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In-house preferences
With nearly one-third of respondents (31%) choosing an in-house option for R&M, the survey looked at reasons why. Some 41% said they have always done it that way and have facilities established on-site, which suggests a significant amount of inertia in the market.
Just over one-quarter of respondents said inhouse R&M gave them more control over fleet compliance, booking MoT slots, and servicing tests, while control of costs was a top reason for 16% of operators and easier management of downtime for 11%.
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Kitting out an in-house workshop can be a significant investment for operators, so we asked where the most likely source of larger items would come from: 54% bought from a generic garage equipment supplier, while 40% headed to a particular equipment manufacturer to make major purchases.
Under-vehicle inspection pits are a key function in any vehicle workshop and 46% of respondents said they would use a proprietary manufactured pit for their fleets. However, nearly one-third (32%) created a home-made pit solution for vehicles and the remaining 22% cited various methods such as post ramps and hydraulic lifts.
Larger operators were more likely to invest in a specialist manufacturers’ inspection pit, with 62% opting for this, compared with those running 10 or fewer trucks, who were evenly split between homemade and manufactured pits (41% for both).
Moveable vehicle lifts were the preferred lifting option for more than half of operators (56%), while 17% opted for fixed lifts. The remaining quarter of respondents cited a mixture of lifting technology, or did not use lifts.
In a question posed by sponsor Totalkare about smaller workshop equipment, the most popular items to likely buy in the next 12 months were trolley/bottle jacks, torque tools, compressors, mobile brake testers and workshop furniture.
Where do you purchase large in-house workshop equipment?
Through a buying group
2%
40%
54%
Directly from a workshop equipment manufacturer
From a garage equipment supplier
4%
Other
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