Construction equipment can lose up to £1000 a week – £143 per day or £6 per hour – as it sits idle in construction yards.
The average piece of construction equipment is only used for 50-80% of its potential working time – leaving it standing idle for 30-60 hours per week based on 24/7 availability.
The eternal challenge of depreciation.
A piece of construction equipment that cost £100,000 could lose 60% of its value over the first three years, at a rate of £20,000 a year or £391 per week. This can also vary depending on factors such as running hours, service history and general condition.
Fixed costs keep mounting up
Those fixed costs don’t stop just because your equipment is sitting idle between jobs. Lease costs, storage costs, insurance, road tax, inspections, operator and fitter wages need to be paid regardless of whether your equipment is working. For an average excavator, fixed costs could be in the region of £500 – £1000 per week
Do you spend time trying to fill gaps between projects and bookings?
We shouldn’t discount the overhead cost of ringing round or advertising your equipment for rent when it isn’t being used – in those quiet periods or when contract start dates are delayed.
As an example, a business owner or office manager could easily spend 5-10 hours per week trying to fill gaps in bookings to fully utilise their equipment – this could add up to £200 per week in management effort alone.
What does this mean?
This means that it is essential to maximise equipment utilisation and keep your machinery working as much as possible. If we add up all of the costs of having idle equipment standing around, we could be conservatively in the region of £1000 per week per machine. This would clearly vary depending on the type and size of machine, but the costs are significant.
By finding new and innovative ways to utilise your equipment during those short periods of downtime, you can offset this loss of value and add money to your bottom line.
For an average size excavator, renting it out for just three additional shifts per week could bring in £450 on a self-drive basis and increase utilisation from 50% to 65% or 80% to 94% – adding significant value to your business.
What are my options?
Until now options have been limited; it is often down to the business owner, office manager, plant manager or hire desk manager to find customers and rent out equipment to maximise its utilisation – with varying degrees of success.
Shareplant solves this problem for you!
Shareplant is a new equipment rental marketplace where equipment owners can list their equipment for rent when they aren’t using it –allowing owners to maximise utilisation.
Equipment can be rented out using Shareplant on either a self-drive basis or with operators, providing maximum flexibility for owner sand hirers.
Hirers can search for any type of specialist equipment by type and location – ensuring they can the equipment they need, when and where they need it.