Waste of fuel? By the driver! High gas mileage: causes.

26.03.2019

Officials insist that when determining the reasonableness of the costs of purchasing and using fuel for company car should be based on the rules set out in methodological recommendations approved by the Ministry of Transport of Russia. But what if more fuel is actually used up? The answer is in the article.

Set the cause

By general rule Fuel and lubricants are written off at actual consumption: within the limits - to the account of expenses (for extrabudgetary activities - to the account of the cost of manufactured products (works, services)), in excess of the established norms - to the account of income with subsequent recovery at the expense of the guilty persons or write-off for account of established sources. So the actual fuel consumption may exceed the approved norms under different circumstances.

Firstly, the operation of the car in special climatic conditions or in a certain area, as well as its technical condition. If during the investigation it is established that the overspending occurred for “good” reasons, then it is recognized as forced. IN this case institutions write off fuel on the basis of the order of the head.

Secondly, excessive fuel costs could also have arisen due to the negligence of an employee who allowed an overrun due to improper operation of a company car. However, the guilt of a particular person must, of course, be confirmed and recorded. This can be done by the commission of the institution or independent experts. The role of the latter can be performed by representatives of a higher authority.

The rate can be approved

The Ministry of Transport of Russia has developed fuel consumption standards. They are given in (introduced). However, as we see from the name of the document itself, these norms are only recommended by officials. It is logical that if it is recommended, then it is not necessary, and institutions can approve the applicable standards themselves (for example, in cases of operating a car in difficult transport conditions). The application of own norms (other than those recommended by officials) should be justified. The established limits must be confirmed by control measurements carried out by the commission of the institution or specialized organizations. It is possible that officials will not agree with the legitimacy of their application. In this case, your point of view will have to be defended in court.

If the fuel is written off according to the standards established by the institution, then the estimate will have to be supplemented with an application upon approval. It must justify the costs of purchasing fuel and lubricants and confirm them with appropriate calculations.

Fuel write-off

If an overrun of gasoline is allowed due to the special operating conditions of vehicles, the cost of the material is written off to the costs of the institution (based on the Inventory Write-off Act (). The wiring looks like this:

But how to take into account the “excess norm”, if the culprit of the overspending is an employee of the institution, it is not described in the instructions for budget accounting. But on this occasion, there is an opinion of officials who believe that in such a situation, the identified overspending should be reflected as a shortage and recovered from the driver in the prescribed manner (). The entries will be like this:


Lack of gasoline due to the fault of the driver	209 74 560 "Increase in receivables for damage to inventories"	401 10 172 "Income from operations with assets"
Accepted to the cash desk of the institution of the amount from the guilty person to compensate for the shortage	201 11 510 "Receipts Money institutions to personal accounts with the treasury"	209 74 660
The damage from the shortage of fuel and lubricants was compensated by the guilty employee by bank transfer through the personal accounts of the institution	201 34 510 "Receipts of funds to the cash desk of the institution"	209 74 660 "Reduction of accounts receivable for damage to inventories"

Debt amounts can be deducted from the driver's salary. To do this, there must be either a decision judiciary and other relevant institutions, or the written consent of the perpetrator himself.

Well-established control of fuel consumption at the enterprise is one of the mandatory conditions effective work transport department. The cost of purchasing fuels and lubricants make up the lion's share of the expenditure side of the budget of such structural divisions, and therefore they should be minimized - primarily by eliminating abuse.

The organization of a fuel consumption control system at an enterprise (FCMS) should include a whole range of measures. But the key aspect will still be the installation special equipment, capable of fixing the actual cost of fuel in automatic mode, with minimal influence of personnel on this process.

Methods of theft of fuels and lubricants and other frauds with fuel

To effectively control the fuel consumption of commercial vehicles, it is necessary to have at least a superficial understanding of how fuel theft can be carried out. There are quite a few ways:

Draining gasoline or diesel fuel. This method is the easiest. It involves the actual theft of fuel from fuel tanks. Drained fuel is either used for personal use or sold.
Use of checks for refueling. If refueling is carried out not at the enterprise, but by the driver himself with a subsequent report to the accounting department, then an unscrupulous employee can purchase checks from third parties. After presenting the checks, the driver receives financial compensation.
Odometer tricks. If the car is not equipped with modern navigation systems and flight recorders, then by relatively simple manipulations, the value of the daily mileage can be overestimated. After that, the driver uses one of the two methods described above: either buys checks, or drains and sells "surplus" gasoline.

In addition, misuse of official or commercial vehicles also belongs to abuse. In the absence of proper control, the driver can operate flights without a report, assigning payment for them. In this case, the consumption of the vehicle resource and the consumption of fuels and lubricants (gasoline / diesel fuel, oil, etc.) increase.

As you can see, there are quite a few ways to deceive an enterprise. At the same time, the organization incurs losses not only due to excessive consumption of fuel, but also due to the fact that the transport is either idle or operated in an inappropriate way.

Fuel consumption monitoring systems at the enterprise

To avoid the abuses described above, the control of fuel consumption at the enterprise should be systemic. The introduction of a set of control procedures - both organizational and technical - will reduce the cost of purchasing fuel, as well as preventive maintenance and repair of the equipment itself.

A variety of methods can be used to control fuel consumption:

Fuel cards

Previously, fuel coupons were used to decentralize the purchase of fuel. But they had a significant disadvantage: they could be easily faked. Thus, the ground for the abuses described above was created.

Today they serve as an alternative to coupons fuel cards. They have a number of features:

Accounting on the card is not in monetary units, but in liters. Those. a certain amount of fuel is allocated for the flight, which will be much more difficult to convert into finance than when using coupons.
There are both universal maps and maps designed for a certain type of fuel. It also makes cheating more difficult.
Finally, you can get information about the write-off of fuel volumes from the card at any time - this information is available online. It also facilitates control and makes theft more difficult.

In addition, the cards are very convenient to use: they are protected by a pin code, and if they are lost or stolen, they can be blocked.

In general, switching to fuel cards also increases the level of safety: the driver does not have to carry large sums of money with him.

Fuel consumption control and vehicle monitoring GLONASS/GPS

However, despite all the effectiveness, the fuel card system still leaves room for fraud. That is why it should be implemented in parallel with the GPS system / GLONASS transport monitoring.

This approach provides for equipping the entire fleet of commercial flights with GPS trackers connected to common system monitoring. This allows:

Track the movement of each unit of transport in real time.
Monitor compliance with routes, improving driving discipline and preventing abuse in advance.
Exclude the use of company vehicles for personal purposes.
Increase the level of traffic safety.

The efficiency of this system is quite high. Fuel consumption control and vehicle monitoring allow you to track all movements as accurately as possible. Therefore, the head of the enterprise or the transport department can at any time find out where this or that car is located - which means that it will be extremely difficult to overestimate fuel consumption.

Fuel level control systems

Yet the most effective measure to prevent theft fuels and lubricants, attributions and abuses will be the application special systems including:

software;
information transmission system;
fuel sensors monitoring the level of fuel in the tank.

Such systems work according to the following algorithm:

A sensor is installed in the fuel tank, which fixes the actual fuel level and registers the change in this level.
The sensor is connected to the main GPS tracker of the system (vehicle monitoring terminal) located in the vehicle cab. This block is sealed, which excludes interference in its work.
The monitoring system transmits information about the fuel level to the server - and the owner can monitor fuel consumption and the frequency of refueling remotely.

The module uses the resources of the global positioning systems GLONAS/GPS, which allows you to control the movement of the car and correlate this data with information coming from capacitive sensors in fuel tanks.

Advantages of fuel consumption monitoring systems

Implementation complex systems control of fuel consumption at the enterprise provides whole line advantages:

Effective fight against abuses (this increases not only the financial efficiency of the organization, but also discipline in general).
Control of purchases and consumption of fuels and lubricants, providing cost reduction.
Optimization of the use of vehicles by minimizing downtime and non-targeted trips.
Obtaining objective information about the use of the fleet.
Reducing the level of accidents and injuries (it is also ensured by the disciplinary effect and the elimination of employees prone to abuse).

All these advantages make investments in the purchase of control equipment and the implementation of a fuel and lubricants consumption monitoring system very profitable!

Accounting for fuel consumption according to documents

In addition to an effective fuel consumption monitoring system to achieve maximum effect it is necessary to introduce uniform rules and accounting standards. As a rule, the basis for the accounting part of accounting is the provision "On Accounting and Reporting".

The documents confirming the fuel consumption for the commercial activities of the enterprise are:

waybills;
accompanying bills of lading.

Primary documents must contain the following information:

mileage;
weight of the transported cargo;
filling information.

Based on these data, the standardized fuel consumption is calculated for a specific vehicle.

Fuel costs can be accounted for in two ways:

For production purposes - as part of material costs;
For management and organizational purposes - as part of other expenses related to core activities.

In any case, an economic justification and documentary evidence of these costs is necessary. The use of fuel cards simplifies accounting for fuel consumption and reporting - but in any case, it is necessary to control the circulation of documents received from the processing center.

Establishing an efficient control of fuel consumption at the enterprise is not easy: it must include a whole range of organizational and technical solutions. But both the time and financial costs of implementing a fuel consumption tracking system quickly pay off, primarily by minimizing the level of theft and reducing the cost of purchasing fuel and lubricants.

The specialists of our company will select best option tracking and managing fuel consumption at your enterprise. The list of our services includes: turnkey solutions and the development of individual control systems.

Having noticed an increase in gasoline consumption in your car, you should not leave this fact unattended, once again blaming fuel manufacturers and sellers. There can be hundreds of reasons for this problem, and some of them can lead to more serious consequences.

The main causes of excessive fuel consumption

The increased consumption of gasoline can be due to both technical malfunctions and the human factor. In the first case, the overspending is due to a malfunction of the elements. fuel system, ignition systems, gas distribution mechanisms, clutches, etc. As for the human factor, it covers all other moments when the consumption depends solely on the driver's consciousness.

TO technical reasons increased consumption gasoline include:

incorrect carburetor adjustment (for carburetor engines);
clogged air filter;
malfunctions of nozzles (for injection engines);
incorrectly set ignition timing;
gaps of spark plugs are violated;
malfunction of the gas distribution mechanism, incorrectly set valve clearances;
wear parts piston group;
wear of clutch parts or improper adjustment;
sensor malfunction mass flow air (MRV) and oxygen (first and second lambda probe).

The reasons for the excessive consumption of gasoline due to the fault of the driver may be:

"aggressive" nature of driving;
turned on lighting, heating or ventilation devices;
driving a car with a cold engine;
incorrectly adjusted camber-toe angle;
low tire pressure;
too much tightened bearings wheel hubs or jamming brake pads in a divorced state;
heavy vehicle load;
violation of the aerodynamic properties of the machine;
usage low-quality gasoline or gasoline with reduced octane rating.

Let us consider in more detail how and to what extent these factors affect fuel consumption.

Possible reasons	Approximate consumption of gasoline
Technical reasons
Incorrectly adjusted carburetor	10-40 %
Clogged air filter	10 %
Malfunction (clogging) of nozzles	10-20 %
Late ignition	1% (for each extra corner)
Incorrectly adjusted spark plug gap	to 10 %
Malfunction of the gas distribution mechanism	up to 20%
Wear of piston group parts	10% per reduced compression atmosphere
Clutch wear	10-15 %
Malfunction of MRV and oxygen sensors	10-50 %
Reasons caused by the human factor
"Aggressive" driving style	15-50 %
Driving with lights, heating, ventilation turned on	10-20 %
Driving with a cold engine	up to 20%
Incorrect camber angle adjustment	to 10 %
Low tire pressure	to 10 %
Too much tightened hubs or stuck pads	up to 15 %
Excessive car load	10% for every extra 100 kg
Violation of aerodynamic properties	up to 15 %
Use of low quality gasoline	up to 5%

Technical reasons for excessive fuel consumption

As for the carburetor, an increase in fuel consumption can be the cause of:

a large level of gasoline in the float chamber, which is the reason for not correct adjustment"tongue" of the float, or violation of its (float) integrity;
clogging of air braking jets;
the economizer valve is in a permanently open position;
incomplete opening of the air damper;
untimely shutdown of the idle system;
more than the norm of the unscrewed screw for adjusting the amount of fuel.

All of the above issues are resolved by complex diagnostics and adjustment of the carburetor with cleaning and calibration of jets.

downtrodden air filter significantly reduces the amount of air entering the combustion chambers. At the same time, fuel consumption naturally increases due to uncontrolled enrichment fuel mixture. The problem is fixed by replacing the filter element.

In vehicles with injection motors often the cause of increased gas mileage is problems with the operation of the injectors. Usually this leads to their clogging, because of which the fuel is not sprayed, but simply pours into the combustion chambers. You can eliminate such a malfunction by cleaning (washing) the nozzles using special liquids and equipment.

Significantly affects the consumption and condition of the ignition system. An incorrectly set lead angle, especially if it is shifted towards the “lag”, leads to the fact that combustible mixture will ignite too late and, without having time to burn out completely, fly out literally into the pipe.

Approximately the same will happen with improperly adjusted spark plug gaps, or with interruptions in their work. If any of the candles fails, fuel will flow into the cylinder, but not burn out.

You can correct the situation by properly adjusting the ignition, setting the gaps, or replacing the spark plugs.

In case of malfunctions of the gas distribution mechanism (wear of pushers, hydraulic compensators, incorrectly set thermal gaps valves, timing belt mixing), an increase in fuel consumption can also be observed, moreover, against the background of a decrease in engine power. Problems with the timing are eliminated after diagnosis by adjusting the valve mechanism, setting the camshaft and crankshaft pulleys according to the marks with replacing the belt.

The wear of the parts of the piston group leads to a loss of compression, which in turn causes excessive consumption of gasoline. The malfunction is determined by measuring the compression in each of the cylinders. This is the most difficult to eliminate reason, because, faced with it, most likely, you will have to do overhaul engine.

Clutch failure or improper adjustment will result in the engine not being able to transmit torque from the flywheel to the input shaft Checkpoint in full. This means that it will partially idle, using fuel unnecessarily. The malfunction is eliminated by replacing or adjusting the elements of the mechanism.

In case of failure of MRV sensors or lambda probes, the electronic unit engine control will receive false information about the amount of oxygen in the fuel mixture or exhaust gases, as a result of which an enriched combustible mixture will enter the cylinders. Checking and replacing sensors will help correct the situation.

Causes of excessive consumption of gasoline caused by the human factor

Very often, the cause of excessive consumption of gasoline is the actions or inaction of the driver himself. Aggressive driving style abrupt starts, regassing, movement on high speed) significantly increases fuel consumption. Most reckless people, of course, know about this, so we are not talking about some kind of savings here.

Headlights on, air conditioning, heater, multimedia system are also an additional load on the engine, causing more fuel consumption. In some cases, this, of course, is justified, because you don’t really ride at night without light, and in winter without a heater. But without a constantly on air conditioner or radio, in order to save money, you can do without.

As for an unheated engine, this is a double-edged sword. If you start driving with a cold engine, this will give an extra load on it. Fuel consumption will increase until the moment of heating power unit before operating temperature. Approximately the same amount of gasoline will have to be spent, and warming up the engine for idling. To warm, or not to warm, is up to the driver, of course.

The motor will also receive additional load in case of incorrect adjustment of the wheel alignment angles (alignment), low pressure in tires, wedging of wheels due to "overtightening" of the hubs, or abutting brake pads. All these factors lead to a loss of vehicle inertia (overrun).

Do not overload the car, exceeding it gross weight provided by the manufacturer. Each extra kilogram, and, no matter in the trunk or trailer, is a few milliliters of "extra" gasoline.

Reckless decisions to change the shape of the body (spoilers, body kits, etc.) also lead to excessive fuel consumption. All these designs were not taken into account by the designers when developing the car, so they will naturally create additional resistance. air flow in motion, and this is also an extra load on the engine.

And, of course, gasoline itself. It is hardly worth talking about its quality at our gas stations, but the fact that the use of gasoline with a lower octane number than provided by the manufacturer leads to overspending, that's for sure.

The highlights of this article:

norms s consumption of fuels and lubricants for vehicles are established by the current legislation;
increasing or decreasing adjustment factors are applied to the base rates;
when writing off fuel in accounting, it is necessary to compare the actual and standard race fuel stroke.

Almost every enterprise in its economic activity uses vehicles. Actual fuel consumption often differs from the established norm. The reasons for overspending can be very different: weather conditions, road conditions, car mileage, as well as irrational use of fuel by the driver. Therefore, the question arises: according to what standards should fuel be written off? And how to reflect the excessive consumption of fuel in accounting and tax accounting? You will find answers to these questions in the consultation.

Consumption rates of fuel and lubricants in vehicles

The consumption rates of fuels and lubricants for cars are approved by the order of the Ministry of Transport of February 10, 1998 No. 43 (hereinafter - Norms No. 43). There are basic linear fuel consumption rates for more than 1,200 models (modifications) of cars, fuel consumption rates for transport work and for the operation of special equipment, as well as a system of coefficients for adjusting standard fuel consumption.

According to clause 1.1 of Norm No. 43, the following norms and adjustment factors can be used at enterprises:

bases new linear norm for car mileage;
norm for the performance of transport work;
norm per ton of curb weight;
rate for one trip with cargo;
the norm for mileage when performing special work;
the norm for the operation of special equipment installed on cars;
the basic norm for the operation of an autonomous (independent) heater.

Reducing and increasing coefficients

Various correction factors are applied to fuel consumption rates, which increase or decrease the rates. The reasons leading to the use of such coefficients are given in Table. 1 on the next page.

If you need to apply several adjustment factors at the same time, then you must calculate the total adjustment factor equal to the sum of such allowances.

Table 1

Reasons leading to the use of correction factors for fuel consumption rates A
Increase in consumption rates (clause 3.1 of Norm No. 43)	Reducing consumption rates (clause 3.2 of Norm No. 43)

Work in the cold season. Work in mountainous terrain and / or on routes with hilly terrain. Work on roads with a complex plan. Work in urban environments. Work with frequent stops. Work that requires a reduction in speed. Work in quarries, riding through the fields, in forest or steppe areas. Work in heavy road conditions. Operation of new cars and engines. Traveling by car with long term operation. Hourly payed job trucks. Training ride. The need to maintain comfortable temperature conditions in the cabin. Riding on the roads common use outside the city and on roads passing through settlements. The use of special vehicles equipped with special sound alarms to perform urgent service tasks	Work outside settlements on public roads. Operation of city buses in the "order" mode or for other purposes, but not on permanent routes. Enterprise management decision

Accounting and tax accounting

In accounting, the cost of fuel consumed is reflected depending on the purpose of using vehicles and is written off from the credit of subaccount 203 "Fuel" to the debit of the corresponding subaccounts (15, 20, 23, 28, 91–94).

In tax accounting, the rules for recognizing expenses are described in paragraphs 138.4, 138.5 of the Tax Code (hereinafter referred to as the Tax Code):

expenses that form the cost of goods sold, performedth works, services rendered are recognized as expenses of the reporting period in which the income from sales is recognized;
other expenses are recognized as expenses of the reporting period in whichneither have been incurred.

From this follows the conclusion:

the cost of fuels and lubricants included in the cost of manufactured products (excompleted works, services rendered) and in the initial cost of the purchased goods, will fall into the expenses of the enterprise only in the period of recognition of income from the sale of such products (goods, works, services);
expenses for the purchase of fuels and lubricants, the cost of which is included in other expenses of the enterprise (administrative, marketing expenses, other operating expenses), are included in the calculation of the tax basetaxation in the period in which they were incurred (i.e., in the period of write-off of spent fuel and lubricants from the balance sheet).

For purposes tax accounting the most important thing is to prove the economy of mileage. So, according to clause 138.2 of the Tax Code, tax expenses are recognized on the basis of primary documents confirming the actual costs of the taxpayer and their connection with his economic activities.

In addition, it is necessary to make a calculation and compare the standard and actual fuel consumption. If the actual consumption does not exceed the norm, then the entire cost of the actually consumed fuel is quietly included in the company's expenses. If the actual consumption exceeds the standard, then you can only include the cost of fuel and lubricants within the limits of the norms in the tax expenses (clauses “and” clauses 138.8.5, clause 140.3 of the Tax Code).

What are the VAT consequences in case of excess consumption of fuel and lubricants?

The enterprise will have to recognize a conditional supply for the amount of such an overrun, that is, accrue tax liabilities for VAT based on the cost of acquiring fuel (clause “d”, clause 198.5 of the Tax Code).

Do I need to include the cost of excess fuel consumption in the taxable income of the driver and withhold personal income tax accrued on the amount of excess consumption?

If excessive fuel consumption occurs through no fault of the employee there is no reason to withhold income tax.

However, the cost overrun that has arisen for objective reasons (difficult weather conditions, the technical condition of the car, etc.) must be documented. For example, an act on the technical condition of the car with the conclusions of the commission, which indicates the reason for the overrun and the actual fuel consumption.

If it can be proven that fuel overrun has occurred through the fault of the worker then the company can recover from him the cost of such fuel. For example, deduct the cost of gasoline from his salary. At the same time, we recommend that you draw up documents confirming the guilt of the employee: explanatory letter employee and his application for withholding this amount, as well as an order for disciplinary action.

And if the fault of the employee is proven, but the company will not charge him for the cost of fuel overrun, then the employee will have to withhold personal income tax accrued on the cost of overused fuel. Indeed, in this case, the cost of gasoline will be considered an additional benefit received from the employer (clause 164.2.17 of the Tax Code). At the same time, the taxation base is determined taking into account the natural coefficient (clause 164.5 of the Tax Code).

Write-off of fuel in accounting

At Vesna LLC (located in Dnepropetrovsk) in November 2014 for execution official duties(city trips) administrative staff used Mitsubishi car pajero. According to the waybills, fuel consumption was 350 liters (due to technical condition car), mileage - 1,660 km.

Using Norms No. 43, we calculate the standard gasoline consumption for this car:

basic linear rate - 14.8 l / 100 km;

increasing coefficients:

- for work in the cold season - 2% (paragraph 3.1.1.1 of Norm No. 43);

- for work in the city - 15% (clause 3.1.4 of Norm No. 43).

Standard fuel consumption in accordance with clause 4.1 of Norm No. 43 is calculated by the formula

Q n= 0.01 x H s x S x (1 + 0.01 x K ∑ ),

where Qn is the standard fuel consumption, l;

H s– basic linear fuel consumption rate, l/100 km;

S – car mileage, km;

K ∑ – total adjustment factor, %.

Let's substitute the values from our example into this formula:

Qn\u003d 0.01 x 14.8 x 1,660 xx (1 + 0.01 x 17) \u003d 287.45 liters.

Thus, the overspending amounted to 62.55 liters (350 liters - 287.45 liters).

Let's reflect the data on overspending in the table. 2.

table 2

Name and price (UAH/l)	Actual quantity (l) / cost (UAH)	According to the norm: quantity (l) / cost (UAH)	Above the established norms (overspending) (l) / cost (UAH)

Gasoline – 15.00

Accounting and tax accounting for excessive fuel consumption

(UAH)

	Source documents	Accounting	tax accounting
	Source documents

Fuel written off	Waybill
Reflected excess fuel consumption	Waybill, accounting registers
Tax liabilities for VAT accrued (938.25 x 20%)	Tax invoice

1. Fuel consumption cost:

in accounting - written off to other operating expenses;

tax accounting - is not included in expenses, since it is considered that such fuels and lubricants were not used in economic activities. Also, the company must accrue tax liabilities for VAT on the cost of overspending.

2. If the excessive consumption of fuel was not the fault of the employee, then the reason for the excessive consumption must be documented and explained. Then the cost of "extra" fuel will not have to be withheld from the employee and subject to personal income tax.

Organizations operating road construction equipment often face problems in setting fuel consumption standards. Normative indicators often do not match the actual ones. What are the reasons for this?

Organizations operating road construction equipment often face problems with fuel consumption rationing. These problems are solved in two main ways - hardware and organizational. In the first case, it is used on-board computer or a special registrar - "black box", various modifications which in enough are implemented on the market. And in the second, when the company does not have, as its leaders believe, free funds to purchase computerized samples of construction and other equipment or separately registrars (with an installation that also "costs money"), a number of administrative and technical measures are taken. They are based on the corresponding methodological approaches, which will be discussed in this publication.

Causes of excessive fuel consumption and ways to eliminate them

When purchasing equipment foreign brands, technicians of a new type for the enterprise, engineers responsible for the development of standards, as a rule, have neither initial data nor current developments in fuel consumption. In this case, a representative from the engineering staff is usually appointed, who travels to the facility and takes measurements. According to their results, a norm is established, which in fact is very far from the true state of affairs.

The fact is that during "measurements" the self-propelled mechanism works, i.e. downtime (idle) is kept to a minimum. It often happens like this: with the arrival of the inspector at the facility, the work "comes to life", the rest of the time, mainly with the connivance of the foremen, downtime for Idling can be up to 50% of the total time credited to the driver. For example, during the minutes of technological or lunch breaks, some drivers do not turn off the engine, the value of engine hours increases, and the amount of fuel consumed decreases. As a result, there is a possibility of theft of residual fuel. Therefore, after taking measurements, they usually reduce the fuel consumption rate by about a third, considering this to be the "golden mean". And at the end of the month, overspending was again revealed. What is the reason? Bad weather or theft, or maybe just a sharp decrease in the number of idling downtime?

So, let's highlight the main reasons for the excessive consumption of fuel:

theft;
increase in the intensity of work (reduction of downtime);
worsening weather conditions;
hidden technical error.

Let's consider these reasons in more detail.

Theft

It's no secret that fuel theft is the scourge of the vast majority of enterprises that have machines and mechanisms on their balance sheets. How does it happen in the case of using self-propelled mechanisms, the operating time of which is carried out in engine hours and is clearly reflected in the engine meter?

First option. "Twisting" the counter. In this case, it is difficult to catch the robber, except perhaps by catching him at the scene of the crime. Therefore, enterprises must ensure the protection of motor meters from outside intrusion purely technical means and control from officials. Otherwise, the losses will be enormous.

Second option. As a result of idling downtime, the unaccounted fuel balance increases, which the drivers, who have basic knowledge of mathematics, skillfully calculate and drain. "Mathematicians" are easy to calculate: from month to month they always have an overrun - 0, savings - 0. Although this circumstance pleases the eye of the chief engineer, it serves as an alarm signal. There is only one way to deal with this variant of theft - the strict control of officials and foremen, their actions to prevent idling downtime.

Increasing the intensity of work

This is just a prime example correct operation section chief, foreman. If the fuel consumption rate is correctly calculated and downtime is prevented, the monthly actual consumption should not differ much from the normalized one.

However, can it be different? Maybe! And this should not frighten the chiefs. So, we will consider the change in intensity using the example of a working excavator loading mining trucks. The "loading and unloading" arm of these dump trucks can be 50 m, or even several kilometers. The number of dump trucks plying along this shoulder can also be different. All this leads to the fact that in one case, the excavator, after loading one machine, immediately starts loading another, and in the other, it waits for the vehicle to approach. In this case, a waiting time appears, which should be clearly controlled by the responsible engineer. If, for some reason, work is suspended, the command to "switch off the engines" should follow.

In addition, if this facility is expected to work with forced downtime this month (large "shoulder", few vehicles, etc.), it makes sense to introduce a reducing correction for some types of loading equipment. This task lies with the head of the department. After all, during the initial assessment of the facility, it is he who calculates the amount of equipment allocated to the facility, and it depends on his competence whether the machines will stand idle under loading and unloading or not.

Worsening weather conditions

This is a natural but predictable cause of increased fuel consumption. With the onset of rains, it becomes more and more difficult for self-propelled vehicles to overcome distances (this affects the operation of excavators to a lesser extent), and fuel "burns out" begins. Solving this problem is simple: the fuel consumption for each type of equipment must be measured twice - both on a clear day and during the rainy season. And by simple calculations, you can fix the amount of amendments to the norms, which, respectively, are added or subtracted in different seasonal periods.

Hidden technical malfunction

A sudden hidden technical malfunction can also be the cause of increased fuel consumption. In our practice, there was such a case: fuel consumption on one of the imported cars suddenly increased. In the course of a detailed investigation, it turned out that the reason was technical failure and to eliminate overflow, it is necessary to replace the pump injectors. The economic feasibility was calculated and the conclusion was made: it is unprofitable to change an expensive imported part, since the equipment worked without remarks in other parameters. Of course, in each case it is necessary to understand carefully, with the involvement of specialists.

Idle Downtime Calculation Method

Let's say that the company has established strict control to prevent the theft of fuel. What other losses await the company?

Let's take an enterprise where the remuneration of machinists is calculated on the basis of hours worked. A striking example of losses in this case is an increase in the total number of paid engine hours due to idling downtime. Lunch break - the engine is running, forced downtime - the engine is not turned off. If the foreman does not stop idling downtime, then it is quite difficult to calculate at the end of the month how many engine hours were actually worked, and how much the machine worked idling. Periodic site visits executives this problem cannot be solved. When such a question arose before the technical department of our enterprise, mathematics came to the rescue.

Consider how you can calculate the number of hours worked by a specific mechanism (in our case, an excavator imported production) with full load and the number of hours of idle operation. The main condition for calculations: the motor meter is not available for "twisting" and the fuel is not drained.

Initial data: worked out per month - 445 hours, fuel consumed - 15440 liters.

Fuel consumption for 1 hour at full load - 51.5 liters. Measurements at full load should be carried out with virtually no downtime with forced labor bucket in between loading.

Fuel consumption for 1 hour at idle - 15.5 liters.

Let's say:

X - the number of hours worked by the mechanism per month at idle;
Y - the number of hours worked by the mechanism per month at full load.

So, 53% of the working time is worked out at full load and 47% - at idle.

Based on experience, we can speak of the following acceptable ratios of engine hours of idle work to work with full load - 1/5 - for intensive work and 1/3 - for work with normal or normal intensity. If, as in our calculated case, there is a significant excess of the number of engine hours at idle, then this is either the irresponsibility (mercenary intent) of the drivers and the connivance of the foremen, or the flaw of the section head, who incorrectly calculated (approved) the required amount of equipment for this section of work.

V.Usatov, head of the technical department of the Mechanization Department No. 9 of CJSC "Mosstroymekhanizatsiya - 5",
K. Surin, engineer of the technical department of the Mechanization Department No. 9 of CJSC "Mosstroymehanizatsiya - 5"
Magazine "Special equipment" No. 3 "2004