LONDON - Ashtead Group PLC, British parent of Sunbelt Rentals and BET in the United States, reported that five-month sales ended Sept. 30 rose 77 percent compared with the year-ago period to $325.4 million. The U.S. rental operations, totaling about 150 locations, accounted for 62 percent of the total.

Sunbelt drove the increase, with revenue jumping 56 percent to $99.3 million in the five-month period. BET, which includes BPS, Aggregate and Ivy Hi-Reach divisions, contributed $100.8 million in the four months since its acquisition by Ashtead.

Ashtead also announced the acquisition of environmental test and measurement equipment supplier Response Rentals, based in Rochester, N.Y., from Eirtech for $5.8 million in cash.

The acquisition will allow Sunbelt to sell complementary specialist products, according to Ashtead chairman Peter Lewis. "Environmental concerns are driving strong growth in the rental of monitoring equipment," Lewis said.