Efficient Plant November 2017 - 43

procurement strategies

RMC

Rent vs. Buy?
IS YOUR TEAM WRESTLING with rent/lease
vs. buy decisions regarding needed plant equipment and tools? Information on the U.S. General
Services Administration website (gsa.gov, Washington) sums up various benefits-most of which boil
down to lower costs, increased flexibility, and easier
access to expert support-that governmental agencies can realize by renting as opposed to outright
purchasing such items. Those benefits are applicable to non-governmental operations as well.

LOWERING YOUR
OPERATING COSTS
As the U. S. General Services Administration, Washington, makes clear, renting/leasing is an attractive option
for government agencies. The same can be said for
industrial operations, in that the approach leads to added
versatility and lower operating costs. To that end, some
of the specific-and potentially sizeable-costs that can
be avoided by renting equipment and tools instead of
purchasing include:
 warranties
 insurance
 regular maintenance and repairs
 storage
 transportation.

To learn more, go to gsa.gov/acquisition/purchasingprograms/gsa-schedules/list-of-gsa-schedules/
tools-hardware-and-appliances/equipment-rentaland-leasing.

NOVEMBER 2017

Renting needed equipment
and tools relieves sites of
costly burdens that come
with ownership.

According to the GSA, when it comes to deciding whether to
own or rent equipment there are many things to consider. One
is the burden of ownership that a plant doesn't have to assume
if renting. In short:

 Ownership requires a capital investment to cover the direct costs of equipment.
 Ownership also requires additional costs for such areas as a maintenance shop, maintenance
staff, training, and fuel.
 Renting keeps the burden of buying, maintaining, and selling the equipment on the
rental center.
 National rental companies make significant annual investments in the newest, most advanced
equipment on the market.

Rental companies also invest in maintenance staff to keep all
equipment in top condition. As for flexibility, the GSA notes
that renting, among other things, provides the ability to:

 take on a wide variety of jobs and projects that may require equipment you don't have the
capital to purchase
 use specialized equipment that can be obtained by renting
 allow equipment to be available when and where needed
 save time and money through availability and access.

Just as important, if not more so, renting provides access to
valuable knowledge and training through:

 up-to-date equipment, as well as expertise within the rental companies
 expert/experienced support with specialized equipment applications, including scaffolding
services, aerial specialists, and pump and power professionals. EP
-Jane Alexander, Managing Editor

EFFICIENTPLANTMAG.COM |

http://www.gsa.gov http://www.gsa.gov/acquisition/purchasing http://www.EFFICIENTPLANTMAG.COM

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Efficient Plant November 2017