KilowattYard: a power equipment marketplace, built on MurrCloud
A two-sided marketplace for new and used diesel engines, generator sets and power units across the US and Canada. MurrCloud runs the whole operation underneath — seller onboarding, per-unit verification, compliance gates, orders, payment release and commission accounting — while licensed partners hold the money.
High-value equipment, unknown counterparties, two countries.
Buyers want proof before they send five figures to a seller they've never met. Sellers want to get paid without a subscription. The founders wanted to run it lean — without a money transmitter licence.
Trust in every unit
Used engines vary unit by unit. Every listing needs photos, an uncut run video, serial-number matching and paperwork checked before it goes live.
Compliance is the gate
Emissions certification and, for generator sets, electrical certification decide whether a unit can be sold in North America at all. It has to be enforced, not suggested.
Control money without holding it
Funds must stay protected until delivery and inspection — but the marketplace itself must never take custody of buyer money.
MurrCloud controls the release. Licensed partners hold the funds.
Buyer payments go straight to a licensed payment or escrow partner. MurrCloud tracks the order and sends one instruction at the right moment: release, refund or freeze. The platform fee is split off by the partner at release.
Pays at checkout
USD or CAD, card or bank transfer. Never to the marketplace's own account.
Holds until inspected
Stripe Connect for North American sellers; a licensed escrow service for cross-border sellers.
Paid on release
Proceeds to the seller's bank or cross-border receiving account; platform fee to the marketplace.
Order states drive the instructions: paid → compliance & fit review → shipped → delivered → 3-day inspection → release. A dispute freezes the payout; a failed compliance check refunds the buyer in full.
No custody
Buyer funds never touch a marketplace bank account, balance or wallet.
No pay-through
The platform never collects and forwards money on a seller's behalf.
Fee by split
Commission is paid out by the partner at release, never deducted by hand.
Net revenue
Only commission is booked as revenue; order value is tracked as statistics.
Marketplace modules on one operating platform.
Standard MurrCloud apps — website, CRM, accounting, multi-currency, helpdesk, e-signature, document storage — do the heavy lifting. Custom modules add the marketplace logic, in three phases.
One record per physical unit
Category, new or used, serial, kW / kVA, hours, emissions label, included parts, warehouse.
Checklists that change with the unit
Required uploads switch by category and condition; reviewer queue with approve, request-info or reject.
KYC, tax forms, payout route
Business verification, W-9 / W-8BEN-E, GST/HST, signed seller agreement.
A state machine with deadlines
From payment to release, with inspection windows, notifications and freeze on dispute.
Instructions, not custody
Stripe Connect and licensed escrow integrations: fee split, delayed payout, refund, reversal.
Books that match the model
Commission reconciled to partner settlements, seller statements, chargeback reserve.
Built for equipment buyers
Browse by category and condition, data-plate specs, inspection log, quote requests into CRM.
Evidence in, decision out
Tickets with photos and documents; outcome triggers full refund, partial refund or release.
Will it fit, and what will it cost to ship
Engine-to-machine fitment search and live LTL freight quotes at checkout.
Nothing goes live until the paperwork agrees.
Verification is built into the workflow, so a unit that fails a check can't be published — no matter who is clicking.
Used unit checklist
- 12+ photosNameplate, serial stamp, emissions label, all four sides
- Uncut run videoSerial on camera, cold start, idle, revs, blow-by, exhaust
- Serial matchSame serial across nameplate, block, test report and import record
- Ownership & import recordsPurchase invoice, no-lien declaration, customs entry
The buyer journey, end to end.
Screens from the working KilowattYard prototype, from search to payment release. Sample listings and prices are placeholders.
A 90-day pilot, one seller first.
Start narrow, prove the workflow with real inventory, then open the platform to more sellers and categories.
Anchor seller
- Onboard one supplier with 50+ engines
- Verify and list the first compliant units
- Payment and release flow tested end to end
Open the marketplace
- Add five sellers, new and used equipment
- 50 units live across categories
- Freight quotes, dispute handling, first orders
Scale what works
- Third-party inspection and warranty add-ons
- Fitment search for replacement engines
- Review conversion, dispute rate and review effort
What this project proves MurrCloud can run.
The same building blocks apply to any business with high-value goods, multiple parties and money that has to move on rules.
Multi-party marketplaces
Buyers, sellers, reviewers and partners on one platform, each with their own portal and permissions.
Compliance-gated workflows
Rules enforced in the system, not in a policy document — a failed check blocks the next step.
Payment orchestration
Integrations with licensed payment and escrow partners: split fees, delayed payouts, refunds, reversals.
Finance built in
Net-revenue commission accounting, USD/CAD, sales tax and GST/HST, reconciled to partner settlements.
Cross-border operations
North American and overseas sellers, different payout routes, one set of controls.
Data-rich catalogues
Unit-level records with documents, video and specs that drive search, fitment and listing quality.
Running something with more moving parts than a store?
Marketplaces, distributors, cross-border trade — MurrCloud builds the operating platform and the finance behind it.