9 January 2017
 Categories: , Blog

Hiring construction equipment for a building project is generally more cost-effective and convenient than purchasing it outright. If you decide to go down this route, here are a couple of tips which should help to make this process a little easier.

Find out what equipment you really need

One of the biggest (and most costly) mistakes made by those hiring construction equipment for the first time is failing to do their research regarding the ins and outs of their particular building project and thus paying for rental equipment which is either unsuitable or simply surplus to requirements. If, for instance, your project will involve handling heavy loads of fragile materials (such as multiple sheets of glass or thin plasterboard), understanding the differences between various types of material-handling-equipment could end up saving you from making a very expensive mistake.

In this example, a crane would be a far more appropriate choice than, say, a forklift; this is because the former normally comes with 'soft' start and stop navigation features, that allow it to move delicate items from one area to another in a smooth, controlled manner, without any sudden lurches that could potentially result in costly damage. A forklift, on the other hand,  is usually better suited to the transportation of more robust materials.  

Take care when choosing your equipment provider

Not all equipment hire companies are equal. As such, it's important to do your research and make sure that you choose one which most suitable for your specific requirements. It's particularly important to shop around if you're working with a limited budget. If, for example, you need to hire a mobile crane, then it's a good idea to get mobile crane quotes from at least three different equipment providers, to ensure that you don't end up overpaying.

However, your budget shouldn't be the only factor that you take into consideration when choosing a company; you should also take things like equipment availability and the quality of their customer service into account too.

When speaking with representatives from hire companies, make sure to enquire about their equipment maintenance schedules, as well their returns policies; the latter is especially crucial as, despite your best efforts, you may end up having to return certain equipment after realising that it is not needed for your building project.

Lastly, don't forget to ask how long will it take them to respond to a complaint about a broken-down piece of machinery, and if their response times will be significantly slower if a problem arises outside of normal business hours. This is important, as a slow response could cause serious delays to your project if work cannot be done until the broken equipment has been repaired or replaced.