EQUIPMENT FINANCE, RENTAL & LEASING
minimising cost and risk, Sandvik rentals are the
cost-effective short-term solution,” the company
said.
This will see the OEM provide timely deliveries
of ready-to-work rental units from available stock
as a short-term replacement if a piece of
equipment suffers prolonged unexpected
downtime, it said. “Or, if a customer needs specific
functionality or additional output capacity for a
project, Sandvik’s flexible rental solution enables
customers to increase their capabilities without
increasing capital expenditure.”
The standard bundle rental offering will include
equipment, rock tools, parts, servicing and
inspections, it said, with van den Berg saying the
company is in the process of building up the fleet
and had intentions to go live later in the year.
Sandvik’s big rival, Epiroc, also has a rental fleet
comprising drill rigs, mine trucks, loaders, and to a
lesser extent hydraulic attachments, simulators
and other mining and construction equipment. It
has also seen a rise in demand for rental
equipment, with sales going from SEK422 million
($42.3 million) in 2017, SEK522 million in 2018
and SEK572 million in 2019, although IM
understands mining equipment rental is only a
small portion of this.
Caterpillar, too, has dealers in certain markets
able to offer rental solutions to mining companies
and contractors.
Sandvik’s rental offering, meanwhile, is likely to
expand, with the
company talking
about a ‘batteries-
as-a-service’
solution for its
battery-electric
mining equipment,
much of which is
supplied by
subsidiary Artisan
Vehicle Systems.
Already
established by rival
Epiroc with its zero-
emission
underground
vehicles, such a
solution can bring
down the capital associated with acquiring this
new environmentally friendly equipment, while
also offloading the service and upkeep of
batteries to the OEM or manufacturer.
van den Berg explained: “From our point of
view, that is all part of a rental solution; probably
one of our most sophisticated rental solutions.
“It is being developed between our Load and
Haul Division, Parts & Services Division and us
(Sandvik’s finance division). We’re the experts
when it comes to asset management, Artisan
Vehicle Systems is the expert when it comes to
the battery-electric vehicles, and Parts & Services
National Group’s Mark Ackroyd says the
company has just picked up a new mining
automation contract with a large mining house.
Details are expected to be made public shortly
is the expert when it comes to the maintenance
and servicing of these battery technologies.”
Competition for contracts
As the OEMs continue to leverage their equipment
expertise by bolting on new financing solutions,
those specialised in the rental game are also
diversifying.
One of the leading rental companies in