When Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers acquired SmartEquip for $175 million in September, Ritchie CEO Ann Fandozzi said it would give Ritchie “asset-specific full-lifecycle parts and service support” to dealers, OEM partners and equipment buyers. Of equal importance as SmartEquip considered suitors was continuating its multi-brand approach in the construction industry, says Alex Schuessler, SmartEquip founder and president, international group, talking with Equipment World. “There was a lot of interest from other industries and private equity firms, but what really drew us to this partnership with Ritchie was a continued commitment to our existing customer base,” Schuessler says. “It was important for us to preserve industry neutrality. It took us a long time for our customers to feel comfortable that we were truly neutral, so that was absolutely critical going forward.” In turn, SmartEquip, which provides software to support equipment lifecycle management, gives Ritchie a play on the parts, service and maintenance side of things, says Jim Kessler, president and COO, Ritchie. READ FULL ARTICLE>>
