Equipment is listed using the “Equipment List” sheet.

Purpose #

The Equipment List sheet is used to record the machine employment cases modeled in the active Fleet Employment Cost Estimate. Machine employment cases are further modeled in Ironworks as follows:

• The Estimate Setup sheet stores the specified variable values that govern how machine employment cost estimates are calculated.

• The Custody Plans sheet stores the specified variable values used to establish how and when a machine is (or will be) in custody and its forecast employment during that custody period.

• The Employment Cost Factors sheet stores the specified variable values for the Cost Factors used to calculate the cost of each component of the cost breakdown structure (CBS) for each month in the Rate Period for each machine in the Equipment List.

Layout #

Machine Records, the ROWS in the Equipment List table, identify ONE employment case for ONE specific machine

• ONE Machine Record (employment case) is all that is needed to calculate a specific machine’s employment cost and charge rate for the Rate Period.
• ANY number of Machine Records can be created in the Equipment List for one or more machines.
  • Up to the table row limit imposed by Excel (~1,048,000) and the processing limit imposed by the capacity of the host computer (varies).
  • This enables you to calculate multiple employment-case-specific charge rates for any machine.

Machine Properties (the COLUMNS In the Equipment List table) detail the nature of the listed machine records.

• Machine Properties are grouped as follows: Machine Identification, Classification, Location, Administration, and Mechanical Properties.

Key Fields #

• Machine Identification | Equipment Number
  • Add or delete new Machine Records by either:
    • Selecting any number of cells in the Equipment Number column, then right-mouse clicking to open the “Equipent List Change” dialog.
    • Selecting any number of cells in the Equipment Number column, then using the Add/Delete… command buttons embedded in the sheet.
    • Using the Ironworks toolbar, Machine Records Group, Add and Delete commands.
  • Machine Record count limit
    • The practical limit for Machine Records in an Estimate is determined by the processing speed of the computer hosting Ironworks. About 3,000 Machine Records is typically the upper limit, even though Excel can accommodate 1,048,000.
  • Duplicate Equipment Numbers allowed
    • More than one Machine Record can be created for the same Equipment Number. In this way, any number of employment cases can be modeled for the same machine.
    • IF you do set up multiple Machine Records for one machine, and you want to accurately forecast resource requirements, be careful about forecasting employment for the Rate Period so you don’t forecast more employment than is possible in a given month for the shift arrangements specified in the Estimate Setup Sheet. For example, if you set up separate Machine Records for the same machine for three operating conditions (e.g., favorable, moderate, severe) when forecasting employment for each Machine Record keep in mind all THREE represent ONE machine.

• Machine Identification | Make-Model-Year
  • Ironworks provides initial Make-Model lists in its Library of valid values.
  • Add, delete, or edit valid values by right-clicking in the field to display the Edit Library form.
    • Click on a Type to display its subordinate Categories.
    • Click on a Category to display its subordinate Classes.
• Machine Identification | Type-Category-Class
  • Type/Category/Class properties are used to group similar machine records for analysis purposes.
    • For example, all compaction-type machines that are self-propelled sheepsfoot compactors weighing 50,000 to 60,000 pounds can be grouped.
  • Ironworks provides initial Type/Category lists in its Library of valid values.
  • Add, delete, or edit valid values by right-clicking in the field to display the Edit Library form.
    • Click on a Type to display its subordinate Categories.
    • Click on a Category to display its subordinate Classes.
    • Any number of TYPES can be defined in the Library.
    • Any number of Type-specific CATEGORIES can be defined in the Library.
    • Any number of Category-specific CLASSES can be defined in the Library.
• Administration | Cost Recovery Method
  • Charge Rate Option
    • IF the “Charge Rate” option is elected, both a total cost AND a Charge Rate is calculated in the respective MECE using the Cost Factor Values and Settings specified.
    • Charge rates are used in practice 1) in bidding systems as part of the job cost estimating process; 2) in accounting systems as part of the job cost accounting process; 3) in accounting systems as part of the equipment cost accounting process; 4) in accounting systems as part of the A/R accounting process.
  • NPE Option
    • IF the “Non-pay Equipment” option is elected, ONLY a total cost is calculated and that cost is automatically included in the Non-Pay Equipment cost estimate component of the Overhead Cost Estimate.
    • NPE employment costs are recovered along with all other overhead costs and expenses through overhead allocations to individual machines.
• Administration | Job Cost Estimating System Equipment Resource Code
  • IF the job cost estimating system uses weighted average composite rates for all like machines and does NOT use machine-specific rates this code is used in the RXP Charge Rate sheet to group like machines and produce group charge rates.
• Administration | Job Cost Accounting System Job Charge Rate Code
  • IF the job cost accounting system uses weighted average composite rates for all like machines and does NOT use machine-specific rates this code is used in the RXP Charge Rate sheet to group like machines and produce group charge rates.
• Mechanical Properties dataset
  • These properties describe the mechanical nature of the subject machine.
  • All of these properties are reported in the machine employment cost estimate to help the estimator value the associated cost factors.
  • None of these properties has a direct cost effect, except for the “Lifetime Employment at Rate Period Start Date” property, which affects the timing and cost of both preventive maintenance routines and scheduled overhauls. For example, if you plan to overhaul a machine’s engine when it has been employed 8,000 hours (specified using the Overhaul Cost Factor fields in the Employment Cost Factors Sheet), if you specify that the machine’s “Lifetime Employment at Rate Period Start Date” is 7,500 hours, then the overhaul is automatically calculated to occur in the month that the forecast employment in the Rate Period is 500 hours in total. The cost of the overhaul is likewise automatically calculated using the mechanic’s wage rate specified for that month (in the Estimate Setup sheet).

Sheet Commands #

• To operate the sheet commands, place the cursor in the Equipment Number column then click the corresponding sheet command button to:
  • Add New Last Row
  • Copy Selected Row
  • Delete Selected Row

Tips #

• Limit the number of machine records in the Equipment List according to your computer’s processing power and your willingness to wait for MECE calculation results. A well-equipped PC with dual processors and 32 megabytes of RAM can calculate the modeled cost of about 1,000 machine records per minute.
• To build a basic model of fleet employment that forecasts its monthly cost, monthly resource requirements, and calculates a charge rate for the Rate Period that recovers all modeled costs, set up ONE Machine Record per machine.
• To build an advanced model of a fleet that specifies different employment cases for certain machines for different periods of time within the Rate Period, set up MULTIPLE Machine Records per machine:
  • In the Equipment List, set up Machine Records for all machines in the fleet.
  • In the sheets used to model machine-specific employment cases (Custody Plans, Employment Cost Factors) specify the values for the first employment case (e.g., moderate field conditions).
  • In the Equipment List, copy all Machine Records.
  • In the sheets used to model machine-specific employment cases, edit the values to reflect the 2nd employment case (e.g., model severe field conditions by increasing fuel consumption and time between repair sessions).
  • NOTE: If you want to forecast resource requirements for the subject fleet, be sure to NOT overlap the custody periods of the machines with multiple employment cases. If you do, resource requirements will be overstated – unless you plan to work double shifts during the overlapped custody periods.
• To build a “what-if” analysis of employment options for the same machine, set up one Machine Record for each option and compare the results.
  • For example, to determine which custody type (rent, lease, own) is less expensive for the Rate Period:
    • set up a Machine Record for an owned machine
    • specify its employment case values (including the Cost Factors for Rent cost per day and Lease cost per month)
    • copy that Machine Record twice
    • change the Custody Type (in the Custody Plans sheet) for the two copies to “leased”, and “rented” respectively
    • compare the resulting Charge Rates.
  • Or, to better match charge rates to a wide range of field conditions:
    • set up one Machine Record for each machine in your fleet
    • in each Machine Record in the Equipment List note “moderate field conditions” in the Machine Record Tag field.
    • specify Cost Factor values for each Machine Record that reflect “moderate” conditions
    • copy all Machine Records to produce a duplicate set
    • change their Machine Record Tags from “moderate” to “favorable field conditions”
    • edit their Cost Factor values to reflect favorable field conditions (less repairs, less fuel consumption, etc.)
    • filter the Equipment List for those Machine Records tagged “moderate”
    • copy them to produce another duplicate set
    • change their Machine Record Tags from “moderate” to “severe field conditions“
    • edit their Cost Factor values to reflect “severe” conditions (more repairs, more fuel consumption, etc.)