Aktio transforms construction industry’s equipment management

Construction equipment online rental service
Aktio Holdings Corporation (Aktio), a one-stop construction equipment rental provider, has revolutionized the way the construction industry manages equipment by deploying ServiceNow Customer Service Management for its online rental service platform, enabling orders 24/7. The company has supplied equipment to 2,400 construction sites within a year of launching its new online service.

Aktio provides a wide range of construction and transportation equipment rental, along with temporary staffing services. The company works with nearly 46,000 local businesses in Japan.

Hironao Ihara, Chief Information Officer of Aktio Holdings, says, “Our salespeople have immense construction equipment knowledge. They can judge the conditions of a work site simply through a telephone conversation with the customer and advise on suitable equipment. Extensive experience in operating a customer-focused business means they know construction sites inside out.”

In order to further evolve its rental business and provide greater customer value, Aktio has started to advocate Rensulting^®—a combination of ‘rental’ and ‘consulting’—and has even registered this term as a trademark. In October 2020, the company began a full-scale operation of its online equipment rental service, which enables orders to be placed 24/7 via computers and smartphones. The process is very simple and follows the user interface of an online shop—the user only needs to select the required equipment, add it to a cart, and press the order button.

Rensulting^® services available 24/7
According to Hiroyuki Sato, Sales Support System Team Leader, IT Service Delivery, of Aktio Holdings, the key person of this service development, “Construction sites are under tight scheduling pressures, and sometimes customers complain about inefficient telephone communication. That is a major reason why we started this online service. ”According to Hiroyuki Sato, Sales Support System Team Leader, IT Service Delivery, of Aktio Holdings, the key person of this service development, “Construction sites are under tight scheduling pressures, and sometimes customers complain about inefficient telephone communication. That is a major reason why we started this online service.”

However, the online rental service boasts a key difference from other e-commerce sites, as equipment is not simply delivered when an order is placed. Sato explains, “When an order is received, a salesperson communicates with the customer by chat, reconfirms the details, and proposes a better option if one is available.”

This is where Aktio’s key strength—Rensulting^®—comes into play. And to achieve this, Aktio deployed ServiceNow Customer Service Management to develop and operate its online order service.

Direct communication with customers
The online construction equipment rental service was originally developed to fulfill a request from a major construction company. “They requested a service that enables easy ordering on a tablet, as communicating on construction equipment rental by desk phone was time-consuming and inefficient,” Sato explains.

“We immediately prepared a trial version of a service that met these requirements and had it tested by the major construction company, but we found out that simply placing an order wasn’t enough, as the customer also wanted consultation on what machinery to use at which location, how many units to rent, and so on.”

Ihara recalls, “Initially, we thought a simple e-commerce site design would work, but we were wrong. Through the trial, we realized that the Rensulting^® service could be delivered entirely online.”

Having considered what platform would best suit its requirements, Aktio selected ServiceNow Customer Service Management, which not only follows the user interface of an e-commerce site but also offers communication functions, such as online chat, and automates digital workflows to support the unique specifications of each order.

Fast development in three months
Aktio started building the online rental service in July 2019, with a prototype completed in just a few weeks. Sato explains, “We developed the service so quickly because ServiceNow supports no-code/low-code development.”

The full online construction equipment rental service was completed three months later, in October 2019. It was initially offered only to the major construction companies that needed it the most, but when other companies shared their interest in this new platform, Aktio decided to expand the service to the entire construction industry. Full-scale operations launched in October 2020, providing a service that improves efficiency and transforms workflows across the entire construction industry.

Within a year of launch the number of registered construction sites exceeded 2,400. Users have all praised that this service is almost indispensable, “without this service, it would be very inconvenient.”

Ihara concludes, “We are excited by the innovation that the ServiceNow platform brings to us. We are enhancing the platform for our suppliers with new services to improve operational efficiency in our eco-system.”

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