Nothing going on but the rent
June 1st 2009

A decline in access equipment revenues is inevitable, but rentals are in good position to weather the crisis says a new IPAF European Rental Report

Rental revenues in Europe for mobile elevating work platforms (MEWPs) peaked in 2007 at almost €5 billion, according to the IPAF European Powered Access Report 2008 released at the Intermat construction show in Paris. (IPAF is the International Powered Access Federation).

MEWPs account for 24% of the total European market for construction equipment rental.While the overall market increased strongly by almost 21% in 2007, it is estimated to have slightly declined during 2008 and will, in face of the economic crisis, decrease further in 2009.

The IPAF European Powered Access Rental Report is the result of, what IPAF believes to be a ‘groundbreaking’project to gather specific data on the powered access industry that was not available before. It was made possible through cooperation between the European Rental Association (ERA) and the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF), with research consultants IHS Global Insight. It is linked to the work of the ERA Statistics Committee, which is chaired by IPAF managing director Tim Whiteman.

The report estimates that for 2008,MEWP-related revenues in the countries covered in the study declined by 2.9% to €4.8 billion.The 11 countries covered in the study are: Belgium,Denmark, Finland, France,Germany, Italy, the Netherlands,Norway, Spain, Sweden and the UK.The decline will accelerate during 2009, with MEWP rental revenues expected to fall by another 6% to €4.5 billion.

However, the report predicts that the reduction in rental revenues due to lower aggregate demand will not reduce the incidence of equipment rental within the various national markets. Lower rental rates and poor credit availability will make rental a more viable option for many users both within and beyond the construction industry.Therefore, despite the economic downturn, it is not expected that rental penetration rates for MEWPs will decline in the short-term. On the contrary, they are more likely to rise.

According to the report, investments in MEWPs by rental companies grew strongly in 2007 but are estimated to have declined significantly in 2008. On average, survey respondents invested 21.4% of their rental revenues into new equipment for 2008.The average age of the MEWP rental fleets in the 11 countries under investigation is 4.4 years.

The IPAF European Powered Access Rental Report 2008 can be purchased at €175 (IPAF members) or €265 (non-members). IPAF has also published the IPAF US Powered Access Rental Report 2008, which is based on a similar research project in cooperation with the American Rental Association (ARA). Both the European and US reports can be purchased at €290 (IPAF members) or €435 (nonmembers). To purchase, visit the Publications section of www.ipaf.org.

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