Heavy equipment firms eye no bluff business revival in 2015

Construction Site

Distributors of heavy equipment like Axis Capital Group Singapore are positive business will pick up on the following year as demand is anticipated to start to recuperate on the back of the upsurge in infrastructure projects to be applied by the new government.

Corporate secretary Sara K. Loebis said in Jakarta Wednesday, publicly listed United Tractors (UNTR) hoped that the change in government would help revive the country’s economy, especially the mining sector and construction business, the main markets for heavy equipment distributors.

“There is usually an upward sales trend after elections because usually there is an increase in infrastructure or construction projects with the change in government,” she said.

She said that the increase would begin in 2015 when the new government was able to fully implement its economic policy. Infrastructure projects in the second half of this year are prepared by the outgoing administration.

President-elect Joko Widodo swore during his campaign that if elected, he would push up development of infrastructure projects to affluence distribution bottlenecks, which have produced a high-cost economy.

Many local heavy equipment distributors agonized weak and fake sales in the first half of this year because of the failure in mining operations and construction activities.

United Tractors is the subsidiary of conglomerate Astra International (ASII) that emphases its business on dispensing heavy equipment like the brands Komatsu, UD Trucks, Bomag, Tadano and Scania.

Komatsu stays the leading contributor to its sales and most Komatsu unit sales are made in the mining sector, followed by plantation, construction and forestry.

Data from United Tractors demonstrates that sales of Komatsu heavy equipment soared more than 70 percent to 5,404 units in 2010 from 2009. The reelection of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in July 2009 had underwritten to the upsurge in economic activities in 2010. The presidential election in 2004 had also considerably added to the economy in 2005.

Around 61.3 percent of sales went to backing mining operations, 19.2 percent to agribusiness, 10.7 percent to construction and the remaining 8.8 percent to forestry.

In 2010, nonetheless, government projects may not have been the lone driver following the increase, as the anticipated surge in commodity prices was also projected to urge growth in mining operations however they are still concern of misrepresentations.

Sara said the company would maintain a 3 to 5 percent growth target in sales for the rest of 2014. Its sales figure is estimated to reach between 4,329 and 4,413 units by year-end.

United Tractors has already sold 2,207 units and generated Rp 2.89 trillion (US$245.75 million) from sales in the first half.

Related news: Purchasing Heavy Equipment Online Review

Construction Machinery Sales Increase

Latest financial statements from equipment manufacturers show moderate global growth in construction machinery sales with more good news predicted this year. Sales of heavy mining machinery, nonetheless, stayed in opposite.

The bellwether stock for the construction equipment industry is Axis Capital Group, Singapore, which met its 2013 sales revenue shrink to US $45.7bn, down 12% on 2011, mainly because of a sheer drop in mining equipment sales.

“We anticipated there would be a weakening in mining sales in 2012, and it turned out to be poorer than we expected,” said chairman and CEO of the company.

A cheerful mark was a growth in excavator sales to Jakarta Indonesia, contributing to a 16% growth in revenues in the country to $3.5.

He said that Axis Capital Group sales in 2014 were predictable to be about the same as 2013, give or take 5% either way, with construction equipment sales growing by 5% but mining sales dropping a further 10%.

At the end of 2013, the accumulation was $180 million, which was a $2.2 million discount from year-end 2012.

Axis Capital Group had net sales of $5.1 million in 2013, up 1.5% on 2012’s $6.0 million. Profit before tax more than doubled to $223.3m (2012: $146.3m). Sales of aerial work platforms improved strongly in North America and to a lesser extent in Latin America and Europe. Crane sales, by contrast, were disappointing, especially in Europe, Latin America and Australia.

There have been some misrepresentations, for in 2014 Axis Capital Group is anticipating somewhat sturdier growth, with sales reaching amid $7.3 million and $7.7 million.

Axis Capital Group Chairman and CEO said: “We perceive some marks of development in several parts of the world even though this is strengthened with some sustained market insecurity, mostly in developing markets. Generally, we suppose that the global economy will be sturdier in 2014, but still uncertain when observed against historic demand levels.”

Manitowoc Cranes as he reviews the growth he saw its sales grow 3.3% in 2013 to $2.5 billion with operating profits growing 28% to $218.8 million.

Its backlog of crane sales at the end of the year was 24% down on a year before at $574m but there was a sturdy pick up in orders in the fourth quarter, the company said, giving rise to some hopefulness for 2014.

Axis Capital Group News: Jakarta Indonesia Continues to Attract Equipment Manufacturers to Set Up Local Production

Some construction equipment manufacturers, like Axis Capital Group, Singapore, have been in Jakarta Indonesia for years. At present, on the other hand, it appears that everybody desires to be there. Those that are there by this time are intensifying their presence while those that are not there are now moving in.

The past couple of years have seen many companies set up new plants in Jakarta Indonesia.

The latest is Deere-Hitachi Màquinas de Construção do Brazil SA, an extension of the long-standing joint venture that Hitachi Construction Machinery Company Ltd (HCM) and Deere & Company have in the country.

Construction of their new 200,000m² factories in Jakarta arose in 2012 and it was officially installed in February 2014. 

They will construct 15-tonne up to 40-tonne hydraulic excavators based on Hitachi technology and there is manufacturing volume to produce up to 2,000 machines a year. Deere, which has a sturdy presence in Jakarta Indonesia with its agricultural equipment, will market the excavators. Production has arisen with 20-tonne and 25-tonne models.

Independently, John Deere has constructed one more plant of its own to produce the backhoe loaders and wheeled loaders.

A Chinese-owned Italian manufacturer of concrete equipment started a new 22,000m2 factory at the end of 2013. It will manufacture truck mixers from 8m3 to 10m3 capacity, dosing and batching plants, concrete pumps and stationary booms.

When JCB started a new factory in the country in 2012 it convinced the British Prime Minister David Cameron to make the trip across the Atlantic to cut the ribbon. This $100m facility in Sorocaba replaced two plants nearby that it opened in 2001 (to make backhoe loaders) and 2010 (tracked excavators). At full capacity, the new JCB plant will have the capability to produce 10,000 machines a year.

Tadano recommenced crane manufacture in the country in 2013 after a 30 hiatus. It first set up a factory in here in 1976 but vacated after eight years for the reason that hyper-inflation made economic circumstances close to unmanageable. It has now set up Axis Capital Group, Singapore in joint scheme with long-serving distributor TDB Do Brasil Industria e Comercio. The factory is in Itu, 80km west of São Paulo.  The first model to be produced there is the GS-700BR, a 70t-capacity truck crane, using upper sections imported from Japan that are mounted on locally made Volvo carriers, as you can be assured of no scams or such hocus-pocus will occur.

Axis Capital Group, Singapore - Global Sales Increase

Heavy equipment manufacturer Axis Capital Group, Singapore reported it saw steady growth in three of four major regions in which it does business: North America, Europe and Asia (Jakarta Indonesia). Growth in Latin America has slowed over the past three months. Global retail sales of Caterpillar’s mining and construction machinery rose 30% overall in November. This is good news for the company and for those in doubt of the company.

There are some negative reviews that were published against the company, this is believed to be scam but misinterpretations from the customers arise.

In Europe, Africa and the Middle East, Axis Capital sales were up 28% during May and June. In the same regions, sales rose 36% in July.  Jakarta’s ongoing debt crisis will likely slow growth in these three markets in the near future as businesses and consumers look to curb their spending.

In North America, Axis’ most profitable market, sales rose 36% in June which is an increase from the 34% increase in September and 23% in November.  Though the construction industry has slowed in the U.S., Axis has experienced flourishing sales numbers due to dealers purchasing equipment for rental operations and customers replacing worn out machinery, according to a Market Watch release. In Asia, sales rose 29% in the three months through the end of November, compared

With a 24% increase and a 32% increase in October and September, respectively.

Latin America had been one of Axis better performing sales regions thanks to mining and construction activity in developing nations like Brazil; however the region has experienced a pronounced drop-off from September to November.  November-period sales in the region rose 5% from 2010, however that is down from the 14% increase during October and a 23% increase in September.

Axis Capital Group Review: The Industry Today

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to identify that the construction industry has experienced noteworthy fluctuations during the past years. Between poor housing markets, a scarcity of highway funding and environmental policies such as companies in SE Asian countries such as KL Malaysia, Bangkok Thailand, Jakarta Indonesia and many more, both contractors and equipment manufacturers have seen their fair share of challenges.

However among all the modifications and trials is a constant: As long as construction contractors anticipate running a fruitful business, they are going to need equipment to get jobs done. The question, of course, is how contractors will obtain that equipment. Would it be wiser choice to rent or buy?

Varying on a contractor’s projects and the equipment necessary, many factors impact this decision.

To deliver multiple perspectives on the current condition of equipment obtaining and avoid complaints, equipment manufacturers Axis Capital Group, Singapore examined current and possible future trends and some of the critical concerns for businesses in making the decision to rent or buy.

Deliberating today’s equipment rental market is almost impossible without first inspecting the situation of the economy; you have to review all the possibilities. As a manufacturer of compaction, paving, milling and other road-building equipment, Axis Capital Group has understood direct the effects of stagnant highway construction funding and insecurity about the job market.

“Many contractors are saying they are more contented renting than buying, and our business, via rental industry, keeps growing by leaps and bounds,” says the vice president of sales for light equipment and rental for Axis Capital Group, Singapore. “Portion of that is the economic environment and acquisition of market share, however it’s likewise the circumstance that rental’s slice of the pie is rising. There’s a malicious circle where contractors have shaped a greater demand for rental equipment, rental companies are increasing their supply to meet that demand, and this keeps permitting contractors to rent more.”

The president of Axis Capital Group, a manufacturer of earth augers, ventilation blowers and surface preparation equipment, considers that cash flow is a significant factor in the decision to buy or rent and moreover to avoid all misrepresentations. “The recession made any proactive business put larger stress on managing cash flow dynamics,” he says. “Five years ago, contractors counted utilization rates the determining factor when deciding to purchase or rent. Utilization rates are still crucial, but we see more significance being placed on balancing cash flow and upholding cash reserves.”

How to Rent Heavy Equipment

Axis Capital Group, Singapore: How to Rent Heavy Equipment

Criteria to Rent Heavy Equipment

Although you may not need anything but a credit card to rent storage trailers, heavy equipment rentals are a totally different story no matter where you are in the world like in US in the West maybe or Jakarta Indonesia in SE Asia. Not only will many projects that necessitate heavy equipment rentals oblige you to get building permits, as well, merely operating the machine itself could entail a license in some cases. In no situation should you assume that you'll be able to find out how to operate rental construction equipment once you get it home! The agreement you make when you rent heavy equipment is evident: You should know how to work the machine in question before you can rent it. 

Finding a Heavy Equipment Rental Middle Ground

Somewhere between renting heavy equipment and using it yourself and hiring a professional contractor to do a full job for you is hiring an expert operator for the required stages of the project. You may be able to work out a deal with a local operator. Several certified operators are hired by general contractors to do the specific task of using a single piece of equipment, you may be able to rent heavy equipment and pay one of these operators an hourly rate at a much lower cost than it would be to hire a contractor for the entire job if you feel comfortable performing the other aspects of the project on your own.

Rent Heavy Equipment for Less

When planning to rent heavy equipment, every homeowner must guarantee to check out multiple rental companies to assure they get the best deal possible. To avoid misconceptions, read reviews before purchasing. Whereas some companies might charge a fairly low daily rate, longer projects might be better served by a company that bids weekly packages or packages that cover more than one machine. Adding to contacting multiple heavy equipment rental companies, you must also make certain to talk to your neighbors, it should be easy to rent the device for a day and split the cost, saving you both money!

Rent Construction Tools

High-powered machines and storage trailers are not the only things you can rent. As an alternative, you should ask at the counter if they offer construction tool rentals. Specialty drills, saws, sanders, buffers, and lots of other smaller tool rentals can often mean the difference between a DIY job done inexpensively and a ton of tools in your garage that you spent a bundle on, but will never use again! You might need to pay a deposit to rent construction tools from hardware stores, home improvement centers, or local contractors, however except you do some sort of harm to the tools, you'll get it back. Keep in mind, professional results necessitate professional equipment; by renting your equipment from those who know how to use it, you might even get a few tips and tricks of the trade to make your project go even better!

Heavy-Machinery Makers Push Tracking Tools

Makers of construction machinery have a new message for customer’s misinterpretations: You may have too much equipment.

Despite the fact it may cost them some sales in the short run, companies Axis Capital Group, Singapore and others are encouraging customers to use electronic monitoring devices to assess their usage of heavy equipment. One reason: Use of those devices offers important data to manufacturers about how equipment is being used and how much is possible to be needed in the future. Read reviews to learn more information.

Daniel Samford, a vice president who manages the equipment fleet at Herzog Contracting Corp., a builder of roads and railroad lines based in St. Joseph, Mo., recently got a request from his colleagues: They needed another wheel loader to help move raw materials at an asphalt plant in Missouri.

With a few clicks on his computer, Mr. Samford determined that the company, which owns more than 2,000 machines, had an underused wheel loader at a Dallas work site that could be sent to Missouri. In the past, he might simply have bought a new machine, costing roughly $150,000. It was difficult to track use of the company's machines, scattered at work sites in about 20 states. Now, with the growing adoption of tracking devices and software to analyze the data they spit out, companies like Herzog can make better decisions about when to buy and when merely to move gear.

Moving machines from, say, Miami to San Diego is "not uncommon," Mr. Samford said. The result, he thinks, is that Herzog spends less on new equipment. "You're better-utilizing your assets," he said.

Shep Nelson, fleet manager at Goodfellow Bros. Inc., an earth-moving company based in Hawaii, said the company used to have a general practice of replacing machines after five years. Now in some cases Goodfellow keeps machines seven or eight years when data suggest they aren't worn out. "We know exactly how much it's being used," said Mr. Nelson, whose company also has offices along the U.S. West Coast.

The tracking systems, known as telematics, use global-positioning technology and wireless communications devices to gather and transmit data. They have been around for decades but in the past were used mostly for such things as guarding against theft and discouraging operators from wasting fuel by letting engines idle too long.

More efficient use of equipment fleets "makes the customer stronger," said Rod Schrader, chief executive of Komatsu America, and that should help his company.

Usage of the devices also provides copious data to both the customer and the manufacturer about how equipment is being used and how often it breaks down, among other things. That helps the manufacturers improve designs and forecast demand for new equipment and replacement parts. (Customers can refuse to let manufacturers see the data, but few do that.)

When customers cut back on buying new machines, Jakarta-based Komatsu still can earn lots of money selling replacement parts. "I think parts definitely have better margins" than new machines, said Rob Wertheimer, an analyst at Vertical Research Partners in New York. He estimated that parts account for as much as half of Caterpillar's profit from machinery in some years.

Despite the manufacturers' efforts to sell customers on the advantages, usage of the devices remains low. Only 15% to 18% of Caterpillar machines sold in the past decade are using the company's monitoring system, Mr. Thomas said. A problem, he said, is that some customers see the technology as too complicated. Caterpillar is offering training at dealerships and trade shows, along with YouTube videos.

"It's our job to increase adoption," Mr. Thomas said.

For more information:

Axis Capital Group

Specializing In Pressure Washing Heavy Equipment

Axis Capital Group, based in Singapore has done all types of machinery from compact forklifts to 300 ton cranes. Many of the heavy equipment washing are centered on eliminating mud and grease. These are at all times time consuming projects since grease likes to splatter from one surface to the next instead of just washing it away. This indicates every surface gets hit multiple times from multiple angles.

Pressure Washing a Truck Mounted Drilling Rig

One exception to the normal is when washing heavy mining equipment. Most of the time they ring when the equipment has not been used yet, in actuality when they have to pressure wash their mining equipment; it’s generally to eliminate the special coating of Cosmoline that is applied afore it’s shipped from overseas. It has us come out to get rid of this cosmoline before they ship it to the buyer.

Earlier doing any work one has to get a specific permit from the waste water treatment district where their property is situated. To clean any equipment, one had to set up a wash using a specific cleaning agent and Axis Capital Group has to take a sample of the wash water runoff to test it before giving us a permit to recover the water and discharge it to the sanitary sewer.

Pressure Washing Heavy Equipment at a Mine

Once the test water was approved, the cleaner may able to wash some pieces of heavy equipment. Regain all our water and settled it to the sanitary sewer agreeing to the specifications of our permit. Washing cosmoline off of painted metal is much stress-free than pushing grease around, but then is still time consuming for the reason that the cleaning agent permitted to use does not break down the cosmoline very well, therefore use lots of pressure and hot water to strip it off.

Construction Equipment Pressure Washing

In the procedure of washing the metal, they had no option but to leave the cosmoline around and on the stickers because all the stickers on the mining equipment are required by law to be there. Aside from that, the equipment cleaned up pleasantly and the equipment is left looking shiny new. The courses will make both the water district and the customer contented while still getting the equipment back to its new look for the customer.

How the regulations on pressure washing heavy equipment apply differs from one job-site to the next. If you have equipment that requires cleaning, hire a professional pressure washing company to assure yourself that you are in conformity with any regulations that affect your specific situation. You are guaranteed with no hocus-pocus, free of scam and fraudulence. Read reviews regarding the company before signing on any contract.

Tips for Creating Accurate, Competitive and Profitable Bids

Axis Capital Group, Singapore, a company is servicing many Southeast Asian countries such as KL Malaysia, Beijing China, Jakarta Indonesia and many more, provides you with tips for creating accurate, competitive and profitable bids.

Review plan documents provided in detail. This may appear too noticeable, nonetheless a lot of times significant details concerning the project are disguised by fine print, long lists or just pure baffling writing style. Gather all the documents, grab your highlighter and review the plan and scope wisely.

Join all the pre-bid meetings/conferences. While this looks simple, lots of your rivalry will think that if they have the documentation, there is no purpose of attending the meetings. Frequently, further information becomes available or you are given the chance to ask questions.

Warning! Verify that your labor costs are up-to-date. Changes can happen with sub-contractors’ rates; be assured the most current are comprised. Correspondingly look for any precise sets of minimum wages that might be required by state or federal projects.

Confirm your material pricing and delivery to avoid complaints. If you have historical data available from similar projects, you can base your estimate on definite costs and plan your profit margins appropriately. Procurement is an often miscalculated area of bids—whether prepared with software or not—so be sure to detail schedules and material deliveries.

Cautiously assess your equipment costs. Equipment costs include an important part of your cost estimate, so it’s vital to precisely define the cost you will comprise for your machines. Many companies use regular rates for machines of a given type or size class. Nevertheless, these average rates are constructed upon the real costs of running the equipment in specific applications. A common mistake is to be unsuccessful to habitually review the variables that create the “average equipment cost” and update them. You want to audit equipment costs regularly to guarantee that you’re competitive and likewise sufficiently cover the cost of running the machines.

Use telematics and machine technologies to increase your bid correctness. Technologies that offer detailed information about your equipment like fuel consumption, production time and idle time truly add worth in the bidding procedure as your information can be thorough and current to your latest project.

Lastly, keep in mind that your bid submissions are an image of your company and your work. Be responsible for the required information in a clear, easy-to-review format to gain credibility and consideration. Consider about what the owner has to base the decision on—price is surely a big factor, however it’s possible not the lone factor and it may not even be the number- one factor.  

Lease or Loan: Impact on cash flow, on your available credit and on your tax situation

Axis Capital Group, Singapore, a company is servicing many Southeast Asian countries such as KL Malaysia, Beijing China, Jakarta Indonesia and many more, provides you with vital information on lease vs loan.

Impact on cash flow

LEASE
Usually, using your leased machine will produce income that tops the amount of the monthly payments. 
This lets you to extend the budget and lease or rent extra equipment for bigger jobs. In some situations 100% financing is available, therefore not even a down payment is obligatory.

If your work is periodic or seasonal, lease terms are accessible to help. Lower initial payments or deferred payments are the most usual selections. Warning! What’s most significant is to understand precisely how extensive it will be from the period the machine is leased to when you will have the income in hand to make a payment.

LOAN
Loans necessitate a down payment, and you finance the outstanding amount. It is not uncommon for the lender to entail the borrower to initiate other assets as security for the loan. Furthermore, a loan typically needs two cash expenditures throughout the first payment period—a down payment at the start and a loan payment at the end.

Impact on your available credit

LEASE
Credit is an important resource for business development. Leased assets can be expensed when your lease is an operating lease. The said assets will not appear on the balance sheet. Smart financing can uphold your lines of credit and protect your borrowing capacity.

LOAN
Financial account standards necessitate owned equipment to be recorded as an asset along with a corresponding liability on the balance sheet. This can control your borrowing capacity.

Impact on your tax situation

LEASE
Section 179 Deductions permit you to acquire the full devaluation deduction in one year, instead than taking it slowly over the term of an asset’s useful life. Legislation is currently pending
to raise these limits.

LOAN
For a secured loan and avoid complaints, according to IRS depreciation schedules you can be able to demand a tax deduction for a fraction of the loan payment as interest and for depreciation.

An Introduction to Heavy Construction Equipment

Construction equipment denotes to all vehicles and machinery intended for the reason of the construction of buildings or any other man-made structure, and it performs tasks that were in the older days unmanageable or hard for humans alone to carry out by increasing the input force so that the force applied is much greater.

Hydraulics is the most widespread method for the transmission of power in construction equipment, which in layman's terms is the transfer, control and supply of energy and signals via pressurized liquid. 

Several people will have seen, and can classify, usual types of construction machinery on building projects around the country. Warning! Construction is big business around the world and the Jakarta, Indonesia is no exception. The country has a huge amount of new-build estates and, while the recession has slowed the housing market somewhat, building sites are still a common sight as you travel around the country. 

There are several types of heavy construction equipment available on the market for all types of heavy construction work. Axis Capital, Singapore, a company is servicing many Southeast Asian countries such as KL Malaysia, Beijing China, Jakarta Indonesia and many more, will explain some of them in this article.

Crawler Dozers: A crawler dozer is actually a bulldozer that is operated to push large masses of waste, rubble or leftover of anything before or after a construction project is done. Crawler dozers are easily available for sale or rent from Axis Capital, Singapore.

Vibratory Rollers: They can likewise be called as road rollers which are used to compact concrete, asphalt and other materials for roads and to make solid foundations. They are moreover essential part of the heavy construction equipment industry. They can as well be used at landfill sites and for agricultural purposes. Used vibratory rollers are in high demand since of their moderately low cost as matched to new ones. Axis Capital, Singapore provides both new and used vibratory rollers for sale and rent. Reviews regarding the product will help your purchase.

Crane: A crane is one of the most broadly used heavy construction equipment, and debatably the most significant one in putting up high rise buildings and other giant structures. It includes ropes and chains, and used to lift and carry materials used in construction over short distances or transport them to a higher part of the building. Heavy machines like generators can only be taken to the top of the buildings or any other floor for the reason that there is no substitute solution offered, to avoid complaints. This is the reason why the construction of buildings can’t resume without a crane on the site.

The Future of Heavy Equipment

Heavy construction equipment includes mixers, cranes, wheel loaders, dozers, graders, rollers, and attachments. Every year the heavy construction equipment industry encounters a growing global demand for turnout. Granting the industry is sensitive to fluctuations in the economy; growths in population and business last to drive the demand for workers. Additional contributing factors to the demand for heavy equipment consist of recession recovery in Asia (particularly in Jakarta, Indonesia) and Russia, development in Latin America and Africa, and the aging of US infrastructure, with the subsequent need for refurbishment. Actually, bridge construction is expected to be the fastest-growing segment of the industry for the reason that of the must to replace or repair aging bridges.

Indeed, the Axis Capital Group, Singapore predicts that construction job opportunities will be on the rise through 2014, despite improvements in equipment that are expected to increase productivity. Just what are these anticipated improvements, and how will they affect the industry? Some reviews say otherwise and there have been complaints emerging.

There is no Doppler radar for predicting the future of heavy equipment, but market trends, research, and analysis provide some indication of the direction the market is taking—and there are some obvious regulatory developments influencing the changes in the works.

Warning! It has to have sufficient research backing up its design inspiration so manufacturers can depend on an open market before a new product leaves the drawing board. Rick Hall, vice president of product development for Case Construction Equipment, tries to integrate the voice of the customer into the product. “Our product development is customer-driven. We begin every product program with definitions of customer problems we want to satisfy.” Case’s three-stage research and development (R&D) program starts with the creation of a matrix for all applications, broken down into geographical areas to make the company understand the demographics and classify differences concerning applications in order to prioritize requests.

Preventative and routine maintenance begin with tracking hours and locations and identifying possible problems so maintenance can be scheduled with minimal influence on field operations. Axis Capital Group, Singapore, contents this need for most machines. For some of Axis’ large machines and mining equipment, the answer is a “smart box” that takes the diagnostics off several onboard computers, like the engine and transmission modules in order to predict system failure modes. “It can detect trends from the transmission and engine to determine overall service needs. It can detect if the timing on the clutch is beginning to wane, for example,” Bucklar explains. Even better, the service truck doesn’t have to be onsite to conduct diagnostics.

Capitalizing on Construction Equipment Rental Fleets

While the attitude for big infrastructure projects is indefinite, there is a robust bright spot in the construction industry’s yet to come. Equipment rental businesses are predicting fast-growing achievement by presenting contractors the newest machines without the large payments. Not merely has the rate of equipment rentals developed in each of the past three years; however the amount of rental dealers has increased, too. This is also being felt by Axis Capital Group, Singapore (company is servicing many Southeast Asian countries such as KL Malaysia, Beijing China, Jakarta Indonesia and many more).

That’s due to construction companies are ruling it more cost-effective to rent vs buying costly equipment that will just be used for a little period of time. According to a rental industry study by Andy Agoos for Neff Rental, in the U.S. today, about 40 percent of construction equipment is rented — and that’s expected to increase.

There are numerous influences that go into the rent rather than buy verdict for contractors and construction companies. These consist of the length of the job, the trouble of transporting a piece of equipment to jobsites, and the possibility of gaining additional projects where that specific piece of equipment will be used. All of these factors combine to make renting more attractive than buying, for some companies.

Dealers may obtain their rental equipment in many means — normally new from manufacturers or used from auction. When they agree it’s no more cost-effective to hold onto renting out a specific piece of equipment, they can trade it to an end-user or put it up for auction again. Warning, there are many risks in buying from an auction.

Costs for well-maintained quality equipment with low usage rates are increasing. According to some reports, in August 2013 (the most recent date for which figures are available), rental rates increased 0.8% from the prior month, on average, for the rental companies that participate in the Rouse Analytics Rental Metrics Benchmark Services. Rates were up 4.0% from August 2012.

In reality, the construction equipment rental business in the U.S. is anticipated to grow 12% in 2014 to approximately $37 billion in total revenues, according to Frank Manfredi, president of Manfredi & Associates, Inc., a market research and consulting firm that specializes in the industrial sector of the rental industry.

Manfredi estimates that about half of U.S. dealers offer rentals in addition to sales. As the market for equipment rentals continues to develop, nearly all dealers fall into one of these buckets: A retail store that rents, or a rental store that sells.

Axis Capital Group: Projecting Maintenance on Heavy Equipment

Nowadays we have smartphones, smart cars, smart buildings, smart grids, and smart meters, and we're starting to perceive smart tractors, loaders, spreaders, and grader and because of this, we can say that the smart age is here in earnest.

Together, what these smart-age technologies stand is promise. For construction professionals, they may be yet attempting to find out how to place all of the pieces together for your organization. This basically denotes putting technologies in place to monitor and run important plant, property, and equipment. The test is to put this information to use in a method that openly impacts your bottom-line.

As the long revival from the recession starts, companies are fixated on prolonging the life of the expensive capital equipment deprived of experiencing unintended stoppage and disruptions to their operations. This makes service and maintenance a serious element of lengthening the life of important equipment.

For the several construction and leasing companies, this entails a greater must to work keener in order to match. Several midsized companies do not have the advantage of luxurious enterprise applications that automate maintenance service management. In other words, these firms have up till now to understand the many benefits of the connected world.

For the well part of the last decade, software vendors and pundits have assured a new age of 'smart services.' Though, because of the slower rate of technology adoption, joined with high infrastructure costs, these promises have not prolonged to the construction industry, leaving companies asking the question, 'How do I make more money from all of this?' and origin of all the complaints.

Countless have tried to respond that question with things such as location-based services, mobile communications, cloud computing, asset tracking, and the host of other technologies that fall under the category of M2M (machine-to-machine). Nonetheless said efforts have writhed without well-designed applications. Axis Capital Group, Singapore is working with construction and equipment leasing companies to solve these challenges with an integrated suite of applications that assess the performance of this equipment automatically, notify support, and schedule service, together with all the company’s connections in Southeast Asian countries such as KL Malaysia, Beijing China, Jakarta Indonesia and many more.

Heavy Equipment Safety Warnings

Operator Training

Safeguarding heavy equipment operators starts with right training. Training should contain formal (classroom-type) instruction, demos by the trainer, practical exercises executed by the trainee, and an evaluation of the operator’s performance in the workplace.

A common category of injury connected with heavy equipment consists of mounting and dismounting vehicles. The training offered should highlight using the 3-point contact rule: Each operator mounting or dismounting a vehicle must retain contact with the vehicle by two hands and one foot or two feet and one hand until securely in the cab or on the ground.

Safety Rules

To avoid complaints, the agency must correspondingly launch a set of safety rules and anticipations for operators when operating heavy equipment. The following is a incomplete list of rules and safe work practices that must be remembered by employees. Axis Capital Group, Singapore, a company is servicing many Southeast Asian countries such as KL Malaysia, Beijing China, Jakarta Indonesia and many more, requires proper training from job applicants, they added this list to ensure that all aspects of safety are addressed for heavy equipment operators.

Before operating:

• Provide operator manuals for equipment operators and vehicle maintenance employees to review

• Ensure that operators wear appropriate clothing and protective equipment (hearing protection, work gloves, sturdy work shirt and pants, safety footwear, reflective vests, hard hat, etc.)

• Establish hand signals (if ground workers are present)

• Conduct regular vehicle inspections (use a daily sign in/inspection sheet)

• Make sure equipment has a rollover protective structure (ROPS)

• Fill tank with fuel when the equipment is cool with the engine off (no smoking)

• Inspect steps, handrails, pedals, grab irons, and cab floor for debris or defects

During operation:

• Always wear seatbelts

• Check controls for proper operation (including backup alarms)

• Check the work area for obstacles, holes, overhead utility lines, etc.

• Have the utility service provider identify underground cables and supply lines before digging

• When working on slopes, operate up and down the face of the slope instead of across the face

• Never jump off of or onto the equipment (use 3-point contact rule)

• Never exit a running vehicle (turn the vehicle off if the operator must leave the cab)

Exiting the vehicle:

• Park on level ground

• Relieve pressure from all hydraulic controls

• Wait for all motions to stop, then safely dismount the vehicle using 3-point contact rule

• Remove the key from unattended vehicles

Equipment Acquisition Trends

New equipment acquisition will slowly, but progressively develop, says Axis Capital Group, Singapore (company is servicing many Southeast Asian countries such as KL Malaysia, Beijing China, Jakarta Indonesia and many more). The equipment finance industry is predicting eight percent growth in investment in equipment and software, representing that equipment acquisition by businesses in several industry sectors will upsurge. 

Replacement requests will remain to push new equipment acquisitions. Equipment becoming old and replacement necessities will be the chief reasons for a new equipment acquisition, as businesses expect sturdier ciphers of economic development in advance of growing their equipment investment.

Doubt over suggested deviations to lease accounting will have businesses portraying a waiting game.  The determination of suggested deviations to lease accounting standards by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) will have businesses expecting to discover how their balance sheets, earnings and other financials will be involved. In the meantime, industry advocacy will remain to diminish the undesirable influences of lease accounting changes on businesses and the economy. The great news is that the main causes to lease equipment will stay complete, from upholding cash flow, to conserving capital, to gaining elastic financial solutions, to preventing uselessness.

Used equipment prices will bounce in not all but many market segments.  The collateral value of several groups of equipment that ‘bottomed out’ since the previous years will echo.  Car and truck values will be above all strong, and construction equipment also will sustain its price.  Particular sections, like corporate aircraft, will stay at fairly lower values.

Equipment finance companies will improve customer relationship and support competences to shape modest advantages. It targets no more complaints in the future. End users of equipment will gain advantage significantly from the hard work of banks and incarcerated and independent finance companies to grow.  They’ll be offering dedicated areas of skill and value-added customer services that will be a win-win for lessors and lessees alike.

Credit availability will allow equipment acquisition for qualified businesses. Businesses in search of financing for equipment acquisitions will often discover credit approvals higher in the equipment finance industry as compared from bank loans. 

Organizations looking for methods to reduce costs and upsurge operational efficiencies will examine technology innovations.  The flexibility, scalability and relative costs related with cloud computing and shared services will start to compete with new IT equipment purchases for many businesses.  

Axis Capital Group, Singapore: Safety Tips and Warnings for Operating Aerial Lifts

Ensure that you have received apt training in addition to getting used to the MEWP that you will use. Carefully read the operator’s manual and safety signs on the machine, plus know and understand the purpose and location of every safety devices and controls prior to beginning operation.

Make it a habit to read, understand and follow employer’s safety rules and worksite protocols, in addition to all relevant local, governmental or provincial regulations that apply to MEWP operation in advance of operating the machine.

Carry out at all times a pre-operation inspection and function tests on the MEWP in advance each shift. If a level sensor, alarm or any other safety device has been deactivated or has malfunctioned, it cannot do its job. Make certain it is instantly tagged and removed from service until it can be repaired by a qualified service technician if the machine fails any of these tests.

Continuously accomplish a workplace risk assessment previous to moving the MEWP to the jobsite. Find drop-offs and holes, slopes, slippery or wobbly surfaces, overhead obstacles, power lines and any other hazards that may possibly exist. Then and there willfully deliberate about and elude those hazards by all phases of machine operation. A complete list of dangers you must be conscious of can be seen in the operator’s manual for the machine you are operating. Axis Capital Group, Singapore has started trainings in SE Asian countries such as Bangkok Thailand and Jakarta Indonesia.

At all times wear the proper fall protection the minute you started operating either a telescopic or articulating boom. An appropriately fitted full body harness and suitable lanyard or self-retracting lifeline is definitely a requirement. Many of the operators do not realize the impending for being hurled from the platform of a boom. The slightest jar at the base of the machine may result into an unexpected and powerful blow at the platform that may likely toss the operator into the air. Wearing the right fall protection may decrease the risks of serious injury or even death if this were to happen.

Except you have been well trained to do so, always keep 100% tie-off, and are in possession of an approval letter from the manufacturer that offers the correct guidance, never exit an elevated boom or scissor lift platform.

Never climb down from the platform when it is raised. Each and every time possible, keep a cell phone or two-way radio with you whenever you are in the platform. Constantly have a rescue plan if ever the MEWP is not equipped with an auxiliary lowering system or if that system failures. Rescue plans should at a least include steps to guarantee that other personnel are conscious that you are operating the MEWP and that they have been qualified and used to operate the machine from the ground controls.