Competition is set to increase in
the leasing of materials handling (MH) assets in 2010, as lenders
with vendor-based growth ambitions make inroads on a surprisingly
robust market.
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BNP Paribas Lease Group (BPLG), through its
Equipment & Logistics Solutions (ELS) division, seems keen to
hold on to its prominent role in the industry, where it trades as
Albury Asset Rentals.
Kevin Lofting, the long-standing manager of
Albury, retired last month after more than 12 years of service. The
French lessor’s subsidiary will now be managed directly by UK
country manager Benoit Dilly.
However, BPLG has a new resource for MH
expansion: Brian Warbrick, the new head of key accounts for ELS,
who has specialised in MH for 20 out of his 30 years in leasing. It
is thought he has been brought on board to develop vendor
relationships. Warbrick worked with Lofting at Capital Asset
Finance, before it was acquired by vendor specialist De Lage Landen
(DLL). For the last six years, Warbrick has been country sales
manager for DLL’s materials handling and construction
divisions.
Warbrick said: “I feel BPLG is ideally placed
with its size and group/parent background to capitalise on its
position in the market place, particularly as other funders are
repairing their structures due to past over lending.”
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By GlobalDataNot all other funders are licking their
wounds, however. HSBC Equipment Finance (HEF) is known to be
determined to grow its lease book significantly in the next three
years, and has identified MH as a key expansion area.
HEF’s materials handling division is headed by
Adrian Shepherd-Roberts, who reports to structured asset finance
manager Bill Cuff, and deals with a number of vendor partnerships
as well as processing business from HSBC customers.
An even newer competitor is Bibby Leasing,
which has just gained an important foothold in the MH market by
forming a sole funder partnership with Italian brand CESAB.
CESAB, owned by Toyota, is known to be
pursuing market share in the UK, and is known to have funding
relationships with BNP Paribas. The selection of Bibby to help it
grow in Britain shows changes may be afoot in the MH leasing
market.
