Construction costs are on the rise, but rolling the increases straight into your bids is rarely an option, given today’s competitive pressures. To win business and protect your margin, you need to create bids that are both tight and accurate.
Real-world data is essential. Here are ways to bolster your competitiveness using data from your machines’ telematics systems:
Use historical information to improve bidding accuracy
Before you attempt a cost estimate, take a close look at telematics data from similar jobs that have already been completed. How many machines were required to do the work? How many hours did each unit run? How much idle time was logged? How much fuel was burned? Does the data need to be adjusted for extenuating circumstances—weather delays, supply disruptions, fuel price spikes or other issues? Let facts from the past shape estimates for the future.
Focus on utilisation
One of the most important things you can do to keep your bids competitive is optimise equipment utilisation. To calculate utilisation rates, consult your telematics data—comparing how many hours a machine actually works relative to how many hours it’s available to work. Generally speaking, if overall fleet utilisation is less than 80 per cent or specific machines are running below 50 per cent, you could do the same amount of work with less equipment—reducing your total cost structure and improving your overall competitiveness.
Customise maintenance and repair planning
Equipment manufacturers make general recommendations about the timing of maintenance and service. But depending on the environment you work in and the jobs you do, the manufacturer’s plan might not be right for your situation. Adjusting the standard plan with real-world data about usage, idle time, fuel consumption and more allows you to recover the value and life built into your equipment, while maximising uptime and reducing total costs.
Get serious about cutting idle time
Some industry experts say it’s not unusual for idle time to represent between 40 and 50 per cent of total running time. That’s a huge cost driver—not just the extra fuel, but more importantly, the unnecessary maintenance expenses, accelerated component wear, wasted warranty hours and threat to resale value. Tangible data about current idling practices—at both the fleet level and the operator level—allows you to identify problem areas, set improvement goals, initiate change and measure progress.
Correct operator behaviour
Well-trained operators can have a powerful impact on costs. To raise operator skill level, use historical telematics data to identify unsafe, inefficient or abusive techniques. Then structure training to address the issues you uncovered and use new telematics data, captured post-training, to communicate progress and reward success. It’s an objective way to assess the value of your training investment.
Check your insurance terms
Some insurance providers offer financial incentives to companies that use GPS tracking and geo-fencing to monitor asset location and use. If you’re using telematics data to reduce accidents, injuries, theft and other risks, you may be eligible for big savings that cut fixed costs and extend your margin.
Bid with confidence
The bidding process will always be somewhat uncertain. But with the right combination of quality data and industry expertise, bidding accuracy can be improved, margins protected and allowing contractors to remain competitive.