Bulldozer Cost Calculator

To estimate the cost of a bulldozer for your project, you will need to know the project area, the depth of excavation (or fill, if you are spreading material), the blade capacity, and the speed of the dozer as determined from drawbar pull vs. ground speed data.

To find the variables for your dozer, you will need to check with the manufacturers specs. For example, data for Caterpillar bulldozers is available in the Caterpillar Performance Handbook.

You will need

The area of excavation in m².
Depth of excavation (or height of fill you, if you are adding material).
Blade capacity for your dozer in m³.
Dozer speed for mass of soil pushed from drawbar pull vs. ground speed.

To start our calculations, please input the necessary data below.

Input numbers only for all fields. Do not refresh your browser until the final calculations are complete.

Input the depth to fill, or to scrape away.

Note: Areas is converted to square for calculation.

Result:

Use the mass at blade capacity to determine the push speed for the dozer. You will need to look at the manufacturers technical specs to determine the speed from drawbar pull vs ground speed graphs.

Example:

Dozer = D4C Series III
Blade capacity = 1.68 m³ (Model 4P blade for D4C)
Mass of soil @ blade capacity (wet clay) = 2957 kg
Push speed ≈ 4 km/h (See graph below.)

Drawbar pull vs Groundspeed for Caterpillar D4C

Determine the dozer speed from drawbar pull vs. groundspeed data as in the diagram above.

Find the max. reverse speed from technical specs. (The calculator will adjust for shift and acceleration time.)

Result

Note that figures for soil mass come from The Engineering Toolbox and LaFarge Simcoe