The used machinery market is a global one; you can purchase machinery by industry, brand, price, age, etc. There are sellers that specialize in particular niches, for example, plastic machinery, textile machines, boring mills, PET market, etc. Also, sellers can tend to focus their efforts on local areas. The market is also defined by the size of those that do business. There are many small dealers, brokers, and also ex-employees of OEMs that either sell or facilitate the sale of used machinery. All this leads to extreme fragmentation of the market. If, as a buyer, you wish to purchase used machinery you need to do your research beforehand. There will always be a broker or seller who can offer you machinery that is better-priced and better-maintained than what you may currently be looking at.
The market for used machinery consists of brokers, dealers, overhaulers, and auctioneers. Brokers are experienced middlemen that act as a go-between between buyers and sellers. Dealers are the actual sellers; they purchase machinery, get it repaired and refurbished, and try to provide accompanying papers. Auctioneers conduct auctions where a business may try to sell off excess machinery. Industrial auction houses invite bids on used machinery and charge a percentage of the sale amount as fee. There is also a lot of transaction directly from manufacturers to manufacturers.
The usual manner in which most sellers operate is that they source used machinery from industry present locally and then try to sell it in the global market. They can purchase it cheap and then hope to sell it at a good price in the market. Sellers too benefit from consulting experienced brokers that have global contacts and can get them the best buyers.
As mentioned above, the market for used machinery is fragmented in which the dealers and distributors of used and retired machines can often function whimsically. Since there are no standardized norms or best practices advocated for this sector, it is in the buyer’s interests to keep his wits about himself and also partner an agency such as a broker with good standing in the market so that he can safely negotiate all the legal, financial, and technical aspects of the transaction. The complex of international machinery trading includes both small and big players and from this mix a buyer has to select the best trading partner to do business with. The list of bigger players in the used machinery market includes names such as Aaron Equipment, which is a supplier for over 380 categories of used processing equipment. Such companies have offices located in different parts of the world and they undertake both buying and selling of used machinery. MachinePoint is the biggest company in Europe dealing in plastics and beverage machinery. The company, with its head office in Europe, has offices in India, France, Turkey, Russia, and North Africa. MachinePoint also has an entire division dedicated to providing financial support to buyers; few players in the international machinery market, bar the established big companies, provide this kind of support.
Trading and communication via the internet has added another dimension to the buying and selling of used machinery. Suppliers and buyers can get in touch online quite easily; geographical distances do not make a difference now. The internet has also thrown up businesses that are exhaustive repositories of used tools covering several categories. Apart from listings, these sites host auctions, events, forums, job listings and more. Businesses such as MachinePoint help bring structure to the market. It becomes easier for buyers to learn more about the sellers, the antecedents and provenance of the machinery, bargain, test machinery, and arrive at mutually agreeable terms. Ideally, a broker should also help sellers obtain payment when an instrument such as Letter of Credit is used. Some delay in getting payment released is bound to arise because of the number of parties involved in a LOC transaction. A good broker will help negotiate a smooth financial transaction even for leasing and renting deals.
MachinePoint Media Department
Gema Alvarez
Email: galvarez@machinepoint.com
Tel: + 34 983 54 99 00
For inquires
info@machinepoint.com
Head Office-Europe: +34 983 54 99 00
