Home Depot expands product distribution with $5.5bn deal
The Home Depot in the US is to acquire building products distributor GMS Inc for US$5.5 billion, including net debt. The deal is being made through Home Depot’s trade subsidiary SRS Distribution and will further expand its position supplying building products to professional customers. SRS, which was acquired by Home Depot in 2024, has 800 […]
HMF kit to turn a crane into a MEWP
Danish crane manufacturer HMF has a new personnel basket conversion kit to turn a crane into a mobile elevating work platform. It takes just minutes to switch between the two, HMF said, helping to make it a practical ‘plug and play’ proposition. In confined spaces where a crane is operating and there is no space […]
Gulf giga-projects fuel surge in construction equipment rental demand
A wave of giga-projects across the Gulf—most notably in Saudi Arabia—is triggering unprecedented demand for construction equipment rentals, as regional governments push ahead with large-scale infrastructure schemes to diversify their economies and accommodate rapid population growth. In 2024 alone, Saudi Arabia awarded an estimated $148bn in construction contracts, the highest annual figure ever recorded by […]
AXCS names new product manager
AXCS Equipment has announced Paul Michaels as the company’s new Group Product Manager. One of Michaels’ primary responsibilities will be to work on the development and deployment of the company’s new and expanding product portfolio. He will be responsible for overall customer experience and product strategy by translating market needs and determining how both legacy […]
Sunbelt Rental UK aims for “smarter decisions” with Salesforce partnership
Sunbelt Rentals UK & Ireland has partnered with Salesforce, the customer relationship management (CRM) platform, as part of its strategy to transform its digital operations. The deal will include implementation of Saleforce’s AI package, Agentforce, which creates autonomous AI agents to handle tasks and support for employees and customers. Phil Parker, CEO of Sunbelt Rentals […]
Alimak acquires Century Elevators in the US
Sweden-based Alimak Group has signed an agreement to acquire the permanent industrial elevator business Century Elevators. Century Elevators, which has an annual turnover of approximately US$9.7 million, is headquartered in Webster, US, and has been owned by BrandSafway since 2019. Founded in 2009, Century has established itself as one of the leading suppliers of industrial […]
New high capacity telehandler from XCMG
XCMG has launched a heavy duty 23 tonne telehandler. Apart from its 23,000kg lifting capacity, the XT23010K boasts a maximum lifting height of 9.8m. It is designed to be suitable across a range of applications, using a number of attachments, including fork lifting, earth moving, hoisting and work using an aerial platform in construction, agriculture […]
EquipmentShare reveals scale of US rental business
EquipmentShare, the fast-growing US rental business, has revealed revenues of US$3.9 billion for the 12 months to 31 March 2025. That takes it into the same size territory as Herc Rentals in terms of revenues (before Herc’s acquisition of H&E Equipment) and make it a top four rental business in the US and worldwide. The […]
Up and down: AccessM20 ranking reveals access sector slowdown amid macroeconomic headwinds
Turnover for the world’s largest access manufacturers grew by less than 2% in 2024, down from 21.6% the previous year as a convergence of macroeconomic challenges curbed momentum in what had been a rapidly growing market. Weakening industrial activity across Europe and China, as well as a cooling in the North American rental segment meant […]
New managing director for APS
The UK’s largest provider of new and used equipment Access Platforms Sales (APS) has appointed Andy Bray to the position of Managing Director. Bray, who also becomes a shareholder of the company, started in the role on 7 July and previously served as Managing Director at Versalift United Kingdom. He is currently a member of […]