Customer satisfaction and Health & Safety are top priorities for any hire business. How can you be sure that your rental assets are running at optimum safety and maximum profitability? With a suitable hire software solution and some future proofing of your rental asset lifecycle, you can reach new heights of utilisation and profitability. By optimising your asset lifecycle, your entire rental operation will run smoothly with your equipment consistently performing well, avoiding any undesirable and costly emergency breakdowns.
Rental asset profitability
As your rental fleet ages and any warranty period has long since expired, your equipment is likely to start becoming less cost efficient and may even start costing you more than the asset is generating. A rental software solution can give you an overview of your products so that you can monitor equipment costs. This means that any rental assets that are near the end of their working life are highlighted when they are becoming cost inefficient.
When certain assets keep returning to the workshop or start spending longer periods of time being idle and inactive, it’s time to investigate. A live overview of your workshop activity is another benefit of a rental software package. You’d be able to track and monitor any equipment that is becoming troublesome to repair and get a better idea of an assets future lifecycle.
When your rental equipment has reached ‘end of life’ and is no longer supported by the manufacturer you’ll find there are long delays when trying to source spare parts. You’ll end up searching for second-hand spares that may be unreliable and will only ever be a short term fix. What would you do if you couldn’t find the right spare parts at all? You can prevent nasty surprises occurring if you have the right rental software in place to flag when a product is steadily reaching the end of its useful life. Your software solution can help you track asset depreciation to give you an accurate up-to-date picture of current used values to help you decide when you sell on your well-used assets.
Frequently testing your rental assets
Regularly testing your equipment can be a challenge, especially if you haven’t got an easy method of doing so. If you carry out regular checks and tests on your inventory, you’ll be more prepared when a service comes around and you’ll never let a machine go out on hire when one is due. You’ll be able to spot weak areas in your inventory and monitor which items perform the best. With a hire solution in place, you can ensure a strict process is adhered to with simple on hire and off hire checks as standard and record them all within your hire database.
Making sure your hire assets are safe
A top priority for any business is to make sure its employees and customers are safe when using its hire equipment. Unnecessarily prolonging the lifecycle of a product that has become unreliable and prone to breakdowns may put your customers at risk. You have a duty of care to monitor your hire equipment and record all tests and checks performed. This is the best way to prevent accidents happening and ensure no one is at risk from using faulty equipment.
Newer, modern machinery is now being built with enhanced safety features meeting higher standards to ensure user safety. Replacing your equipment on a regular basis means that the latest safety features will add an extra layer of protection for you, your employees and your clients. Renting the latest hire equipment from you with all the newest safety components is also going to help ensure that your customers have a positive experience from you.
Customer Service in the hire industry
As it becomes more important to distinguish yourself against competitors, your customer service needs to be excellent. When a client hires a piece of equipment from you, they expect it to be reliable. If on-site breakdowns become a regular occurrence due to an aging asset, not only is it costly to your business financially but also to your reputation as a supplier.
Overall, there are so many benefits from refreshing and replacing your hire equipment as part of a routine replacement programme and a rental software solution can help you achieve this. You can make sure you remain profitable and your equipment is working at peak efficiency. You’ll improve the safety of everyone that uses your hire equipment. You’ll even attract more repeat business as you develop a good reputation for having the latest, modern, reliable equipment available. By committing to a sustainable asset lifecycle plan, you’ll be able to grow your rental business and establish a key point of difference between you and any other hire company.
Rental software can help you get the most out of your hire equipment. Does your rental asset inventory have a set lifecycle? Find out the benefits of refreshing your fleet with our latest hire blog.