Burnt Tree to invest more than £60m in new vehicles
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kevin.swattowtarbi.co.uk SHREWSBURY-BASED rental and leasing company Burnt Tree Vehicle Rental is to invest more than £60m in new vehicles throughout 2011.
The procurement plan will increase the rolling stock fleet by 1,000 to 12,000 vehicles. CEO Richard Metcalfe says 2011 is a particularly important year for investment and requires a large financial backing because of Burnt Tree's extensive modernisation programme and its continued growth as a nationwide company.
The firm spent a similar amount in 2007 and 2008, but 2011 is considered to be its biggest year for fleet investment, he says, naming Vauxhall, Ford, Volkswagen, DAF, Peugeot, Mercedes-Benz, Renault, and Toyota as some of the providers of the new vehicles.
The new arrivals will be going into the spothire fleet across its 16 sites, as more operators choose to rent rather than source and fund vehicles directly from manufacturers."Our spot hire service is a huge success as well as the demand of our flexible rental option, Xflex, across all fleet groups.
"This is probably down to businesses feeling cautious about longterm contracts because of these consistently uncertain economic times. Flexible rental provides a cost-control solution that can be tailored to fit the requirements of each business and can often seem like a bespoke fix to an unpredictable problem," he adds.
All the new vehicles will be wholly owned by Burnt Tree and the majority will be maintained through its in-house, mobile and accredited third-party workshops.