Germany Construction Equipment Rental Market - Strategic Assessment & Forecast 2023-2029

The Germany construction equipment rental market size crossed USD 6.08 billion in 2022 and is expected to reach USD 8.36 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 4.65% during the forecast period. The country’s government investment in redevelopment and repair projects for public infrastructure, such as roads, highways, airports, and railway stations, across the country in 2022 is expected to drive demand for rental equipment. Germany is the second largest construction equipment rental market after the UK, according to ERA (Europe Rental Association) report. Renting compact equipment such as mini excavators, lifts & telehandlers is growing in the Germany construction equipment rental market as these equipment are majorly used for small construction projects.

The long-term plan by the government for the residential construction industry and investments in infrastructure projects are major factors that support economic recovery in the country. For instance, in 2022, the government planned for the rehabilitation & repair of roads across the country. The government aims to launch over 200 construction projects across the country. The government also allocated USD 429.2 million for road network maintenance in Baden Wurttemberg State. The demand for construction equipment rental is expected to grow in 2022 due to the rise in economic uncertainty caused by increased energy prices and inflations in Germany. The growing economic uncertainty forbids construction companies & contractors from investing large capital in buying equipment for their projects. Therefore, they prefer to rent construction equipment instead of buying a new one, thereby boosting the Germany construction equipment rental market.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• The material handling segment in the Germany construction equipment rental market accounted for a share of 51.4% of the overall construction equipment rental industry. The aerial platform accounted for the largest market share of, 52.1% of the material handling. The demand for the aerial platform is high due to its extensive use in the warehouse & logistics industry. Government investment in building renovation projects also boosts the demand for aerial platforms.
• Infrastructure upgradation projects, such as the renovation of commercial buildings, railway stations, & airports, the repair of runways, and the extension of roadways & bridges, in rural parts of the country, are driving the high demand for the Germany construction equipment rental market.
• The rental of construction equipment provides the benefit of avoiding the high capital costs, costly maintenance of construction equipment & availability of new technology-equipped construction equipment.
• The government invests USD 14.99 billion annually in the logistics sector. This investment is expected to drive the construction of warehouses across various locations in Germany, for instance, Maersk's construction of a warehouse in Duisburg. The implementation of digital technology in the logistics & warehouse industry is expected to support the growth of these sectors in 2022. Maersk has started the construction of a 43,000-square-meter warehouse in Germany. High investment in logistics & warehouse sectors is expected to drive the demand for renting forklifts & aerial platforms such as scissor lifts, articulated boom lifts & telescopic boom lifts.
• Renting electric forklifts is also growing in the German industry due to trends in zero-emission warehouses. In 2022, DHL, the world’s leading contract logistics provider, planned to construct a 400,000 sqm carbon-neutral warehouse in major European markets, including Germany.
• Rising building material prices, shortage of skilled labor force & low local production of equipment can hamper the Germany construction equipment rental market. However, digital transformation in the construction equipment rental industry to enhance customer satisfaction will drive demand in the industry.

MARKET TRENDS & DRIVERS

A Surge in Inflation Rate & Energy Prices Supports Construction Rental Market
In 2022, Germany faced the challenge of rising inflation and persistently high energy prices, impacting consumer purchasing power and the country’s economic growth. The inflation rate rose to 10.4% in October 2022. The inflation rate also impacted the construction industry and affected projects’ estimated budget, leading to revision and higher costs than the project's estimated budget. Rising labors & building material costs are major challenges the German construction industry witnessed in 2022. According to the Federal Statistical Office, building materials such as wood (64.1%), steel (53.2%) & iron (25.4%) prices rose in 2022 as compared to 2021. Sharp rise in inflation, high energy prices, & growing prices of building materials are expected to support the Germany construction equipment rental market growth. The ongoing war between Russia & Ukraine further worsens the country’s market challenges. According to IMF, Germany is expected to continue facing rising inflation rates in 2023.

Renting Companies Facilities Drive Growth of Construction Equipment Rental Market
The value of equipment leasing in Europe was USD 25.6 billion in 2021, according to Equipment Rental Association (ERA), and Germany is one of the largest markets for equipment leasing in Europe. According to ERA, the German rental and leasing market of construction machinery grew by 4.2% in 2021. The equipment renting industry is expected to grow primarily owing to the presence of small and medium-sized construction companies, such as Bagela Baumaschinen GmbH & Co., Multimon Group, and Miltex GmbH. Zeppelin GmbH and HKL Baumaschinen GmbH account for the industry market share in construction equipment rental & leasing in Germany.

Some construction machinery rental companies are providing trained operators for operating rented equipment. Other construction equipment rental companies are also providing logistics & insurance facilities to attract new customers. For instance, Klarx renting construction machinery company provides logistics & insurance facilities to its customer.

Construction Equipment Rental Companies Focus on Digital Technologies
German Tech company UMT (United Mobility Technology) launched an online rental marketplace called Smart Rental based on Mobile App in 2022. The company also develops the technology to digitize business processes, including online payment tools & equipment testing tools. Smart Rental joins other online rental marketplaces such as Klarx and Klickrent (owned by construction equipment rental company Zeppelin Group) to increase the customer service base. The use of these technologies grew in 2022 due to a surge in Germany construction equipment rental market.

INDUSTRY RESTRAINTS

Shortage of Skilled Workers Is Expected Restrict Sales of Rental Construction Equipment Market
The German construction industry is facing the challenge of a shortage of workforce in 2022. According to the German construction association, there will be a shortage of 100,000 construction workers in the German industry by 2030. Factors such as an aging workforce and low availability of skilled labor force are major challenges in the country’s industry in 2022. According to German government data, the country is expected to have more than 2,00,000 skilled workers shortage over the next four years. Rapid technological advancement for digital transformation increases the requirement for a skilled labor force. The German market's shortage of skilled workers is expected to hamper the sales of new technology-equipped rental equipment.

Low Manufacturing of Construction Equipment Impacts Rental Equipment Stocks
According to VDMA, German construction machinery production is expected to grow by only 1% in 2022; the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine has adversely impacted the supply chain of construction machinery. Further, the German construction association cautioned about the delay in supplying new equipment in the industry due to a shortage of raw materials (iron, nickel, & steel) imported from Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. It is estimated that the Germany construction equipment rental market can get impacted due to the low availability of stocks in the rental company’s fleet.

VENDOR LANDSCAPE

• Caterpillar, Volvo Construction Equipment, Liebherr, Komatsu, JCB, Hitachi Construction Machinery, Hyundai Construction Machinery, and Prominent vendors in the Germany construction equipment rental market SANY & XCMG.
• Other prominent vendors in the industry include Terex corporation, LiuGong, JLG & Takeuchi.
• Liebherr, Caterpillar, Volvo Construction Equipment, JCB, & Komatsu are the Germany construction equipment rental market leaders and have a strong industry share. These vendors offer various products in the Zeppelin Group.
• JLG, LiuGong & Terex Corporation are niche players in the German rental industry. They offer limited products to cater to customers requiring material handling equipment majorly.
• SANY Construction Equipment launched the SY390H range of crawler excavators with a capacity of over 30 tonnes in the European industry.