Whether you are looking to expand or want flexibility, cost savings, coverage in emergency situations, or a host of other reasons in between, rental collection vehicles offer a lot of upsides to meet those needs. There are many factors to consider when deciding if renting equipment will work for your operations.
By Kelli McConahey
Haulers have countless details and factors to consider every day in the management of their fleets of refuse collection vehicles and other equipment. Replacing trucks or adding onto the fleet are just a couple of those considerations. Renting refuse collection vehicles has become a more attractive option over the past several years because it can be more cost-effective and has a quicker turnaround than buying new. There are a host of other reasons and use cases for rental refuse trucks that may not be top of mind.
Not only can renting cost less upfront than buying new, but it can also save fleet managers ongoing maintenance costs. Older trucks in a fleet can eat up a lot of expense in replacement parts or unexpected service needs, especially if the trucks are not on a regular maintenance schedule. Renting may seem like an obvious solution for a truck-down situation while a truck is being serviced. However, rentals can also be used to augment a fleet and age-out trucks before major repairs are needed, and until capital or cash flow is in the budget to buy new.
Photos courtesy of New Way Trucks.
Flexibility
Deferring or in some cases eliminating maintenance costs is one way to create some flexibility with fleet management. Renting equipment offers flexibility with timing and product availability. You can rent equipment for as long as you need it, whether it is for several days to several months, and rental contracts can be extended if situations change. Renting also means that you have the flexibility to select from a variety of products that are available almost immediately.
Rental programs can offer flexibility on contracts and product availability. Contracts can run any length of time鈥攕hort or long鈥攄epending on the rental company. Contract extensions are also an option, as well as requesting a specific product model.
Cost Effective
Rental equipment can be a cost-effective way to augment a fleet (see Case Study: The City of Los Angeles, CA Sanitation Department Sidebar). Most haulers work on buying cycles that are influenced by the availability of capital, among other factors, when purchasing new equipment. When capital funding may be a few years out, or in the absence of free cash flow, renting refuse collection vehicles is an attractive, lower cost alternative if haulers need to fill a gap in a fleet or when acquisitions occur outside the typical buying cycle, for example.
In addition, renting heavy equipment such as refuse collection vehicles is often considered a business expense, which can help preserve borrowing power for other business operation needs. And tax benefits, including deducting rental costs, can be realized with rental equipment. There are also lower upfront costs with renting compared to buying new, which can benefit smaller independent haulers that may not carry as much capital.
Another cost-effective measure to consider with rental equipment is maintenance and service. The cost to maintain and repair these vehicles is the responsibility of the manufacturer or dealer renting the equipment, so haulers can focus service expenses on their existing fleet.
Plan for the Unexpected
Maybe one of the most evident reasons to rent equipment is because of a truck-down situation and unexpected service and repairs needed within a hauler鈥檚 existing fleet. Rental refuse collection vehicles are a great option to fill that emergency need, especially if they come with flexible contracts and flexibility to choose the product model that best fits the need.
Not only can maintenance and service issues be unpredictable, but each year major weather events present more of a challenge to predict. From hurricanes, to tornadoes, to flooding, it is becoming more necessary to develop emergency plans around not if these events happen, but when. Refuse collection vehicles are integral to the cleanup process in the aftermath of major storms. The option to rent these vehicles when and where they are needed most can help speed the process along. Using rental trucks can help clear the debris and bulky items faster so utility companies can turn the power on quicker, people can get back in their homes, and local businesses can get back up and running.
Eliminate Unnecessary Purchases And Enter New Markets
For the purpose of storm cleanup, renting equipment can be ideal compared to purchasing new because it is a dedicated project with a limited timeframe. Similarly, renting a vehicle for route conversions can eliminate an unnecessary purchase or delay purchasing until the timing is right. Haulers who may be converting a rear loader collection route to automated could choose to rent an automated side loader as a way to make the transition process easier.
Rental trucks can also help small, independent haulers or haulers with newly acquired routes expand their services without immediately or permanently expanding their existing fleet. Using rental vehicles can open up opportunities to expand into additional route types鈥攖aking on more commercial collection, for example, without adding a new truck purchase onto the initial investment.
Whether you are looking to expand or want flexibility, cost savings, coverage in emergency situations or a host of other reasons in between, rental collection vehicles offer a lot of upsides to meet those needs. There are a lot of factors to consider when deciding if renting equipment will work for your operations, but in many cases and in many ways renting can maximize your uptime. | WA
Case Study: The City of Los Angeles, CA Sanitation Department Does Not Lose a Beat
FleetForce Rentals by New Way Trucks is a prime example of a rental brand that offers flexibility on rental contracts and product availability, plus the added benefit of working directly with the original equipment manufacturer. FleetForce Rentals are typically contracted for either three or six months, but contracts can run any length of time.
鈥淲ith the FleetForce rental program, you can request any product model in the New Way product lineup鈥攆ront loaders, side loaders, rear loaders, including under-CDL packages. We match the customer with the right truck for the need at hand,鈥� said Jesse Geeslin, New Way Director of Sales for FleetForce.
Flexibility with contracts and vehicle selection are two of the aspects that the City of Los Angeles Sanitation Department, a New Way customer since 2007, says have benefitted them most. Ron Cole, Assistant Division Manager, and Bill Musselman, Superintendent of Support Services, for the City of Los Angeles said they started using FleetForce Rentals by New Way in 2015 to get a new Livability Services Division started and could not take trucks off existing collection routes. They continue to use rental trucks, specifically the New Way Cobra High Compaction Rear Loader, for this division and have said they appreciate the flexibility with contracts and the immediate availability with rental trucks.
鈥淲e use [New Way distributor] Ray Gaskin to service our trucks and New Way has been a great help in keeping everything maintained with our rental trucks,鈥� said Musselman. 鈥淲e鈥檒l call and they say, 鈥榃hat do you need? We鈥檒l get it.鈥欌��
鈥淭ypically, we rent rear loaders until new trucks come in or when the Livability Services Division adds on new teams or pickup locations. Contract length varies depending on when our new trucks are scheduled to deliver or when new teams are added,鈥� Cole said.
鈥淔leetForce rentals helped us out during the pandemic, too, when funding wasn鈥檛 available for new trucks. And it鈥檚 been easy to work through [New Way distributor] Ray Gaskin Services to get our rental trucks.鈥�
Kelli McConahey is Director of Marketing for McLaughlin Family Companies, which owns New Way Trucks. She has been working in the waste industry for nearly 12 years and leads the brand and marketing strategy for all McLaughlin Family Companies businesses and programs. Kelli can be reached at (712) 634-0089 or e-mail [email protected].