Build the business case
CMMS ROI calculator
Estimate what better maintenance is worth to your operation in a year. Every assumption behind the number is an input you can change, and the result splits into labor and downtime so each half can be defended on its own.
Your team
Everyone whose time the program affects, including supervisors, whether or not they would use the software
Fully loaded, including benefits and payroll tax. Use the median if the range is wide
Your downtime
Lost contribution margin plus idle labor. Leave it at zero to see the labor half only. Work it out here if you do not have the figure
The three assumptions behind the number
These were fixed constants on our previous ROI calculator and could not be seen or changed. They are the numbers a finance reviewer will ask about first, so they are inputs here.
Time back from finding work, chasing paperwork and rebuilding reports
252 is weekdays minus public holidays. Change it for a shift operation
Our old calculator assumed 50%. Use 20% to 25% for a case that is hard to argue with
Estimated annual value
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- Team time recovered
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- Downtime avoided
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A model, not a promise. It shows the value side only and says nothing about what UpKeep costs. Put it beside a real quote to compare the two.
How the number is built
Annual value = (Team size × Hourly rate × Hours saved per person per day × Working days) + (Hourly downtime cost × Annual downtime hours × Share avoided)
The two halves answer different objections and are worth presenting separately. The labor half is the easier of the two to defend, because the hours are visible to anyone who has watched a technician walk back to the office to find out what the job was. The downtime half is larger in most operations and harder to pin down, which is why the share avoided is set conservatively by default.
Making the case stand up
Two things get a business case rejected: a claim that is too large to believe, and a number nobody can trace. Lower the assumptions until each one is a figure you would be comfortable defending in the meeting, then use the total. A defensible number that survives scrutiny is worth more than an impressive one that does not.
If you have downtime records, use them rather than an estimate. If you do not, that is itself part of the case. Not knowing what downtime costs is the condition the program is meant to end.
ROI calculator questions
How does this calculator work out the savings?
Two separate figures, added together. Labor value is your team size multiplied by the hourly rate, the hours saved per person per day, and the number of working days in a year. Downtime value is your hourly cost of downtime multiplied by the annual downtime hours and the share of that downtime you expect to avoid.
Every one of those factors is an input you can change, including the three that were fixed constants in our previous version.
Is one hour saved per person per day realistic?
It is the default because it is the figure most teams find easiest to defend: it covers time currently spent looking for work orders, chasing paperwork, walking to check whether a job was done, and rebuilding reports by hand.
If that feels high for your team, lower it. Half an hour still produces a substantial number, and a case built on a number your finance team believes is worth more than one built on a number they do not.
Why 252 working days?
252 is the standard count of weekdays in a year once public holidays are removed, and it is the convention finance teams use. If your team works shifts, weekends or a shutdown schedule, change it. A 24/7 operation with rotating crews should use its own figure rather than an office-year default.
Why does the downtime half assume only part of the downtime is avoided?
Because no maintenance program eliminates unplanned downtime, and a model that claims otherwise is easy to reject. The default assumes half your current downtime cost is addressable through better preventive maintenance, faster response and fewer repeat failures.
If you want a conservative case, drop it to 20% or 25%. The resulting number is smaller and much harder to argue with.
Is this a quote?
No. It is a model of the value side only, and it says nothing about what UpKeep costs. To compare the two, take the annual figure here and put it next to a real quote. We will give you one without making you work the number out from a pricing page.
Do you keep the numbers I enter?
No. The calculation runs entirely in your browser and nothing is sent to us. The numbers appear in the page URL so you can share the result with a colleague, which means the link itself contains them. That is worth knowing before you paste it into a public channel.
Put the number next to a real quote
The figure above is the value side. We will give you the cost side without making you reverse-engineer it from a pricing page.