From Craig Burt’s perspective, the economy is turning around. “We’re seeing business growth among our customers with pickup and delivery operations,” says the general manager at Houston-based PV Rentals LLC. “For us that means opportunities to expand our market while meeting the growing needs of companies that use trucks and vans to run their businesses.”
Successfully meeting the needs of P&D customers who operate in a number of different industries is the result of several things, Burt notes. “Over the years, we’ve learned how to address their load and capacity requirements,” he says. “We’ve also developed relationships with key partners, including truck dealers. For example, Rush Truck Centers has leveraged its partnerships with upfitters for bodies, refrigeration units and liftgates on our behalf for 10 years.”
PV Rentals and its sister company PV Leasing serve small local businesses as well as Fortune 100 companies, whether they operate one or 100 trucks. Those include furniture delivery operations, providers of food and dry goods, haulers of production equipment, and even a nationwide firm that picks up and delivers home medical equipment.
FILLING A NEED
For P&D operations, Burt relates, the availability of rental vehicles to meet short-term needs is beneficial. “As business expands for those companies, they can quickly and easily supplement their existing fleets to handle surges in demand, market shifts or special orders,” he states. “They can also use rentals to test markets and routes, and to reduce the number of vehicles in their fleets during slower parts of their business cycles.”
“While rental is a way for P&D operations to avoid tying up capital purchasing vehicles,” Burt continues, “we also work with them to develop individualized leasing programs. We offer flexible terms, including open and closed lease programs with purchase options and extension agreements.”
The PV Rentals and PV Leasing fleet encompasses 35 different vehicle types, including dry and refrigerated box and stake body trucks, cargo vans and pickups, and vans that carry up to 15 passengers, SUVs and cars. Vehicles are cycled through the rental and/or leasing divisions then through the sales department, which keeps the fleet updated and streamlines the replacement cycle.
About 100 of the trucks in the PV Rentals fleet are 14- and 16-ft. Isuzu regular and crew cab models fitted with dry freight, refrigerated and stake bodies. Trucks in the fleet include 14-, 16-, 20- and 24-ft. dry freight units and 16-ft. refrigerated models. There are also 12-, 14-, 20- and 22-ft. stake bodies and 22-ft. flatbeds.
Founded in 1983 by Odis Peavy, president, PV Rentals has grown steadily and considerably for nearly 30 years. The company’s rental fleet initially consisted of a few cargo vans and a couple of cars.
“Today, we have three rental locations in the Houston area with expansion plans underway,” says Carol MacNeil, business development manager. “We are exploring opportunities to open new offices in other areas of Texas, including the southern region of the state. The growth being experienced in oil field-related services brings more demand for our type of vehicles in those regions, which in turn boosts the need for pickup and delivery fleets. We are committed to continuing to provide knowledgeable and dependable service to all our customers as we expand.”
As the economy in its operating area expands overall, PV Rentals anticipates growth for P&D customers and greater demand for trucks used in those operations. With its experience in rental and leasing, the company is also positioned to professionally serve the needs of those operations.
