A report posted on the American Rental Association website, indicates the equipment rental industry outperformed the industries it serves in 2011 and the momentum is expected to carry into 2012 and beyond, according to the latest data released by the American Rental Association (ARA) at The Rental Show in New Orleans.

According to the report, ARA expects overall North American equipment rental industry revenue to increase at least 6.9% in 2012 to total $33.5 billion at year end, based on figures compiled by IHS Global Insight, one of the world’s leading economic forecasting firms and a partner in providing data and analyses for the ARA Rental Market Monitor.

The equipment rental industry’s forecasted revenue growth in 2012 is more than three times the 2% growth in gross domestic product (GDP) forecast for the United States in 2012.

As reported in this exclusive article, the forecasted rental revenue total includes the three segments of the industry — construction and industrial, general tool, and party and event — in the United States and Canada. The ARA Rental Market Monitor™ current five-year forecast calls for continued annual growth in rental revenue to reach a total of $53.1 billion by 2016 in North America.

While some of the expected rental revenue growth in 2012 will come from increased demand as the construction industry recovers, the benefits of renting equipment have been magnified in today’s marketplace, resulting in more attention and more customers adopting the rental concept to meet their needs for equipment to complete projects and jobs.