The European equipment rental industry is being transformed by the impact of digitalisation, like the industries it serves.

That was one of the key messages at the recent European Rental Association (ERA) Convention 2021: ‘Smart Rental’, held in Amsterdam.

Presentations looked at ways in which data is improving the customer experience and how digital technologies are transforming rental businesses.

‘Smart’ rental companies are using data and digitalisation to deliver added value to their customers, helping them to better manage their projects, enabling them to work more efficiently and enhancing their safety:

• Telematics and GPS tracking reduce downtime and lower labour costs, make it easier to manage and monitor a fleet, and enhance the productivity of the equipment.
• Remote tracking means that rental companies can diagnose and repair equipment efficiently and effectively.
• The right data at the right time informs better decision-making and helps optimise a jobsite, improving safety and productivity.
• Data benchmarking provides additional insights about how to improve and make comparisons with competitors.

Furthermore, digitalisation enables rental companies to provide a more efficient booking, delivery and billing service, with new ways of charging for the equipment use, from pay per service and pay as you go to stand by and pay per use.

Ultimately, this means that rental companies can provide a better customer experience with reduced costs, more efficient processes, improved safety and more productive equipment.

The event heard that the current state of digital transformation in the rental industry can be defined as heterogeneous, with different companies and different markets going at different speeds.

The digitalisation process has implications beyond commercial and operational aspects of a business – be it human resources, information security, the Internet of Things and so on – and there is a need in the rental industry for clarity and awareness about what the process of digital transformation entails.

In recognition of this and to promote awareness, engagement and action within the rental industry, ERA is starting work on a new project on the impact of the digital transformation on the rental business.

The chief aim of this ERA project is to raise awareness among rental companies in Europe about the challenges and benefits of digital transformation and provide elements of best practice on the journey towards a successful digital transformation.

The project will be steered by ERA’s Future Group and will be undertaken by epi Consulting. Meanwhile, the association has released its 2021 Market Report.

The overarching theme from this year’s report is that 2020 was a difficult year for all the markets covered, ‎even for those that managed to remain positive amidst the pandemic. Consequently, some markets fell ‎considerably (France, Italy, Spain, UK), while others also lost ground but fared better overall (Switzerland, ‎Sweden, Germany). This trend continued into the first quarter of 2021 before seeing returns closer to pre-‎pandemic levels of activity later in the year. ‎

On a positive note, the report notes that the re-opening of most European economies after the first quarter of 2021 proved beneficial for rental ‎activity as construction was able to pick up and other sectors of the economy also re-opened. The performance throughout the rest of the year improved in most markets and now points to a solid ‎growth forecast for 2021, mainly in Southern Europe and the UK, which were the worst-hit regions, while ‎growth in Nordic countries and Eastern Europe remains more constrained.‎