Construction equipment · tracking
Construction equipment tracking: the record that saves you time
Construction equipment tracking means recording, for each machine, its hour meter, its maintenance and VGP dates, and its condition, on a dedicated tracking sheet. This sheet can be a simple Excel or PDF spreadsheet for a small fleet, or be built into software with automatic alerts once several people or several sites are involved.
A well-kept equipment tracking sheet avoids unpleasant surprises: forgotten maintenance, an overdue VGP inspection, a missing machine. Here is what it should contain, a free Excel spreadsheet to get started, and how far this method goes.
Why keep track of construction equipment
Construction equipment tracking answers a simple question: being able to know, at any time, where each machine is, how many hours it has run, when its last maintenance or VGP inspection took place, and when the next deadline is due.
Without this tracking, a company often discovers a problem too late: an overdue VGP found during an inspection, forgotten maintenance that causes an avoidable breakdown, or a machine whose exact location no one remembers.
What an equipment tracking sheet should contain
An equipment tracking sheet, whether on paper, in Excel or in software, relies on the same core information.
| Field | What it is for |
|---|---|
| Fleet number | Unique identifier for the machine, used across all its related documents |
| Category | Type of equipment: mini excavator, aerial work platform, telehandler, mobile crane, etc. |
| Make / model | To find the manufacturer's manual and the correct parts |
| Serial number | Official identification, useful for inspections or claims |
| Location | Site or location where the machine currently stands |
| Hour meter | Basis for calculating maintenance and several inspections |
| Date/reading of last maintenance | Starting point for calculating the next deadline |
| Maintenance interval | Recommended frequency, in hours, between two maintenance operations |
| Last VGP and frequency | Date of the last regulatory inspection and the frequency that applies to the machine |
| Status | Overdue, approaching deadline, or up to date |
Trackary's free Excel tracking spreadsheet
To start tracking construction equipment without software, Trackary provides a free, downloadable equipment fleet management spreadsheet in Excel. One row per machine brings together the fleet number, category, make, model, serial number, year, location, hour meter, the date and reading of the last maintenance, the maintenance interval in hours, the next maintenance deadline calculated automatically, and the last VGP and its frequency, with the next VGP calculated.
A colour-coded status (overdue, less than 30 days, up to date) lets you spot at a glance which machines need prompt action, without having to recalculate every date by hand.
Other free, complementary tools
The Excel spreadsheet pairs well with free field paper tools, also available from Trackary: a PDF maintenance logbook to record interventions machine by machine, and construction equipment checklists to print before each use, to check the key safety points before starting a machine.
- Free Excel equipment fleet management spreadsheet: full tracking per machine with calculated deadlines
- Free PDF equipment maintenance logbook: a history of interventions to keep with the machine
- Construction equipment checklists: a quick pre-use check, to print
How far Excel or PDF tracking goes
This setup works well as long as a single person maintains the file or paper sheets, for a modest-sized fleet. It reaches its limits as soon as several people need to update the same information: the risk of conflicting versions increases, and one update can overwrite another without anyone noticing.
An Excel spreadsheet also doesn't send automatic alerts before a deadline: you have to remember to open it and check the statuses. And it isn't designed to be filled in from the field, without a network, with a photo to back up an observed anomaly.
How to keep the tracking spreadsheet updated day to day
In practice, a row in the spreadsheet is updated at every significant change: an hour meter reading taken at the end of the week, maintenance carried out that pushes back the next deadline, or a machine moving to a different site. It is advisable to designate a single person responsible for this update, to avoid two versions of the file circulating at once.
The colour-coded status (overdue, less than 30 days, up to date) becomes useful mainly if it is checked regularly, for example at the start of every week, rather than only once a deadline has already passed.
When to move to equipment tracking software
The signal to move to a more structured tool is qualitative rather than a precise threshold: several people are stepping on each other's toes in the same file, a deadline has already been missed, or the fleet is spread across several sites tracked by different people.
Trackary keeps the same logic of one record per machine as the free Excel spreadsheet, but adds automatic alerts ahead of VGP and maintenance deadlines, a mobile app to report an anomaly from the field with a photo and severity, a job schedule with technician assignment, and a digital maintenance logbook shared by the whole team. Trackary is quote-based, after a 30-minute video demo, with no commitment. A 30-minute video demo is available, with no obligation.
What Trackary does not do
Trackary does not carry out VGP inspections itself and certifies nothing: that check remains carried out by an approved body. It does not handle billing, hire or contracts, and does not offer GPS or geolocation, QR codes, or parts stock management.
Trackary's free Excel spreadsheet lets you start tracking your equipment; to go further with alerts and a mobile app, request a 30-minute video demo. Request a demo →