Business across the world from retailers to builders rely on forklift trucks to run their companies smoothly every day, making tasks like moving stock and storing items much easier. If your business is growing, and you find yourself looking for a solution to help you manage your stock more effectively, it may be tempting to buy a forklift truck outright – but here are some reasons why hiring may prove to be a better option in the long term.
Flexibility
All businesses have seasonal changes in demand that are affected by anything from the weather to the price of commodities, and with those changes come peaks and troughs in the strain on your logistics. When business is good, you may need a forklift truck to keep your stock moving and clear the delivery floor for new products – but when there is less business, you may find you use your forklift less than you’d like. Hiring a forklift guarantees you’ll only have your forklift when you need it, and you won’t have to pay to keep it maintained while it’s idle in the off-season, so you could end up saving money over the whole year.
Similarly, if you find that you don’t have enough forklift capacity to keep up with your orders, you can always add more units to your fleet without incurring large capital costs, and you won’t be left maintaining them when the rush is over.
Range
Forklifts can be useful for a whole range of tasks, from carrying heavy loads to lifting them up to height, and there are a variety of specialist designs that are specially engineered for the job in hand – including compact, hand operated and heavy duty designs. There are also many different modifications that can be specified, which give benefits like extra torque for the heaviest loads or extra lifting power to take heavy loads to the highest shelves. Businesses have many demands placed on them during a year, and there’s no guarantee that you’ll be requiring the same forklift solution from one month to the next, but not many companies can afford to spend money on a new truck each time a new requirement comes up.
Renting forklifts instead of buying them means that, for businesses with changing needs, you can always have the specialist type of forklift you need to hand without the capital outlay. Forklifts for hire come in all shapes and sizes with a great range of capabilities, so you’ll never be left without the tool you need.
Maintenance
Repairs to any tool can be expensive when it breaks down, and you also have to consider the money you’re losing during the downtime caused by the fault. One of the many benefits of hiring a forklift is that, whatever the duration of your hire, you’ll have a team of trained forklift technicians watching your back. With a forklift hire, you’re taking the most cost-effective solution to the problem of maintenance by ensuring you always have a backup if you run into mechanical issues – whether that’s a quick repair or a replacement unit.
Hiring is also a good investment from a maintenance perspective in the long term, with a programme of regular maintenance and servicing making sure that your machine is kept in top condition. The units are regularly serviced and tested to ensure they are at peak performance, and you won’t be shocked by any unexpected bills for repair or replacement.
Upgrades
Your growing business is constantly trying to work faster and harder to bring in more money, and you can’t be held back by outdated equipment. Luckily, with hired forklifts, it’s much easier and cheaper to replace your fleet when you need to take that step up. Whether it’s a complete overhaul to match very different need, or simply an investment in a more capable model, it’s possible to get your new machines in the field at minimal cost.
You can also deploy your new fleet safe in the knowledge that further upgrades later on are just as easy to achieve, and you won’t suffer from the depreciation of your machine’s value over time. It is also very easy to vary the number of trucks you have at any one time depending on your usage patterns, without the difficulty of buying and selling the vehicles.
Legal
Companies that use forklifts have a raft of health and safety legislation they must abide by to stay the right side of the law – from the maintenance and licensing of the vehicle to the risk associated with having them within your business. If you don’t have the resources to manage those questions yourself, the hire company can help you with everything from compliance to managing risk and maintenance issues. This can save you a lot of money in the long run by keeping your staff and your machines safe.
