Companies using entranceway or floor mats for their offices and facilities have two purchasing choices available: buying the mats or renting them. Which way is better?
Renting commercial floor mats usually involves signing a contract with a rental company and then paying an ongoing fee. Under the contract, the rental company agrees to a schedule where they come onsite and change out the dirty mats with clean ones. The dirty mats are then cleaned and put back into the rotation.
While renting commercial entranceway and floor mats might seem attractive because it avoids the costs of buying mats and caring for them, renting can actually cost you more in the long run. In this blog we compare the pros and cons of buying mats versus renting them.
Buying vs. Renting: Cost
Renting a mat can cost far more than buying it outright. Cost comparisons show that most companies that rent mats pay far more over the life of their rental contract than if they had bought the mats outright. While good quality specialty floor mats are not inexpensive, buying the mats is usually a cheaper proposition than renting them, when considered over the life of the contract.
Buying vs. Renting: Care and Maintenance
A major selling feature of rental mats is that they will save you time and money in care and cleaning. While this may sound attractive, two things should be kept in mind.
First, most rental contracts obligate the rental firm to replace the mats on a fixed schedule, often weekly or bi-weekly. If the mats become dirty before the rental company visits, you may need to clean them anyway. Secondly, many businesses are already incurring costs to clean their floors, so it is often not much more additional cost to vacuum or clean the mats.
Buying vs. Renting: Selection and Quality
Rental mats are often only available in certain styles and colours. If you rent, you may not get a mat which fits well with your space or décor. In addition, some work areas require the provision of specialty mats which a rental company may not be able to supply. Thirdly, rental companies do not typically care for or replace certain specialty mats such as entranceway scraper or anti-fatigue mats. Finally, because a rental company changes out the mats with each visit, the quality of the mats left on each visit may vary.
Given all the above, companies are often better off buying mats rather than renting them. Buying high-quality mats will more than offset their cost in performance and durability. When amortized over the life of the mat, a high-quality mat may actually cost very little indeed.
If you are looking to buy commercial entranceway and floor mats, Canada Rubber Group (CRG) has an extensive portfolio of quality mats for commercial offices and industrial workspaces. Our matting products include entranceway mats, anti-fatigue, anti-slip, high-voltage, food-service, and other purpose-designed mats. We also supply runner matting, a cost-effective and practical solution for many floor covering needs. Our mats are available in a variety of sizes, and we can custom size many types we offer.
To find out more about the matting solutions we can provide, please contact our sales team at crg@canadarubbergroup.com.