“The rent of machinery has to recover his essence”

“The difficult current situation that crosses the market demands that the companies for hire of machinery recover his essence, that the employers direct his businesses in base to his foundations, to the profitability, and not imitating what do his competitors”, signalled Dan Kaplan to way of introduction.

Many of the problems that affect to this sector have his origin precisely in that the alquiladores are not conscious that they play an increasingly important paper no only for the customers but also for his providers. In a global market of new machinery that round the 152 trillion dollars (including cranes and mining products), the alquilador has erigido in a basic element for the manufacturers, that see in this figure an emergent channel to arrive to the final customer with his machines. In fact, it estimates that the market for hire of machinery handles already some figures of near turnover to the 78,8 trillion euros all over the world.

According to a study contributed by Kaplan, the tendency for the next years is that the penetration of the rent on the sale of machinery follow besides in increase. In the period 2009-2015, the rent will win terrain, between other zones, in United Kingdom (62% of the 2009 in front of 75% estimated for the 2015), EE UU (43% vs 45%), Japan (58% vs 60%), Spain (28% vs 40%) and in the rest of Europe (20% vs 30%).

To day of today, our continent agglutinates already a volume of business very high in matter for hire without operario, upper to the 9 trillion euros (20,9 trillion euros if it adds the service with operario), thanks to the activity realised/realized by 15.000 skilled companies, 24.400 delegations and around 59.000 employees. The structure of this market is very heterogeneous, with a leader whose turnover surpasses the 700 million euros, ten companies that rondan the 250 million euros, 50 companies that move in next volumes to the 55 million euros, 100 alquiladores with income of ten million euros, 200 companies that move surroundings to the three million euros, and a thousand of signatures alquiladoras with turnovers of half million of euros.

The forecasts, as it announced Kaplan, is that “the big companies grow still more and that the small, that offer a good service to local level, keep his presence. By the contrary, those that will have it more complicated will be the signatures of average size that now are struggling for surviving”. In 2015, the five first for hire European companies will concentrate 20% of the activity, and the 50 first, between 55% and 60%.

The evolution will be similar to the experienced in EE UU, where the rent already has reached a high degree of maturity. It suffice a data: in 1993, in EE UU, these activities hardly centred/centered 5% of the operations of machinery, whereas in 2011 already reached 45% through a network of 4.200 bases. Definitely, the companies alquiladoras Americans reacted with agility in front of the first symptoms of the crisis, adjusting his structures to the new conditions of the market and taking painful measures (but necessary) like the closing of delegations or the sale of teams. Thanks to these performances, the sector in North America goes to finish the 2011 with a growth of 20% in his activity.

A case antagónico is the Spanish where the crisis is affecting with extraordinary crudeza to the rent, descending the number of operators of the 2.400 of the year 2006 to the 1.300 of the 2010, according to data contributed by Dan Kaplan.

Of agreement to several studies of opinion, the conditions for hire and the time of use of the machines rented go to improve in the next months in the greater part of the world. The alquiladores north of Europe are the more optimists in this sense, followed of the French, whereas in the opposite side find the Spaniards.

To face this new panorama, Kaplan contributed the following recipe: “it is necessary to direct the company of the most effective form possible, employing good tools of management. Besides, the big companies, that do not enjoy of the agility in the taking of decisions that yes have the small, have to elevate to his more qualified professionals to charges of every time greater responsibility inside his organisation chart/organization chart”.

The final aim is to have a professional structure that allow to produce to the lower cost, with an efficient management and with a control of all the parameters of the activity. In this line, as they already have showed names stood out in the world of the rent like United Rentals, the employment of reports detailed help to the optimisation/optimization of the fleets and to attain a greater profitability. Thanks to these reports, the alquilador can adjust the size of his park to the conditions of the market, analysing/analyzing variable like the cost of unemployed/utilisation/utilization or the time of use. “If it does not balance the fleet, can go in in an espiral of continuous losses that would end in the ruin of the company”, apostillaba Dan Kaplan.

The companies for hire have to follow methodologies based in realistic and objective forecasts. If this involves to take measures like reducing personal, close bases of low profitability or sell machinery, does not be necessary descartarlas because of not acting like this will put in danger the own survival of the company. What it is necessary to avoid is to reduce costs by means of measures contraproducentes for the good course of the activity, as it can be the elimination of the preventive maintenance of the machines, that can ocasionar on a long-term basis extra costs.

To carry a good management of the company is fundamental, as it indicated in the report, have a skilled software in the activity for hire, that speed up the preparation of the agreements, automate the usual management, elaborate daily reports and allow to measure gráficamente the profitability of the fleet. These programs already come configured to calculate the utilisation/utilization of the machines on the terrain (income generated by each team in the work), the time of utilisation/utilization along a determinate period, the cost of employment of these machines (euros generated by that instrument / initial cost of the same) and the return on the investment (measured monthly or annually by different categories).

Studying well these reports can take measures to promote the rent of the machines and improve his profitability, that no only go through the variable of the prices. “The alquilador has to have clear that it is he the one who has the control on the fixation of prices, and that these have to be based in his opportunities of business, in factors like the length of the work where goes to be employed the machine, the quantity of teams that conform this batch or the distance from the work to the delegation. The alquilador has to establish a firm politics of discounts”, added Dan Kaplan.

The irruption of the crisis has carried to diverse companies for hire to take measures desfavorables no only for his own business but also for the good course of the sector in general. As it manifested Kaplan, there are countries like Spain where the alquiladores are not invoiceing the damages that suffer his teams, accepting, in a lot of cases, be “chantajeados” by his customers. Of equal form, is difficult to see that the alquilador Spanish repercuta in the prices his insurances of extravíos or damages, the service of repostaje, the transport or the training.

“The alquilador has to follow his own plan of business, based in an optimum politics of amortización. It has to work with the aim in mind to facilitate the work to his customers and for this has to surround of intelligent people, polite, qualified, very formed, that boost the dialogue and that, to the dessert, bandage”, resumía Dan Kaplan.

Taking the suitable measures, the rent will follow his senda natural of growth, no only winning penetration in the traditional sectors but also through politics of diversification to other activities.

“The alquilador has to have a total approach in the constant improvement, having clear that all his customers are equal of important, that one small can be big in a future and to the reverse. It has to have a minimum wallet of 125 active customers to guarantee a business saneado and, especially, follow a strategy of service, service and service”, concluded Dan Kaplan.