BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — R&M Equipment, a North Birmingham, Ala.-based rental company, is investing $250,000 in a new building, the Birmingham Business Journal reported last month. The company carries an inventory of new and used forklifts, aerial hoists and cranes. Co-owners Mike Bohannon and Don Rydberg next week will begin constructing an 8,500-square-foot shop and storage building, which will connect with an existing 8,500-square-foot office and shop and 5,000-square-foot storage structure.

R&M was founded in 1993 and has developed a strong base of clientele among contractors and industrial facilities in the Birmingham area. Bohannon began his career as a service technician with Clarklift of Alabama and later with Jackson Equipment, meeting Rydberg while working on a project in Chicago. They began the company with about 60 machines and now have about 600, with a branch in Decatur, Ala.