Challenging Bank data
30 June 2021
There was some interesting data in the Bank of England’s recent Q2 summary of the reports from its 12 regional agents. This is based on discussions with at least 700 businesses from acro…
News for Tool Hire, Equipment Hire & Plant Hire and Rental Professionals
Previous Posts - June 2021
HSS reports progress
30 June 2021
HSS has given a trading update ahead of its annual general meeting later today, reporting that its move to a digital hire platform has improved its performance.
The company states that,…
Building back Fast
29 June 2021
It’s déjà vu. This time last year on the blog I was writing about busy tool hire and plant hire companies serving homeowners who were on furlough and undertaking gardening…
JCB recruits to meet unprecedented demand
28 June 2021
I try to limit the number of times I use the word ‘unprecedented’, because it crops up so frequently when talking about Covid-19 and its aftermath, but I feel I have had to include…
SPOA highlights challenges
28 June 2021
A recurring theme in many stories on the blog is the difficulties that hirers face with rising equipment costs and perennially low hire rates.
The Scottish Plant Owners Association (SPOA…
More minis for NPH
25 June 2021
NPH Hire ‘N’ Sales Ltd of Bristol recently added four new Bobcat E10z mini excavators to its fleet to meet ongoing demand.
The business specialises in supplying diggers…
Q&A: Asif Latief
25 June 2021
Asif Latief is managing director of Netherlands-based Boels Rental in the UK. He joined the business in January 2020 after nearly 18 years with A-Plant (now Sunbelt Rentals) where he was marke…
Dromad adds Ford pick-ups
24 June 2021
Irish equipment supplier Dromad Hire has added two new Ford Ranger pick-up trucks to its sales support network.
The award-winning Dundalk-based business sourced the top-of-the-rang…
Lighting the ‘Kremlin’
23 June 2021
You could say that The Hire Supply Company (HSC) has supplied lights for the Kremlin.
Some of the firm’s Elite 5ft plasterers' lights were used to illuminate a disused Cold W…
Phoenix Hire hit by theft
23 June 2021
Sophisticated and belligerent thieves stole four new mini excavators from Phoenix Hire & Sales’ recently opened plant sales depot in Newport last Saturday night.
The clea…
Kubota dozen for Southern Plant
22 June 2021
Whenever I ask hirers what’s most in demand at the moment the answer is often mini excavators. And another example is Southern Plant & Tool Hire, which has just bought a further 12 K…
MHM’s complete package
21 June 2021
Even before the pandemic there was a distinct trend towards users wanting to source more products and services through the same trusted tool hirer or supplier for convenience and administrativ…
Q&A: Luke George
18 June 2021
Luke George is MD of Dorset Hire Services and its sister brand Somerset Hire Services, which have depots in Shaftesbury, Evercreech and, most recently, Frome. The extensive hire fleet ranges f…
Dormer’s “perfect” truck
17 June 2021
Redditch-based Dormer Plant Hire has added another Isuzu 7.5-tonne truck to its delivery fleet, complementing other vehicles from the manufacturer that it already operates.
The new…
A people industry
16 June 2021
A hirer recently told me how they picked up a welcome but unexpected order.
“Someone contacted us having been let down by another hirer,” they said. “They’d…
Sunbelt shows agility
15 June 2021
In its results announced today for the fourth quarter ended 30 April 2021, Sunbelt Rentals’ parent Ashtead Group has continued its strong performance despite the pandemic.
Gr…
Boom or bubble?
15 June 2021
I’d wager that a fair number of hirers would report the same experience as Pat McCluskey.
Pat is managing director of the busy independent, Hireline Plant & Tool Hire, wh…
Speedy building boost
14 June 2021
I’ve posted a number of stories referring to the house building boom and that is just one reason why Speedy believes its new regional service centre in Reading will be kept busy.
Q&A: Andrew Fishburn
11 June 2021
Andrew Fishburn is VP Strategic Accounts EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Asia) with Snorkel Europe in Washington, Tyne & Wear, and MD of the group’s distributor Ahern Ireland. He has e…
Electric travel plans
11 June 2021
It’s been some time since my last update on the progress that Pete Beach is making with his new electric vehicle. The occasional series has aroused much interest as he is a high-mileage…
HALT on a roll
10 June 2021
Business continues to be strong for HALT Hire based in Stockton-on-Tees.
Demand is such that managing director Simon Whitfield tells me, “I’ve never known anything like…
Treble for Dorset Hire
9 June 2021
When I checked, I was amazed to see that it is almost exactly a year ago – shortly after launching the blog in June – that I spoke to Luke George about how busy his company was des…
Introducing Site-Eco!
8 June 2021
The need to protect the planet from global warming has been described as the defining issue of our generation. What will this mean for the hire industry?
The UK will set ambitious…
Vp looks forward
8 June 2021
Vp’s final results announced today for the year ended 31 March 2021 show the group emerging positively from the pandemic and anticipating strong growth in key markets.
Profit…
Kelsey’s fair Exchange
8 June 2021
Kelsey Plant Hire of Horsham has been acquired by the FTH Hire Group, bringing to seven the Farnborough-based company’s depot network.
The deal was handled by The Hire Exchan…
Busy builders, surging prices
7 June 2021
Statistics for the month of May show that the UK construction sector remains on its resurgent path, with the strongest output growth since September 2014.
Data from UK construction…
Murphy’s green lights
7 June 2021
Murphy Plant, the in-house equipment provider for the infrastructure company J. Murphy & Sons Ltd, has added significantly to the number of Trime lighting towers in its fleet.
The op…
Q&A: Jason Fielden
4 June 2021
Jason Fielden is a director of EPS Hire Centres in Yorkshire. It has depots in Sowerby Bridge and Mytholmroyd, the latter having re-located to a bigger site two years ago, which they have larg…
Demonstrating resilience
4 June 2021
One of the early posts on the blog last July was about how Makita UK had proactively prepared an on-line marketing campaign to launch its 40V Max range of cordless tools during the first lockd…
Speedy access additions
3 June 2021
Speedy has added 100 new boom and scissor lifts to its UK fleet as part of its powered access investment strategy.
The £3m investment in Skyjack equipment comprises articulat…
GAP protects mental health
2 June 2021
Much has been discussed about the impact of lockdowns and the pandemic on people’s mental health, particularly the possible long-term effects. Now GAP Group has launched what it claims t…
A year like no other
2 June 2021
Exactly a year ago today, and ten weeks after the first lockdown began, I launched this site to provide a historic record of the hire industry during the pandemic and the ways in which compani…
HS2 bid opportunities
1 June 2021
HS2 Ltd is to hold weekly webinars to tell British businesses about more than 400,000 contract opportunities that the high speed railway project will create.
‘Work with us We…
Flat-pack convenience
1 June 2021
Demand from construction businesses and event organisers for equipment to lower their carbon footprint has led to the portable toilet supplier Site Equip to add an innovative product line.&nbs…