Perkins signs up with SmartEquip in North America

Engines supplier Perkins has signed up with SmartEquip to provide online aftermarket support and parts procurement for engine owners in the North American rental industry.

Perkins' US and Canadian distributors and rental company end-users will be able to undertake electronic parts and service procurement and access information on safety, training and warranty servicing through SmartEquip.

"Access to the SmartEquip Network will give Perkins customers in the rental equipment industry access to a field-proven, user-friendly system that simplifies and accelerates part ordering by providing direct access to the Perkins Distributor Product Support Network," said Perkins marketing manager, Mike Reinhart.

"With more than 1000 major equipment manufacturers using Perkins engines on a global basis -- many of which are represented in rental fleets -- the addition of SmartEquip access provides clear benefits for everyone concerned."

Mr Reinhart said SmartEquip will help improve equipment uptime, service efficiency, and parts inventory efficiency for fleet owners, and provide direct electronic access to our own distributor network.

"Not only will this lower the overall cost of ownership for Perkins powered equipment," he said, "it will also improve the value proposition for both Perkins and the OEMs who sell into this rapidly growing market."

Alexander Schuessler, SmartEquip's chief executive officer, said the company was "very honoured to have been selected by such a well-recognised global technology leader, and to be part of a solution that supports so many different types of users."

Perkins joins more 65 brands of construction equipment and a significant number of major rental companies who are using SmartEquip. Existing network members include Hertz, Sunbelt Rentals, Genie, JLG, Manitou, Volvo, John Deere and Doosan Infracore.

So far SmartEquip has focused mainly on North America and has yet to establish itself in other markets such as Europe.