Baird, in partnership with Rental Equipment Register magazine (RER), published the results of its second-quarter 2012 rental equipment industry survey, which showed continued double-digit rental revenue growth of 10.4 percent year over year, compared with 10.5-percent growth in the first quarter of 2012.
According to the survey, outlook for the remainder of the year reflects expectations for sustained solid growth with pricing trends to remain positive throughout 2012.
Rental rates showed slight growth in the second quarter, up 1.7 percent year over year, but down from the 3-percent growth reported in the first quarter of 2012. Strong underlying demand has continued to push rental rates higher but against increasingly difficult prior-year comparisons, the Baird/RER survey reports.
On average, use of time improved in the quarter to 58.9 percent compared to 53.6 percent in the first quarter of the year. Average use for Big Iron equipment was 61.1 percent, while Small Iron was 58.5 percent and other equipment was 52.5 percent in the quarter.
In the second quarter, respondents reported the number of items in their rental fleet had increased by 6.8 percent year over year, a slight increase from the 6.3-percent improvement reported in the first quarter. Respondents reported they expect to spend 6.2-percent more on fleet expansion over the next six months, a slight decrease from the 9.2-percent fleet-spending expectation reported in the first quarter.
Participants in the Baird/RER survey were senior executives or senior managers at regional divisions of rental equipment businesses in all regions of the United States, parts of Canada and some international markets, representing nearly $8 billion in annual revenue.
For more information, visit rwbaird.com or rermag.com.
