Okay, you have a job to do and you need a crane to do it. Do you rent a crane or buy one? What are some of the pros and cons? Well, you’ve come to a good place to find out…
Construction Crane Rentals
If you’re thinking of renting a crane, there are several “pros.” You get access to modern cranes that have “the latest features.” Plus, you can usually have several to choose from, too. When you rent, you don’t have to pay maintenance expenses, inspection/service costs or transportation costs. Better yet, you also don’t have to make a long-term capital investment. And if you get on the job and discover you need a different crane, you can ask the rental company to supply you with one. Meanwhile, renting a crane gives you the opportunity to “try it before you buy it” in order to see whether you like it or loathe it. Sometimes crane rental companies have specialty cranes and/or customizable equipment so you can meet your specific needs. Plus, you will have minimal to no storage costs and you don’t have to worry about depreciation since you’re renting it instead of owning it.
Are there some “cons” to renting cranes? Sure. What if the company you want to rent from doesn’t have the crane available that you need because someone else has booked it for the time you need it? What if you have to spend additional time training your operator to learn the rental crane before he or she does the job– after all, it might be a model they’re not instantly familiar with… Also, depending on how long you need it, a rental could end up costing more than buying one, especially if it’s a long-term project.
Construction Crane Purchases
What about buying a crane? Should you do that? Well, there can be some tax benefits involved, including deducting some/all of the equipment from your business taxes as well as the depreciation expense being tax deductible. Meanwhile, new cranes should last a long time– several decades– so you could get a lot of use out of the one you buy over 20 or 25 years. When you own the crane, you have 24-7-365 access to it– you’re not beholden to a rental company; You don’t have to wait for a crane to become available. Finally, if you choose to sell the crane, it probably has residual value so you could sell it and make a decent amount of money– or trade it in for an upgraded model.
How about some “cons” to buying a crane? Are there any? Definitely. When you buy and then own a crane then you’re responsible for everything about it– from maintenance to repairs and then some. Meanwhile you have to get insurance coverage for operators and each job where the crane is used.
You’re also going to have to pay for operator training, certification and licensing. As the crane ages, it might not work as well and/or it starts to feel out-of-date without the latest features or options. Since cranes are expensive, you have to make a long-term capital investment. You also have to pay transportation and storage costs.
Most companies prefer to rent cranes rather than buy them. It saves money because renting is almost always cheaper than buying… Cranes that get rented out are checked by the company renting them to ensure they’re in excellent working order. If there’s something wrong, the rental company has to make it right. Also, most companies don’t have anywhere to store a crane, so it makes sense to rent one for a short time rather than worry about where to store one long-term.
Cranes are powerful machines that are used for many projects in New England, including the cities of Boston, Providence and Hartford. If you want to know more about crane rentals in this region, please contact Astro Crane at 978-429-8666 or use the contact form, here: Astro Crane rents cranes from 6 to 600 tons!
