8 July 2015, 13:33
Founded in 1982, Gershon Liav Equipment LLC is an industrial equipment company located in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv in Israel. The company was founded by Gershon Liav, who is from a mechanical engineering background, and his goal was to connect buyers and sellers of machines, minimise their costs and help them buy and sell when and where appropriate – depending on the economic and political situations of the markets.
Gershon Liav Equipment buys machines from construction companies or land based auctions in Israel, and has a licence to buy machines from the Israeli Ministry of Defence. Before they invest in the machines – which are often specialised to perform particular tasks – the company perform thorough checks to ensure they are in an excellent condition. The company operates mostly in Israel, the Middle East and Africa, and to a lesser extent in Europe and the USA. It has two employees: Gershon Liav himself, and Omer Kamp – the Marketing and Public Relations Manager. Kamp’s primary responsibility is to acquire and promote the equipment in order to sell it to the most suitable buyers.
The Challenge
“Finding good buyers for our equipment has previously been very time consuming for me and not entirely productive – primarily because the types of machines we are selling are extremely specialised. The local demand is not always great and it can be difficult to market them further afield. I had to advertise the machines and call my contacts to promote them, and sometimes, the buyers from abroad had to travel to Israel to assess the machines themselves.” explains Kamp.
“I also had to take charge of all the transactions and the shipping. I prefer to expend my energy on getting new, high-quality machines from current construction projects that are currently happening in Israel and the Middle East.”
Alongside the laborious process of promoting the machines, Gershon Liav Equipment’s task was made that bit more challenging due to a limited buyer network for such specific equipment. Even if they could find buyers for their machines, attaining a guaranteed fair market price was an additional hurdle to overcome.
Choosing IronPlanet
“I did a search online and found that IronPlanet was selling the same kind of machines as ours. After considering a few other options, I got in touch with them,” says Kamp. The first batch of machines Gershon Liav Equipment wanted to sell consisted of ten 1999 Systems & Electronics M1000 military trailers and a lot of spare parts for this equipment. IronPlanet advised them to use its Daily Marketplace so they could set a reserved price and guarantee a sound return on investment.
“It was the first time we had worked with IronPlanet, and they were happy to answer every question or query we had throughout the whole process. I received exceptional support from their team and really appreciate that they give the same attention to every customer – regardless of whether they are a small or big company. I have felt entirely comfortable with them since we first got in touch,” he added.
Before making the machines available for sale, Declan Kelly, EU Inspection Manager at IronPlanet, personally visited the site to inspect the machines and assess their condition.
“Declan is extremely professional. He insisted on seeing every single part of each machine and took everything into consideration,” explains Kamp. “I have no doubts about the excellent condition of our machines, but I think that the inspection reports and IronPlanet’s IronClad Assurance® are really good for reassuring the buyers. They know exactly what they are getting and it makes such a huge difference.”
Benefiting from its huge database of buyers worldwide, IronPlanet markets the machines on behalf of Gershon Liav Equipment and once sold at the price fixed, IronPlanet deals with all the shipping and transactional requirements. “I provide IronPlanet with all the information on the machines they need, they do the rest.” adds Omer.
Impressive Results
Selling its machines through IronPlanet’s Daily Marketplace helps Gershon Liav Equipment to save time and focus on what they do best. “Today, we are still in the process of selling the machines, so I would say that IronPlanet definitely helps save valuable time. Instead, I can focus on buying new machines from current projects. In the medium and long term, I am sure we will improve our productivity and of course, save money.” says Kamp.
As a testament to the success of the partnership so far, Gershon Liav equipment has already asked IronPlanet to sell more of its heavy equipment in its upcoming monthly auctions, including cranes, excavators and generators.
“I am delighted with our collaboration with IronPlanet so far and I would definitely recommend them without any hesitation.” concludes Kamp.