European Rental Giant Cramo Posts Strong First Quarter
European rental giant Cramo reported €155.4 million (about U.S. $173.4 million) in the first quarter, compared to €147.1 million in 2015’s first quarter, a 5.7-percent increase. EBITDA meanwhile jumped 12.9 percent from €34.3 million to €38.7 million.
“During the first months of the year, the demand for equipment rental and modular space developed according to our expectations,” said Cramo CEO Leif Gustafsson. “We have managed to capitalize on the improved market situation in our main markets Finland and Sweden. Sales grew in Finland, Sweden and Denmark. Sales grew strongly in the modular space product area where rental sales increased by 9 percent.
“On the basis of the current outlook, I expect the demand for rental services to stay on a good level throughout the year. Over the long term, the increase in the use of rental services and modular space is supported by several megatrends, such as urbanization and sustainability.”
The construction market outlook for 2016 looks positive in the countries where Cramo does business. Analysts Euroconstruct and Forecon estimate that construction will increase in all of Cramo’s operating countries with the exception of Russia and Slovakia. The equipment rental market is expected to grow faster than construction.
Cramo, based near Helsinki, Finland, operates in 15 countries in Europe, as well as Russia.
About the Author
Michael Roth
Editor
Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.