16 April, 2024

Why is rental more sustainable?

Sustainability Blog

Rental is more sustainable. Recent research has found that renting can be 30% to 50% better for the environment when it comes to greenhouse gas emissions. This means that equipment rental can play a big role in helping contractors to meet increasingly ambitious sustainability goals.

Reduce carbon footprint

The research was conducted into the total carbon footprint of key types of equipment, including aerial work platforms. The study measured the carbon emissions of each equipment type over the full course of its life, from the manufacture and use through to disposal. The researchers then compared these life cycle CO2 emissions for purchased and rental machines.

The researchers working on the study created a CO2 calculator based on the factors which have the most impact on a machine’s carbon footprint, including utilization, specification, transportation, and maintenance.

The specification is all about using the right equipment for the job, both in terms of the appropriate working height and also the machine with the lowest emissions.

Utilisation refers to how intensely the machine is used. Rental machines tend to have high utilisation rates because when one customer has finished with a machine it is very quickly turned around and delivered to the next customer.

For transportation, rental companies carefwp-block-list ully plan their collections and deliveries to optimise the use of truck trailers.

And of course, maintenance is vital to extending the life of the machine.

Taken together all of these elements mean that a rental machine often has a much lower carbon footprint over its entire life than a purchased aerial work platform. That’s why rental is more sustainable. At Riwal we deliver quality and reliability to our customers and we also support the clients efforts towards sustainability.

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