Key Takeaways:
Facility Maintenance Decisions recently spoke to Nico Viola, CFM, SFP, director of facilities at Holden Forests & Gardens. Viola has 20 years of experience in the facilities industry and currently serves as President of the IFMA Museums and Cultural Institutions Council. He was also honored as a recipient of the 2022 Facilities Champion Award.
He also discussed his thought process when it comes to renting vs. buying equipment and some recent decisions he’s had to make.
FMD: When deciding between renting vs. buying equipment for a job, what are the first things you look for?
Nico Viola: We start by running a cost-of-ownership analysis. It’s important to know that the value provided by the equipment will outweigh the purchase price, upkeep and life expectancy of the machine. Granted, you sometimes need to make an exception for specialized pieces of equipment that are hard to rent or need to be available for use rapidly.
FMD: What projects or factors influence when you decide to buy a piece of equipment?
Viola: We have a very large campus, nearly 4,000 acres. With that much land, you end up having one or two of everything just to keep up with normal maintenance. For me, the things that are so specialized or hard to rent get priority to purchase. Things we use on a regular basis for normal operations will always have a home in our fleet. Specialized items that don’t see much action, such as lawn aerators that are commonly available to rent, we normally choose to rent versus owning them and having them sit in the barn for ten to 11 months a year.
FMD: Are there different types of projects that you think determine whether it's easier to buy vs. rent?
Viola: Yes, definitely. Sometimes you might need a piece of equipment for a special project that may only be for six or 12 months long. You may not have much of a need for that machine after the project wraps up, but if in that window of time, it would cost more to rent, we would rather buy the machine – even if we end up selling it at the completion to recoup some of our capital.
FMD: Choosing the right rental company is an important consideration. When renting, what do you look for in a rental company?
Viola: Customer service is number one. We have accounts with a couple of providers but prioritize the ones who get our requests handled efficiently. If I need something, I do not want to worry about whether or not it will show up.
FMD: Has there ever been a situation that you have experienced where you realized you should have done one over the other?
Viola: Yes. Recently, we had a woodchipper go down, and we had to send it to the dealer for service. We use it frequently, so we had to rent a unit while ours was out. By the time I paid the repair bill and the rental bill, I was 60 percent cost-to-replace and still left with a 10-year-old woodchipper.
Hindsight being 20/20, I should have traded it in and replaced it rather than pay for six weeks of rental plus repairs.
FMD: What is your advice to other facility managers out there for choosing between renting vs. buying?
Viola: Know your numbers. Every organization runs differently, and some places prefer to own, some lease and some rent. There is no right or wrong answer because what works for one place may not work for another. But what is important is knowing what the full ownership lifecycle looks like, including repairs, insurance, fuel, etc. The better grasp you have on your numbers, the better prepared you will be for planning.
Alexis Sheprak is a freelance writer based in Royal Oak, Michigan.
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