Article Written By: Clayton Arnold
Surplus and idle machinery can be a big problem for many businesses. Oftentimes, these organizations end up holding onto machinery that is no longer needed, resulting in overcrowded storage facilities, and high holding costs. One of the best ways to quickly clear out storage space and reduce holding costs is to sell your used industrial equipment and machinery.
The challenge most companies face when looking to sell their equipment revolves around the best-selling method for their assets. In this article, we will highlight the different options you can explore when looking to sell your used industrial equipment & machinery.
Auctioneers will typically review your list of surplus assets and depending on the assigned value of these items (usually heavily discounted), they will allocate a date and time to invite their network of buyers to participate in an in-person machinery auction. If the sale is not a high-value sale or doesn’t meet their minimum, they will typically group your assets with other organizations to reduce costs and effort. Through traditional bidding wars, the highest bidder will win the item and the auctioneers will take anywhere between 25-40% of the sale price as their fee.
These are vendors who specialize in the resell of specific equipment types. They are usually local and have a network of buyers around the area who are looking for particular types of equipment. Equipment dealers typically charge a fee of 30-40% of the equipment sale price.
You could choose to sell these items on your own by sending out an RFP detailing the items you have along with a final date to receive offers. You’d be responsible for all communications with these buyers as well as answering any questions the buyers may have during the process. Once you’ve agreed to the best offer, you’ll need to coordinate invoicing and payment collection as well as the safe removal and release of the assets. Proper documentation would be required for financial and compliance audits. There would be no upfront costs but this would require a considerable investment of your own time and effort to coordinate.
If your Supply Chain or Procurement teams have a group of buyers they generally work with, you could choose to sell these surplus assets through an Invite Only Sale to give this group exclusive access to your items. Some organizations may also want to open the Sale Event up to their employee base. Although there is no actual cost associated with this option, you will need to coordinate every step involved in the sale. Your target audience may be limited, meaning you could potentially see a lower return and the items may take longer to sell.
Lastly, you could consider an online Marketplace, where there is typically a network of willing and waiting buyers from around the world looking to purchase all types of different assets and equipment. These Marketplaces will help you host a sales event, (some will even offer complimentary marketing to attract buyers), facilitate the end-to-end invoicing and payment process, and have transaction details and reports for your audit purposes. All the above would take place online so there is no need to transport assets to a certain location prior to setting up a sale. Shipping arrangements would be made only after a sale has been approved. Typical fees are around 15-25% but some Marketplaces will charge this fee to the Buyer only, known as the Buyer’s Premium. This means there would be no cost for you to use this service.
The Aucto Marketplace allows you to sell your used and surplus industrial assets to motivated buyers in just a few clicks. Our web-based platform simplifies the way used, and surplus industrial assets and inventory are sold, by directly connecting sellers to qualified buyers in over 70 countries.
We help our clients sell their surplus industrial assets every day, all day. Let us help you. Click the link below to speak with one of our experts to learn more about selling on the Aucto Marketplace.