Downtime Index: modest fall reflects holidays

The Downtime Index for week 21 starting 18 May fell by 11%, although the period included Ascension day, which is a common holiday in Northern and Western Europe.

The fall mirrors that seen in the equivalent week in the 2019 (when the holiday was in week 22). Next week’s index will also be impacted by the US memorial day holiday.

Eastern Europe was the only territory where there was improved utilization as measured by the Index, with levels only a few point below those at the base level of week four in January this year.

There were falls in all other regions, with the most modest reductions in North America and Southern Europe.

In terms of the number of machines in use – defined as machines where the engine was operating for more than a hour – there was a fall from 58% in week 20 to 56% last week. The number of working machines is almost 10 percentage points below the same period last year.

The Downtime Index is now very similar in North America and Northern Europe, which are both lower than Eastern Europe but higher than Western and Southern Europe.

The Index is calculated by telematics specialist Trackunit based on data from more than 150,000 off-highway machines, including both end user and rental owned machines. Approximately 40% are aerial platforms, where rental companies are the primary owners. Changes in harmonised engine utilisation - defined as voltage activity on a machine’s alternator - are expressed as an index to allow for quick international comparisons. KHL Group is the exclusive media partner and is publishing weekly updates on the Index.

The Index website can be found at www.downtimeindex.com