Tractors Malaysia says rental demand up

Malaysian Caterpillar dealer Tractors Malaysia Holdings Bhd said its rental services were proving attractive to contractors and forecast that demand would continue even in the event of a market slowdown.

Chong Kwea Seng, managing director of Tractors Malaysia, a subsidiary of Sime Darby, told the Business Times publication of Malaysia that "Customers were sceptical about our (rental) scheme when it was introduced seven years ago, but now we are seeing an increase in demand for it.

"To date, we have rented out 1600 [pieces of] equipment nationwide", said Mr Chong, who was speaking at the opening of the company's new branch in Butterworth, Juru, Seberang Prai, in early October.

Mr Chong said an economic slowdown would be advantageous for its heavy equipment rental business; "An economic slowdown has always been advantageous to us. We recorded growth whenever the world faced an economic crisis in the past".

He told Business Times that Tractors Malaysia had been reporting 20 to 30% growth in the last few years, with total revenues (including sales of equipment) of RM 1.5 billion (€314 million) last year.

Tractors Malaysia is a Caterpillar dealer with over 20 depots throughout Malaysia, including six Cat Rental Store operations. As well as Caterpillar equipment, the company rents a wide range of allied equipment, including Genie aerial platforms, compressors, compaction tools, telehandlers, lighting towers and welding sets.

In addition to representing Caterpillar, Tractors Malaysia also sells New Holland agricultural machinery and related brands such as Jacobsen, Kubota and Sakai.