IRN SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2013
USA
One rental company in the US that exemplifies the
current expansive mood of the North American
rental market is Compact Power Equipment Rental
(CPER), the business that rents towable, mid-sized
equipment at Home Depot stores throughout North
America.
From having around 100 rental sites at Home
Depot stores a few years ago, and 280 at the start
of 2012, it now has equipment at 907 Home Depot
locations, including Canada.
Roger Braswell, the company’s CEO, tells
IRN
that
the aim is to have CPER operations at all the 1200
Home Depot stores in North America by the end
N
umbers only tell you so much, especially
when the numbers themselves are of
variable quality and often measuring
different things. That’s the ‘health warning’ on the
industry statistics that we present on this page for
2012, because the basis for measurement remains
different in different parts of the world. To give just
two examples, there is no operated plant or cranes
in the ERA figures for Europe, and party and events
are included for ARA’s North American numbers.
Our estimates for the rest of the world, meanwhile,
are just that: estimates, given to provide a guide but
not to be taken as the final word.
The overall story that emerges from last year and
this will be no surprise to readers: sluggish Europe
(with its bright spots), advancing North America (but
for how long?), and a Japanese rental market still
in overdrive to rebuild after the 2011 disaster (and,
as Nishio Rent All tells us, also engaged on a major
effort to inspect the rest of Japan’s infrastructure).
Australia and South Africa, reliant on mining and
natural resources, both find themselves in less than
booming rental markets, while India’s developing
rental sector – and one quite different from that
in the west - expands as rental becomes a real
alternative to ownership in a slowing construction
sector. In Brazil, while the economy shows signs of
strain, rental continues to grow.
On the following pages we have interviews and
reports from nine countries, talking to senior
executives at companies as diverse as Nishio in
Japan, TVH in Benelux and Germany, Once Call Hire
in the UK, Compact Power Equipment Rental in the
US, Gemini Equipment and Rentals in India, Madisa
of Mexico, Estaf Equipamentos in Brazil and Goscor
Hi-Reach in South Africa.
As we see, every market has its challenges, and
even challenging markets have their positives. We
start with the United States.
Roger Braswell, CEO of Compact Power Equipment Rentals
15
WORLD RENTAL REPORT
Hot and cold
Worldwide Rental
Revenues in 2012
EUROPE
Rental revenue
UK
€5.1 bn
France
€3.8 bn
Germany
€3.2 bn
Italy
€1.4 bn
Spain
€1.3 bn
Sweden
€1.4 bn
Norway
€0.87 bn
Netherlands
€0.8 bn
Belgium
€0.55 bn
Poland
€0.46 bn
Finland
€0.48 bn
Denmark
€0.4 bn
Other EU-27/EFTA
€2.0 bn
SUB-TOTAL
€22.0 bn
Russia
€0.8 bn
TOTAL
€22.8 bn
Note: Figures are from the European Rental
Association (ERA) and exclude operated
plant and party/events. Russian figures from
consultancy RusRental.
NORTH AMERICA
Total
USA
US$31.3 bn
Canada
US$4.5 bn
TOTAL
US$35.8 bn
Source: American Rental Association (ERA)
REST OF THE WORLD
Japan
€10.6 bn (Y1380 bn)
Australia/New Zealand
~€2.8 bn (A$4.2 billion)
Latin America
~€1.0-1.5 bn
Asia Pacific
<€750 m
Africa
<€450 m
Middle East
-€350-450 m
India
€300-400 m
TOTAL
(Est)
~€15-18 bn
Source: Japanese estimate based on growth of
15% in 2012 (from Japanese govt sources), Indian
estimate from rental company GEAR, others
estimated by
IRN
.
How the rental market
looks to you depends
on where you are
standing: Murray Pollok
takes the temperature
of the rental industry
around the world, with
interviews and reports
from nine countries in
five continents.
¬
