09-08 © 2023 by the authors. Licensee C.E.J, Tehran, Iran. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).