Made for rental

Taking place from 22 to 25 February at Ernest N Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, US, the American Rental Association (ARA) expects over 675 exhibitors to attend The Rental Show 2015, while the 2014 event attracted nearly 5,600 visitors.

A wide range of equipment will be on show, from generators to skid steers and access platforms – all targeting buyers from the rental industry.

One of the newer faces in the North American market is Australian manufacturer of light construction tools Makinex, which will be exhibiting at the 2015 show after launching its products into the region at the 2014 Rental Show in Orlando.

Makinex has formed a partnership with Iowa, US-based pressure washer, air compressor, generator, and portable heater producer Mi-T-M that will see the latter manufacture its dual pressure washer trolleys in North America. Makinex also produces floor strippers, floor saws, pressure washers and jackhammer trolleys.

Another new face at the show will be Avant Tecno, which has launched in the North American rental market and will be exhibiting for the first time at the show. The manufacturer said it would be showcasing its new compact articulated loaders and attachments, designed for industries from construction to demolition, equestrian to forestry, farming to landscaping.

John Spencer, national sales manager for Avant Hire Network UK, said, “I have noticed an ever-increasing demand for equipment with high utilization and an ability to command a high rental charge while remaining competitive with other equipment.”

The company sells direct to the industry, and also rents its 400, 500,600 and 700 series models with lifting capacity ranging from 499 kg to 1406 kg, powered by 25 kW to 37 kW engines. It said the most requested attachments include brooms, buckets, dozer blades, snow blowers, tree grabbles and tree shears.

Meanwhile, Subaru Industrial Power Products said it had made several upgrades to its SGX Generator line, which will be on show at the exhibition. It said the SGX3500 featured Subaru’s 7 hp (6 kW) EX21 engine and a 4 gallon (15 l) capacity fuel tank for a total run time of 8 hours at the rated load.

A 9.5 hp (7.1 kW) EX30 engine powers the SGX5000, and Subaru said it had this model’s fuel tank capacity to 8 gallons (30 l) for a total continuous run time of 10.7 hours at the rated load. Finally, the 14 hp (10.5 kW) EX40-powered SGX7500E offers an 8 gallon (30 l) fuel tank for 7 hours of operation at the rated load.

And Jenny Products said it would showcase examples from its four-model K-series of gas-powered compressors, all of which portable on wheels and boast 5.5 hp Honda engines and the company’s K compressor pump.

It said the 17 and 30 gallon (64 l and 114 l) air tanks come standard with two tires, while the 8 and 15 gallon (30 l and 57 l) tanks offer the options of one or two tyres.

Rental software producer Baseplan will also be at the show, hosting a meeting room to allow customers to meet and discuss their rental and equipment management needs, as well sa showcasing graphic displays to help illustrate the Baseplan Enterprise solution on the company’s stand.

Baseplan CEO and president Andrew Ferry said, "Baseplan Enterprise is all about helping customers maximise their return on investment. It offers our clients the power to manage their businesses more effectively, with a fully integrated solution that tracks the total cost of ownership on equipment, so that businesses can more effectively manage their assets as investment.”

Access

Plenty of access equipment manufacturers will also be at the show, including equipment from MEC Aerial Work Platforms, which said it would unveil a new 60 ft (18.5 m) boom lift. The 600 lbs (272 kg) lift capacity machine features 42 ft, 8 in (13 m) of outreach and can be powered by either diesel, battery or with a hybrid option.

JLG, for its part, said it would introduce its redesigned JLG and SkyTrak telehandlers at the exhibition. Reworked from the ground up, it said these new telehandlers reflect extensive market research and customer input.

The manufacturer said new additions to its line of boom lifts and scissors lifts would also be showcased, together with its latest generation of FT Series LiftPod personal portable lifts.

Meanwhile, Custom Equipment said it would display seven models from its line of Hy-Brid low-level scissor lifts at the exhibition, including the HB-830. It said this 550 lbs (249 kg) lift capacity model featured a longer platform to give maintenance crews and contractors more space for tools and supplies, as well as a zero turning radius for manoeuvrability in confined spaces. Its working height is up to 14 ft (4.3 m).

The HB-1030, the HB-1230, HB-1430, HB-P1027, HB-P827 and HB-P527 models will also be on show – all of which feature dual front wheels to help weight distribution, and lightweight designs.

And ReachMaster said it would showcase a range of products, including a boom from its new partner Dinolift. ReachMaster recently agreed the sales partnership with Finland-based trailer mount specialist Dinolift, which also manufactures tracked platforms and booms. More details of the arrangement will follow soon.

On display will be the Dinolift RXT rough terrain boom series, with working heights between 67 ft, 5 in (1.9 m) to 86 ft, 11 in (26 m). The Dinolift has an articulated and telescopic boom, oscillating front axle and four-wheel drive with two-wheel steering, four-wheel steering and crab steering.

This is just a glimpse of some of the many products targeting rental buyers that will be on show at this year’s exhibition. Editorial teams from IRN and its sister publications will also be heading out to New Orleans to gather news from the show – keep an eye on khl.com for all the late-breaking news.

This is a show guide from the January/February issue of IRN. For the full feature, including extra images and box stories, please subscribe to the magazine: http://www.khl.com/subscriptions/