The New Talking Point for MEWPs – Southeast Asia Think Global. Act Local.

(Sep 2018) What lies between the 2 established MEWP markets, Singapore and China, is the land of potential. Aver Asia is now recognized globally as one of the biggest rental companies in the Southeast Asia region (Access International, Aug-Sep 2018 Issue).
Our company is recently featured in Access International. The international publication is a reputed industry-focused magazine with high editorial quality and independence from any commercialized pressure.

Our COO, Ben Koh, was interviewed and shared his views about the regional MEWP markets. He cited that MEWPs have slowly replaced rickety structures such as towering timber scaffolding, and gained popularity across Southeast Asia. The change was up-lifted by demand for productivity and safe work-at-height solutions.

Ben gave the international audience a history lesson too. In Singapore, the MEWP evolution started in 1992 with the construction of Suntec City, one of the largest mall in the city state, which also housed the iconic Fountain of Wealth. By the way, the fountain is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest fountain in the world.

With a resilient government, Singapore paved a fast-tracked use and development of MEWPs, much admired by our neighbors. Ben elaborated that when a country is in the industrialization stage, it attracts foreign investments and with that comes a culture of safety and efficiency.

After Singapore, he shared that the other forerunners in Asia are Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam. “There are also bright spots, one of which is Myanmar. This is a country with a lot of potentials now… … I think the pace will pick up.” he added.

Currently, Malaysia has a MEWP fleet size of 4,000-5,000. It is still notably far from the 12,000 Singaporean fleets. However, Malaysia is seen by many industry leaders, including our COO, as the next big MEWP market that can greatly influence the growth in Southeast Asia.
One of the challenges currently facing the region and the rest of the world is the lack of skilled field service staff to support MEWPs. Ben candidly addressed as with improved living standards, it is only expected that fewer people want to work under the sun. “Language is also another barrier as they can’t read the manuals.”

We do have our concerns about passing on the trade. In 2016, Aver Asia teamed up with the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) to provide a 3-year training course.

“I have a 10-year vision for Southeast Asia. We know that there is a lot of room for development in some of the countries, which have huge geographical areas. So, our vision is to think global, act local.”

Aver Asia is no. 36 in the World Stage!

(Sep 2018) Drop your pen and stop whatever you are doing. Give yourself a pat on the shoulder. With the concerted efforts from everyone, Aver Asia has thrived to the 36th spot (up 4 positions) in the Access 50 Rental Fleets, in 2018.

There seem to be some noticeable trends amidst the world’s largest rental companies over the past year. One of which is to buyout and to be dominant in each territory they are in. For example, the Loxam Group, re-securing 3rd position, has newly acquired Spain-based Hune and Italy-based Nacanco.

Another prominent trend that goes hand in hand with the first trend is brand awareness. Many big rental companies are building their brands. It is worth noting that TVH group has undergone a rebranding exercise to be known as Mateco.
Southeast Asia is now in the limelight as the key new market for MEWPs. Among the countries, Singapore is an established and mature market. Aver Asia, is one of three Singapore-based rental companies, in the Access 50 Rental Fleets ranking. The other two rental companies are Galmon and LH Construction & Machinery Leasing.

Aver Asia saw an uptick of 8% in MEWP fleet and 38% in Telehandler fleet in 2018. We, like some of the other key players, are also growing in greatness for the past year – 3 new overseas offices, acquisition of AsiaMac and a new corporate image. This significant stage and such swift strategic expansion can only be made possible by a great “A” team!