ERA publishes digitalisation report
26 January 2023
The European Rental Association (ERA) has released a report entitled ‘The impact of digitalisation in the equipment rental industry’, which aims to raise awareness among all hire companies and related organisations in Europe about the challenges involved and to highlight elements of best practice.
The association says the report answers critical questions related to digitalisation in the industry, provides a window into how companies are leading the transformation, highlights the opportunities and threats posed by the changes, and provides practical advice and guidance for businesses to meet these challenges.
Michel Petitjean, Secretary General of the ERA, said: “Digitalisation is transforming the commercial landscape for rental companies, with implications for their sales, marketing, operations, asset management, business models and more. With this report, we hope to give the rental industry a resource of real value for understanding and navigating this transformation.”
One factor said to be driving change are sustainability requirements such as city centre zero emission zones and carbon emission reporting which can be delivered by digital solutions. In addition, areas such as insurance are looking at digitalisation as a means to reduce premiums due to the positive impact on Health & Safety and theft.
The report also recognises that hire companies may have limited resources to develop their own digitalisation solutions, and that off-the-shelf software and platform solutions are available to suit individual organisations’ strategic priorities and goals.
The research project was led by the ERA Future Group, which brings together young managers from hire companies to provide insight and vision on strategic issues. It was carried out by epi Consulting, an award-winning international sustainability, strategy and innovation consultancy based in the UK.
● Read the report here. https://digitalisation.erarental.org/
Photo: Tima Miroshnichenko
