IPAF members have global influence when speaking ‘with one voice’

Members of the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) command unparalleled influence on global industry regulation and standards, safety messaging and technical and training expertise, as analysis of this year’s Access 50 power list shows that together the organisation’s largest member companies control well in excess of half a million Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWPs) between them.

Access 50 is an annual listing of powered access rental companies ranked by total fleet size compiled by Access International, IPAF’s official magazine in the UK, published by the KHL Group. Analysis of the 2018 edition shows that 31 of the world’s largest MEWP rental companies are current IPAF members, including the three largest rental companies and four of the top five.

No fewer than 31 out of the world’s top 50 rental companies by fleet size are IPAF members, owning between them more than a third of the entire estimated global rental fleet of around 1.35 million units, and members should recognise the extraordinary influence in terms of shaping new industry standards and delivering powerful safety messages worldwide, according Tim Whiteman, the organisation’s CEO and Managing Director.

Tim Whiteman comments: “IPAF’s four largest IPAF member companies alone have a combined fleet size of more than 300,000 MEWPs at their disposal; the 31 IPAF members in the overall list together have 525,710 units – around two-fifths of the current estimated global rental fleet of 1.35 million.

“If you factor in the many smaller member companies also under the IPAF umbrella and that means the total combined rental fleet size of our members will be considerably larger – perhaps as much as 75% of the global rental fleet at best estimate.

“Geographically IPAF’s membership is also representative. The ten largest rental company members in IPAF are headquartered in the US, Japan, Belgium, the Netherlands, Finland, France and the UK. IPAF works hard to represent all its members and, by effectively speaking together with one voice, our membership has the power to influence our industry to promote the safe and effective use of powered access for the good of all owners, operators and contractors of this equipment.  

“The annual Access 50 listing is rigorously researched and, along with IPAF’s own annual Global MEWP Rental Market Report, provides a solid guide to the state of the powered access rental market worldwide. It’s therefore an important piece of business intelligence and shows an underlying confidence as companies expand their fleets and continue to grow through acquisitions.

“It’s a measure of where IPAF stands that we are now able to say that our members own such a sizeable proportion of the global rental fleet – the Access 50 only includes IPAF’s 31 largest rental members by fleet size.”

Nick Selley, Group Business Development Director at AFI-Uplift Ltd (26th in the list) and President of IPAF, adds: “There’s an impressive spread in terms of the countries in which IPAF is now represented, too, which is ideal when it comes to providing business and training support in multiple languages and markets, lobbying regulators, and helping to globalise standards in safety, design and operating best practice.

“What our analysis also demonstrates is the collective voice our members can speak with when it comes to improving safety and customer service, sharing technical knowledge and best practice, and influencing safety standards worldwide.”

Norty Turner, CEO of Riwal (placed 14 in the Access 50) and Vice-President of IPAF, comments: “IPAF membership is important to Riwal in order to provide our customers a high-quality and standardised safety training offering across all of the countries in which we operate.

“It is encouraging to see that so many of the Access 50 rental companies are IPAF members, representing a tremendous collective influence to further elevate the safety in our industry."

To read KHL’s latest Access 50 magazine, click here to view or download your digital copy. The IPAF Powered Access Global Rental Market Report 2018 is compiled by Ducker Worldwide and is available to purchase now via www.ipaf.org/reports