What is my construction equipment business worth?
A construction equipment appraisal answers one part of that question: what the fleet, excavators, dozers, loaders, cranes and titled trucks, is worth as tangible assets on a stated date. It does not price backlog, bonding capacity, real property, working capital or goodwill, which belong to a business appraiser or a CPA. The equipment component is usually the largest tangible piece of the total, and it is the number a lender, a surety or a buyer's counsel checks first because it can be verified machine by machine.
Lukes & Lukes is an independent appraisal firm; a NEBB-certified Machinery & Equipment Appraiser (CMEA) prepares every report, and a second senior appraiser reviews it.
By Jared Lukes · CEO & lead appraiser · September 19, 2026
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Two different values, asked as one question
An owner asking what the company is worth is usually asking about the business as a going concern: the contracts already won, the bonding line that lets it take on the next job, the crews and superintendents who run the work, and the equipment that does it.
A buyer's lender or a surety asks a narrower question first: what does the fleet itself carry as collateral or as a hard-asset floor under the deal. Those are not the same number, and pricing the second one is what a machinery and equipment appraisal does.
What makes up total company value
- Equipment fleet: excavators, dozers, loaders, cranes, compaction equipment and titled rolling stock. Usually the largest single tangible asset, and the one with the most observable resale market.
- Bonding capacity: the surety's line, sized off the company's financial statements and track record, not off the equipment list.
- Contract backlog: signed, unbilled work already in the pipeline, priced by a business appraiser or by the buyer's own underwriting.
- Real property: the yard, shop and laydown area, if owned. A separate discipline, real estate appraisal.
- Working capital: receivables, retainage and inventory, typically priced by a CPA off the books.
- Goodwill and key relationships: standing with owners and general contractors, superintendent continuity, safety record. Business valuation territory.
Lukes & Lukes appraises the equipment component. On a sale, succession or buyout we typically work alongside the CPA or business appraiser pricing the rest, each covering the piece we are credentialed for.
Why the equipment value gets tested hardest
A bank or an SBA lender financing the purchase of a construction company checks the fleet schedule before anything else, because it is the one piece of the deal that can be verified independently, serial number by serial number, against an active auction and dealer market.
A surety reviewing a bond line does the same when equipment sits on the balance sheet as working capital support. In a sale or acquisition, buyer's counsel will test the fleet value before they test backlog or goodwill, because backlog and goodwill are projections and the fleet is not.
Which value premise applies
- Fair market value (FMV): a sale, succession or partner buyout where the company continues as a going concern.
- Orderly liquidation value (OLV) and net orderly liquidation value (NOLV): financing an acquisition, or an existing loan where the fleet secures the credit.
- Forced liquidation value (FLV): the company is winding down and the fleet has to move quickly.
The premise follows the reason for the appraisal, not the other way around. We confirm the premise and scope before the engagement begins, and no value is quoted before the fleet is inspected.
When contractors order this
- Retirement or family succession: setting the equipment value as of a transition date.
- Partner buyout or shareholder dispute: settling what one owner's share of the fleet is worth.
- Sale to a strategic buyer or a consolidator: pricing the equipment component of a purchase agreement, separate from backlog and goodwill.
- Bank or SBA acquisition financing: supporting the collateral file with an independent, on-site fleet value.
- Estate settlement: valuing the fleet of a family-owned contracting business as of a specific date.
See our construction and heavy equipment appraisal specialty →
Common questions
Answers, up front.
Does a construction equipment appraisal set the price for my company?
No. It sets the value of the fleet, the excavators, dozers, loaders and titled trucks, as tangible assets on a stated date. Bonding capacity, contract backlog, real property, working capital and goodwill are priced separately by a business appraiser or a CPA. The equipment number is usually the largest single piece of the total and the one a lender or surety checks first.
Do I need this if I am financing the purchase of a construction company?
Usually, yes, if the equipment secures the loan. A bank or SBA lender financing the acquisition typically requires an independent, on-site fleet appraisal to support the collateral file, set on an orderly or net orderly liquidation premise, not the price you are paying for the business.
Who prices the rest of the company, if not the equipment appraiser?
A CPA or a credentialed business appraiser prices backlog, bonding capacity, real property, working capital and goodwill. On most transactions we work alongside that professional, each covering the piece we are credentialed for, and the equipment schedule feeds into their total.