Acquiring The Right Equipment

Start Your Business With the Right Equipment

Acquiring the right equipment is a balancing act. You don't want to purchase equipment that has all the bells and whistles and at the same time you don't want to purchase equipment that will do a poor job and affect your production.

You need to purchase equipment that will do the right job for you in the start-up phases and continue to do the right job for at least a couple of years.

You may also want to see if leasing is available. When you lease your equipment, you get a 100% tax write-off compared to writing off just the depreciation. Check with your accountant regarding what's best for your situation.

Another option is to see if you can rent equipment. This is a benefit if you are just starting out and need access to top-of-the -line equipment, or if you're not sure which piece of equipment is best for you – by renting you'll be able to try out different brands before buying.

When you are looking for your equipment, make sure you shop around. By doing so, you'll find that sales people will give you tips, pointers and other ideas that you may not have considered. It's their business so they should have a good background regarding the marketplace.

The more you shop around and ask good questions the more knowledgeable you'll be about the equipment.

Here is a check list of issues you may want to keep in mind:

You want equipment that will do an excellent job.
You want equipment that will last.
You want only the options you'll use; why pay for options you'll never use?
You want equipment you can afford. If all your profit goes to equipment payments, then you'll have a problem.
Determine which is better: leasing, renting, or purchasing
Determine if used equipment is a possibility (I'd only do this with a good warranty if it's a machine of some sort, or if no warranty is available then get it check out by a professional.)
Do shop around. Shopping around will unveil interesting points about the type of equipment you're acquiring.