RSC Going "Green" with Forklift Tires

Staff -- Associated Construction Publications, 6/30/2008

Scottsdale, AZ — RSC Equipment Rental, Inc., one of the largest equipment providers in North America, has become the first company to adopt solid tires nationwide on all new reach forklifts.

Partnering with suppliers such as JLG Industries on the introduction of solid tires, RSC is demonstrating that positive improvement to business and the environment can go hand in hand.  Solid rubber tires have a longer usable lifetime than either standard or foam-filled tires, lasting three to four times longer than their counterparts, leading to a decrease in down time, fewer costly replacements and elimination of waste. 

"This exciting step will benefit our rental customers by further reducing the likelihood of downtime caused by flats and related tire issues," said John McVeigh, vice president of product management.  "This investment will provide huge benefits in efficiency, customer service, reliability and availability, while positively impacting the environment and saving significant costs."

Advantages of Solid Tires

Using tires with a longer lifespan will help reduce the number of tires in landfills. However, according to RSC, there are also additional advantages beyond those of reliability and sustainability. Solid tires are designed to increase ride comfort when compared against other flat-resistant tires and they also meet the designated weight/ballast requirements for applicable reach forklifts, an important safety consideration for this type of machinery. 

The prior field evaluation and successful implementation of similar tires on applicable skid-steer and industrial forklifts in 2005 helped lead RSC to the decision to make solid tires the new standard spec for all newly purchased reach forklifts, as of May 2008.

Best Practices Build Sustainability

RSC has been committed to providing customers with the most innovative solutions to their rental needs. What has been considered the company’s best practices has resulted in making a positive, significant impact on the environment to help reduce their carbon footprint. Solid tires are one example of RSC’s commitment to green practices and the idea that together, many small changes can help build a more sustainable future.

By implementing an equipment refurbishment program in 2001, RSC’s environmentally safe parts washers in 2003 and beginning the evaluation of solid tires in 2005, RSC has already reduced CO2 emissions by over 26 million tons. RSC anticipates that they have saved more than $100 million by the implementation of these and other programs that focus on the needs of their customers while positively impacting the environment.

"As an innovative leader in the rental industry and by partnering with our great suppliers, the introduction of products with a longer lifetime is also a responsible step in terms of managing our overall waste, efficiency and use of resources," stated McVeigh. "We believe this is a responsible choice in a differentiating area for our customers and our communities."

JLG Partnership

RSC is the only national rental chain that is asking for solid tires as standard on this equipment.  As such, they are actually impacting manufacturers’ decisions — influencing them to include these tires within their supply chain and factory options.

RSC has had a longstanding relationship with JLG, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of access equipment.  They were able to supply RSC with solid tires as standard on all new reach forklifts, as a factory upgrade.