It’s Labor Day, and that means, its time for you to order your equipment. Why is September the right time of year to order your equipment?
- Most of your season contracts should be signed by now, or if not signed, you should know pretty well by now who will sign. With an estimated amount of business, you can review your equipment list and determine what needs to be replaced and what you need to add to your line-up.
- It’s a lot easier to inspect your equipment when its warm out. Some of you might say “I can do it in my shop,” but inspecting your equipment in full sun can reveal small issues that will get worse during the plowing season, issues that are harder to see with less light but are found easily in full sun.
- Some of the best deals (such as this snow plow sale for up to $1000 off a v-plow that fits a 1/2 ton truck) are found this time of year. The manufacturers want to offload the inventory they have built up all year and they don’t want you to choose “those other guys.”
- October Snow Storms do happen. You can’t afford to wait until October because by the time you realize an early snow is coming, you will get stuck at the back of the line during one of the busiest install periods of the year.
- You are guaranteed to get what you want this time of year. Snow Plow manufacturers often have their manufacturing schedule for the snow season locked up around September or October (and some even earlier). If you go shopping for equipment in December, your options may be limited. Have you ever tried to buy a replacement plow in January during a heavy winter? If you have, you know exactly what I mean. The pickin’s are slim and the prices are not always flexible.
- Most of the big contractors plan their equipment order in September. Why should you care? Most big contractors didn’t become big by accident. They have a carefully crafted schedule of what they do each month of the year and, they know getting their ducks in a row in September makes good business sense.
- Your SIMA says so. If you are a member of SIMA, you can open up your guide that tells you what to do when during the year, and guess what starts to happen in September? That’s right, equipment purchases.
