Key Takeaways for Decision Makers
CONTRACTOR: Brand premiums are always going to exist when purchasing a piece of equipment, but it’s important to keep an eye on the maintenance costs for a particular manufacturer in order to make sure the premiums don’t follow suit.
An abundance of factors can influence maintenance costs including age, manufacturer, hours on the equipment, and severity of the job. These factors make tracking and maintaining maintenance and equipment costs incredibly important when it comes to determining total cost to own and operate. Currently, 79% of companies track their costs, and most do so by using accounting software or spreadsheets. Across all manufacturers and sizes of 4-wd articulated wheel loaders, the average cost for field repair parts per year is $3,390.56, while the average yearly overhaul cost is $3,888.19.
Dresser takes the top spot of most expensive 4-wd articulated wheel loaders to maintain, and is the only manufacturer that has a combined yearly maintenance cost (overhaul and field repair) over $10,000.00 on average. Dresser also takes the top spots for average year field repair parts, which is 53% higher than the average across all manufacturers, as well as the highest average overhaul costs per year, which is a 49% percent increase from the average.
Caterpillar is next in line of highest combined yearly maintenance costs at $9,691.71 on average for 4-wd articulated wheel loaders. With a 33% increase in average field repair parts per year, Caterpillar is the third most expensive when it comes to field repair. Average overhaul costs are also a 33% increase for Caterpillar, placing it as the second most expensive manufacturer for average overhaul costs for 4-wd articulated wheel loaders.
Volvo follows extremely closely behind Caterpillar with a combined yearly maintenance cost of $9,682.52 on average. Volvo holds the spot of second most expensive manufacturer for average yearly field repair parts being 33% above the average. It is also 33% above average yearly overhaul costs for 4-wd articulated wheel loaders, taking the third spot.
Hyundai falls in the fourth spot of most expensive 4-wd articulated wheel loaders to maintain, costing $9,341.96 on average each year. Hyundai also falls in the fourth spots for most expensive average field repair parts per year and average yearly overhaul costs, being 28% and 29% above the average respectively.
Last but not least, Komatsu rounds out the top 5 costing just over $9,000.00 on average for field repair and overhaul of their 4-wd articulated wheel loaders. Komatsu also rounds out the average field repair parts per year and average overhaul costs per year, costing 26% and 23% more than other brands.