Flexible rental
April 1st 2008

Traction battery management can be a financial and operational burden. Norco explains how flexible rental and fully integrated fleet supply, maintenance and management services deliver significant cost savings for customers compared with traditional offerings

When the purchase of a new forklift truck battery is not feasible or appropriate, Norco's rental offering is the simple, flexible and risk-free way to acquire a traction battery or charger for any length of time. Norco offers immediate access to a diverse inventory of products and can fulfil all requirements, from commonly used cell and tank types to more obscure types for older batteries.

Norco rental agreements are flexible with no obligation to sign for long periods.

Norco Power for Life Norco Power for Life is a fully inclusive service package specifically developed to reduce costs associated with replacing forklift truck batteries. This all-inclusive package ensures all batteries will perform throughout the life of the contract, regardless of age or condition. By fixing the cost of maintenance and replacements customers can effectively hedge movements in lead prices. Norco can support replacements through its rental fleet, and as costs are fixed at today's price, if the future price of lead were to fall, customers would be entitled to a lead price adjustment rebate.

Battery changing contracts Battery changing is a vital element in the smooth running of a warehouse or distribution centre. As battery management specialists, Norco can provide on-site staff and equipment support, removing the burden of effective battery changing, management and maintenance. For a fixed monthly fee a fully-managed service is provided, covering all aspects of battery maintenance including battery charging on demand, daily topping, regular inspection and replacement of all battery sets and battery waste management. A management reporting suite is also available through the company's RMS Extranet website. Battery topping contracts Battery topping is an essential part of battery maintenance, however many sites do not have the resources to perform this task.

Norco can provide battery topping contracts for any customer with any size fleet of batteries. In addition to regularly attending site to top and clean batteries, for a fixed monthly fee Norco engineers will carry out battery and charger inspections and perform routine maintenance on all assets, as well as providing all relevant health and safety systems and reports.

Priority response Norco has a team of highly experienced engineers located throughout the UK, which enables the company to provide a priority response service for all battery problems.

Engineers can be despatched promptly, ensuring reduced truck down time due to battery issues.

Norco can provide a battery management solution for any customer with any size fleet of batteries, which is customised to suit the individual working environment and budget.

Power for Life case study

Our client operated a mixed fleet of warehouse and electric counterbalance trucks in its distribution and stores operations. The fleet comprised in excess of 450 units across 100+ sites with a battery age profile ranging from 6 months to 6 years old.

Our client wished to extend the life of its FLT fleet by up to three years pending implementation of a phased replacement programme, following the completion of which the existing fleet would be scrapped.

Based upon the age profile Norco established that an investment in excess of £0.6m would be required to fund around 300 batteries needed to support the operation during the run-out period. Our client wished to mitigate this cost.

Drawing upon its inventory of used equipment Norco was able to offer our client an average rate of £3 per battery per week, fixed for up to three years, but ceasing to apply to batteries that were decommissioned during the run-out period, to underwrite the cost of all replacements required during the term.

Norco also agreed to visit each site on a quarterly basis to carry out routine maintenance, battery topping and repairs at a fixed cost per visit that resulted in an average rate of £2.50 per battery per week.

If the contract runs full term in respect of all assets, the combined cost over the life of the contract will represent a 33% saving over the forecast cost of replacements, with the added value benefit that all maintenance, repairs and components are included in the price. The offer will probably yield savings nearer 50% as the fleet is gradually replaced during the term and old assets are decommissioned.

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