During a recent conversation with a general manager of an aerial equipment rental company I asked him if his sales staff or delivery drivers ever get involved in site assessment, walking around a jobsite that is renting his equipment and scouting for potential hazards. His answer was a straightforward “No.” That is the job of the contractor, he explained. It's not my responsibility, I just rent the equipment.
Another rental manager, however, saw it quite differently. “There are great advantages in looking at a jobsite and accessing the hazards,” he explained. Don't forget, he pointed out, this is our equipment that can get damaged if the jobsite is unsafe. He also pointed out the possibility of an injury to the operator if he should have an accident.
Outside of the fact that nobody in this industry wants to see anybody get hurt while operating a piece of aerial equipment, there is also the fact that if somebody has an accident, his attorney will look for any potential source of culpability other than operator stupidity. That could be the contractor on the jobsite, the owner of the project and — perhaps the easiest target to go after — the provider of the equipment itself. Almost anybody in the rental business knows what those lawsuits are like. It doesn't matter if you're probably free of responsibility. Where do you want to start your week on Monday morning — at your rental center operating or improving your business or at your attorney's office? Take your pick.
Sure, some jobsites won't want your staff poking around the jobsites, but some contractors appreciate it if you suggest that your guy takes a look around to look for potential safety issues on the jobsite. That job is subject to ANSI and OSHA safety standards and assessing potential hazards is part of those requirements. A lot of contractors are busy, under pressure and understaffed and many would appreciate your help in this area.
Site assessment can even be a source of income. Offering it as a service is probably the best way to start out, but you might be able to offer it as a value-added billable service.
If I haven't convinced you of the value of hazard assessment on your customer's jobsite, I urge you to read the article on this subject “Inspect the Worksite for Hazards,” written by JLG's David Baxter on this topic. You can read it in the March issue of RER or access it online at http://rermag.com/features/inspecting-worksites-20100301/.
A veteran of the aerial industry, Baxter is far more articulate on the matter than I am.
Whether you look at inspection as a source of income, a way to prevent an accident, a value-added service to your customer, or a way to protect your equipment from damage — or all of the above — the amount of time these safety precautions are likely to take are nothing compared to the time imposition an accident will cause. Not to mention costs or injury or worse.
