Construction businesses, landscape contractors and various other businesses consume large quantities of fuel in day-to-day operations. To stay profitable, these business owners need to have a fairly accurate idea as to what their costs are for estimating jobs. As many construction projects go on for months or even years, it becomes increasingly difficult to estimate and control these fluctuating costs.

To make matters even more difficult, we have recently seen a dramatic upswing in fuel prices due to growing demand, supply disruptions and natural disasters. Crude oil prices have doubled in the past year and in late February of this year, we experienced the second largest one-week increase in gas prices since 1990. With these dramatic price fluctuations, fuel price volatility is a growing concern for businesses that consume large quantities of fuel.

According to a recent survey from Pricelock®, a company that gives companies large and small the ability to hedge fuel costs, “an overwhelming 99 percent of respondents are concerned about fuel prices this year, with the majority (65 percent) forced to directly absorb any fuel price increases. Only 16 percent are able to pass on higher fuel costs by raising prices. The online survey had 451 participants and the respondents included executives, fleet managers, directors and other industry professionals associated with small, mid-size and large fleets.”

Read more about managing fuel costs in this article at www.constructionbusinessowner.com