In the past, when it came to heavy equipment many business owners took for granted that they had to buy the equipment they needed. Heavy equipment is necessary for many different businesses, and in particular the construction industry. It’s also necessary for many parts of the manufacturing industry, and much more. With that being said, heavy equipment is also extremely expensive when bought outright, and isn’t always used in the kind of regular sense that would justify such an expense. For this reason, among many others, people have taken to choosing heavy equipment rentals, rather than buying such equipment outright. Renting equipment is not only cost-effective, but often more convenient for the renters. After all, heavy equipment tends to take up a large amount of space. If you rent rather than buying equipment, you can return the equipment once you’re finished with it. You’ll also find that there is a variety of different types of equipment made available by heavy equipment rental companies. With that being said, there are some things to take into account when looking into heavy equipment rentals. Let’s look into what you should know before renting heavy equipment. The more you know, the more you can choose the equipment you need and save money at the same time.

1. The Construction Industry Needs Equipment Rentals

It should go without saying that the construction industry has a great need of heavy equipment. It is, after all, a huge industry in general — among the largest in the world. An estimated 7 million people are employed by the construction industry. For that matter, with 10% of the market share, the U.S. has the second largest construction industry in the world. The construction industry encompasses not only private, but commercial buildings. In total, those buildings are worth about $296.4 billion. As the construction industry grows, so does the need for construction equipment. Construction companies have spent a lot of money on heavy equipment that will ultimately only be used for a short amount of time. Recently, the American sales of light construction equipment have increased by 11.2%, and as such the sales of heavy equipment can be assumed to have increased as well. The more construction companies need heavy equipment, the more the demand for heavy equipment rentals will rise. Heavy equipment rentals are just simpler for construction companies to use than the alternatives.

2. There Is A Wide Variety Of Heavy Equipment Types

Heavy equipment is varied in both type and usage. Some types of heavy equipment are not even used in the construction industry. They might be used by the manufacturing industry, as mentioned previously, as well as “lighter” industries like the food production industries and within agriculture in general. It’s important that rental companies offer as many types as possible. This way, clients can even potentially rent “in bulk” — that is, get all of the pieces they need to rent in one order. Renting from one company is certainly much simpler than renting from multiple companies. On a common sense level, it’s much easier to pay one company for a rental of multiple pieces than paying multiple companies. As for which types of equipment are in demand, in 2011 crawler dozers, crawler excavators, aerial work platforms, and wheel loaders are ranked among the most important types of equipment on the market. When it comes the agricultural realm, some of the most in demand types of equipment include the telescopic handler.

3. Safety Is Always An Issue

Safety is something that everyone should be aware of when it comes to renting equipment. Equipment rental companies will provide the right equipment, and in great condition. But it’s useless if used incorrectly. With that being said, all of the right safety measures must be used consistently. Even when used properly, some types of equipment are more dangerous than others, due to their scale. The safer you are, the better your results will be all around.