Last week I had the opportunity to attend the Vanguard Rental eSummit hosted by Briggs & Stratton. It brought together various members of the rental industry to discuss the state of electrification within the sector, including several companies from the fluid power space who are helping develop solutions for this industry.
Attending the event provided me with the opportunity to hear some different perspectives on electrification I don’t always get from my discussions with those on the design side of things. For instance, one of the presenters was from an association that represents dealers who spoke about the need to consider dealers in the shift to electrification and the impact it will have on their business models which are so focused on service.
With reduced maintenance touted as a benefit of electrification, where does this leave dealers? This is something he said the OEMs will need to consider, otherwise they’re not going to want to help push electric machines into the market.
The biggest takeaway from the event for me though was that electrification is still an area of interest for many but it’s critical to ensure it is used where it makes the most sense, something that has become a common theme when discussing electrification these days — and something which I think resonates with all machinery applications, not just those in the rental market.
Where do you see electrification developments today? Is this still a focus area for your company and customers? Have suggestions for electrification-related topics you’d like to see covered in the future? Feel free to send me an email me at [email protected] to offer your thoughts.
Sara Jensen, Editor, Power & Motion
