A fleet system earns its cost only where money already leaks: engines idling through lunch, a breakdown that stops a crew, a rental nobody called off. This calculator prices those three with your figures, then shows the most a system could cost per machine and still pay for itself. A small answer stays small.
How the math works
Every line of the result, in plain words.
Idle fuel
Machines × idle hours × gallons per hour × fuel price × 50 weeks. Count only the idle hours you can cut.
Gallons per idle hour
Use engine data or the spec sheet. Idle burn varies widely with engine size.
Why 50 weeks
Fifty weeks, not 52, leaves room for holidays, weather days and the winter slowdown.
Breakdowns you avoid
You choose how many unplanned failures a year earlier warnings could catch. If you are unsure, enter zero.
Cost of one breakdown
Repair, crew standing by, replacement rental and lowboy trips. One of last year’s invoices will do.
Rental days over
Days on rent after the work ended, times the day rate. Count only days a reminder would catch.
Break-even
Yearly value ÷ machines ÷ 12. Any quote below it per machine a month pays for itself on your inputs.
The bottom line
Idle fuel plus breakdowns avoided plus rental overrun. Your inputs added up, not a forecast.
ROI questions, answered
How do you calculate the ROI of equipment tracking?
Add up the costs that tracking lets you act on, then subtract what the system costs. This calculator prices idle fuel, the unplanned breakdowns you think you could avoid and rental days that ran past the job, all from your own figures, then divides the total into a break-even cost per machine a month to hold against any quote. It never guesses at savings for you.
Does the calculator include hardware and installation?
No. The break-even compares with the monthly software price only. Hardware is a one-time purchase, owned by you, plus installation per machine fitted, and both appear as separate lines on your written quote. Machines that already report through a manufacturer feed need no Gytix hardware, so count only the units you would actually fit.
Why doesn’t the calculator count engine wear from idling?
Because wear is harder to price honestly than fuel. Every idle hour still adds to the hour meter, which brings the next 250 and 500-hour services forward and counts against resale. We leave it out so the result stays conservative. If your shop tracks a cost per idle hour, multiply it by your yearly idle hours and add it by hand.
Where do I find my fleet’s idle hours?
Start with engine data, if any of your machines report it. Newer machines with a manufacturer telematics feed usually log idle hours apart from working hours. If none do, ask two operators how long a machine idles at the start of shift, at lunch and while waiting on trucks, then add up one week.
Is the result a promise of savings?
No. The result runs your own inputs through a simple formula, and Gytix makes no promise about what any fleet will save. How far idle time drops, or how many breakdowns get caught early, depends on your crews, your rules and how quickly someone acts on an alert.
Test the inputs on a walkthrough
Bring last year’s rental invoices and a week of hour meters. We check each figure against your machines, then send a written quote.