Knowledge base
Machine tracking in civil engineering projects
Last reviewed: July 2026
Short answer
Machine tracking is about knowing what the machines actually do: hours, fuel, cost and climate impact, per project and in real time. The need is driven from two directions at once. Clients such as the Swedish Transport Administration require digital reporting of fuel for machine services under BEAst Supply 4.0, and project economics require that actual can be followed against estimate before deviations turn into change order disputes. Pinpointer solves both in the same flow as the mass handling.
Two kinds of machine tracking, do not mix them up
Technical machine tracking, telematics, is about the machine's health: engine data, service needs and positions. It is handled by the machine manufacturers' own systems. Operational and financial machine tracking is about the machine's work in the project: which hours have been performed, what fuel has been consumed, what it cost, what climate impact it produced and how it is reported to the client. It is the latter that clients, site managers and estimators ask for, and it is what this page is about.
Why machine tracking is relevant now
- Client requirements: the Swedish Transport Administration requires digital reporting of fuel consumption for machine services in new procurements, and private clients such as NCC set equivalent requirements for digital delivery notes.
- Climate reporting: CO2 per machine hour and per project is needed both for the client's follow-up and for your own sustainability reporting.
- Project economics: machine hours are often one of the largest cost items in a civil engineering project. Without ongoing tracking, deviations from the estimate only become visible when the invoices arrive.
- Productivity: the link between machine and transport, for example fill rate at loading, determines how much work each machine hour actually produces.
What good machine tracking includes
- Reporting at the source: the machine operator registers hours and fuel in an app, continuously in the field, not afterwards at the office.
- Link to project and order: every reported hour belongs to an activity, a project and a contract.
- Fuel per machine and type: the basis for correct CO2 calculation, actual consumption rather than a schematic value.
- Approval flow: the client reviews digitally and deviations are caught immediately, not at the next site meeting.
- Reporting under BEAst T120: delivery notes to clients and the Swedish Transport Administration are generated automatically from the operational flow.
- Finance link: approved hours become invoicing basis without double entry, and project economics update in real time.
Key metrics to follow
- Machine hours per activity and project, actual against estimate.
- Fuel consumption per machine hour.
- CO2 per machine hour and per handled tonne.
- Fill rate at loading, the link between the excavator's work and the transport's efficiency.
- Share of approved delivery notes without deviation, a direct measure of data quality along the chain.
Machine tracking and mass handling belong together
In civil engineering projects the excavator and the truck work in the same flow. The excavator operator controls the loading, sees the vehicle's load capacity and influences the fill rate. The driver reports the transport. If the machines are tracked in one system and the material in another, double work arises, and traceability breaks exactly where it is needed most. Pinpointer holds the chain together: the machine operator's and the driver's reporting in the same field app, delivery notes under BEAst Supply 4.0 for both machine services and transports, climate data per delivery and real-time project economics. AI analysis of accumulated data flags deviations from the estimate before they turn into change order disputes. Pinpointer is used today in road maintenance contracts for the Swedish Transport Administration, including by Svevia in a four-year contract covering 1,000 km of road.
Frequently asked questions
What is machine tracking?
Follow-up of machine work in a project: hours performed, fuel consumption, cost and climate impact, linked to project, order and contract. Distinguish it from telematics, which tracks the machine's own tech and service needs.
What does the Swedish Transport Administration require for machine services?
Digital reporting of fuel consumption for machine services via digital delivery notes under BEAst Supply 4.0, sent through the supplier chain to the Swedish Transport Administration's system ELSA. The requirements are in the AF template under AFC.242 and AFD.242.
Is machine tracking the same as telematics?
No. Telematics is the machine manufacturers' systems for engine data, positions and service. Machine tracking in this sense is about the work, the economics and the reporting in the project.
Which systems exist for machine tracking in civil engineering projects?
The machine manufacturers' telematics systems follow the machine's tech. For operational tracking and reporting there are industry systems with different starting points: order systems for machine and transport services, transport management systems and mass-handling platforms. We have collected a vendor-neutral overview in the guide Choosing a system for digital delivery notes.
Can small machine contractors report without their own ERP?
Yes. Reporting is done via a field app, and the delivery notes are generated and sent automatically. Read more in our guide to BEAst T120 for machine services.