A spreadsheet is enough to plan plant and equipment while one person runs a small fleet and the plan changes slowly. Change to plant allocation software when two jobs book the same machine, when you find a shortfall on the day, when transport is planned in a different sheet, or when the site works from an old copy of the plan.

Most contractors and hire companies start with a spreadsheet. That is a good decision. The question is when the spreadsheet starts to cost more than it saves.

What a spreadsheet does well

• Everyone in the business already knows how to use it.
• You already pay for it.
• You can add a column for anything, in minutes.
• One person can see the whole fleet on one screen.

If one planner owns the sheet, the fleet is small, and jobs rarely move, keep the spreadsheet. Software will not fix a process that already works.

Five signs that the spreadsheet no longer works

1. Two jobs book the same machine

A spreadsheet does not stop two people from allocating the same crane, or the same tower sections, to two jobs on the same dates. You find the conflict when the second job calls for the machine.

2. You find shortfalls on the day

The sheet shows what is allocated. It does not easily show what is available at each yard on each date, after you count every job. When a project moves by a week, nobody recalculates the effect on the other jobs.

3. Transport is planned in a different sheet

The allocation sheet says that the gear goes to site on Tuesday. The transport sheet says something different, or it does not list the components on each load. The truck arrives without the right parts, or with parts that another job needs.

4. The site works from an old copy

Someone emails the plan on Monday. By Wednesday it has changed, but the site still has Monday's version. The office and the site argue about which plan is correct.

5. Only one person understands the sheet

The formulas, the colours, and the hidden tabs make sense to one person. When that person is on leave, nobody else can plan with confidence.

What plant allocation software adds

Plant allocation software keeps the assets, the projects, and the transport in one system. In Idalia, that means:

• Allocations sit on the same timeline as the work, so you see a conflict when the dates change.
• Allocated stock is shown separately from what is available in the yard.
• A forecast shows where stock runs low at each yard and site, over six weeks or six months.
• Each transport load lists the assets on the truck, so the load and the allocation agree.
• The site team sees the same plan on their phone.
• Each asset keeps its history: where it went, and which prestart checks were completed.

How to move from a spreadsheet

1. Clean the asset register first. Use one row for each unique item, or one row for each type of item that you count by quantity. Use the same names everywhere.
2. Decide which parts you track as assemblies. For example, a tower crane and its sections, or a machine and its attachments.
3. Import the register. In Idalia, you can import assets from a spreadsheet with bulk upload.
4. Start with the jobs that are coming up. You do not need to enter old jobs before you start.
5. Pick a date to stop editing the spreadsheet. If both stay open, nobody knows which one is correct.

What it costs

The spreadsheet costs nothing to license. Its real cost is the time spent to keep it up to date, and the cost of the mistakes that it does not stop.

Idalia is priced per user per month in Australian dollars. See the current prices on the pricing page. If you run a crane fleet, see Idalia for crane hire.

Summary

Keep the spreadsheet while one person can plan the fleet without conflicts. Change when double bookings, surprise shortfalls, separate transport plans, or old copies of the plan start to cost you jobs or hire days.