Running costs

Fuel: runs on the chassis cab’s primary drive engine — no auxiliary engine required. Alternatives run a separate diesel unit throughout the working day, burning fuel whether a repair is being made or not.

Materials: mixed at the point of delivery. You use exactly what you need; unused material returns to depot and is used the next day. Zero end-of-day waste.

Labour: one operator, not two. The daily labour differential across a fleet compounds over a 15-year asset life.

Return visits: consistent application means repairs hold. Patches that fail and need revisiting in three months create hidden labour, logistics and material costs. Roadmaster patches are revisited once — if at all.

Machine lifespan & rebuild

Expected life 15–20 years with proper maintenance. Roadmaster offers a full strip-and-rebuild at around five years, extending asset life substantially. Cork County Council runs machines from 2006 that its fleet manager calls “perfect”; Tipperary has operated machines since 2002.

Maintenance & parts

Roadmaster dispatches a fitter for a full annual inspection and service, timed for winter ahead of the season. Technical support by phone during support hours. Parts stocked for same-day dispatch via the online portal.

Fast access to parts is crucial — I can’t emphasise enough the importance of quick spare parts and advice.

— Pat Fitzgerald, formerly Tipperary County Council (9 machines, 20 years)

Data capture

Roadmaster’s Pegasus data capture system records productivity data — material used, area covered, repair locations and working time — supporting fleet productivity reporting and demonstrating ROI to commissioners.

A growing category

This isn’t a niche bet: the spray-injection patching market is projected to reach around $727 million by 2033 — a category worth standardising your fleet around, with a 15–20 year asset horizon to plan against.