Equipment giant grows in Chicago, Toronto

BONITA SPRINGS — Herc Holdings is getting stronger through acquisitions.

The Bonita Springs-based equipment rental supplier, operating through Herc Rentals Inc., announced it has completed the acquisition of Toronto-based Rapid Equipment Rental Limited. Rapid Equipment is a full-service, general equipment rental company with some 110 employees and seven locations in the Greater Toronto area, according to a statement.

The company, in a Nov. 16 statement, also announced it has acquired Chicago-area SkyKing Lift Rentals, a single-location equipment rental business specializing in mobile elevating work platforms, including scissor and boom lifts. The addition of SkyKing expands Herc’s Chicago-area presence to six physical locations.

Financial terms of the deals weren’t disclosed.

“I am pleased to welcome Rapid Equipment and SkyKing to Team Herc,” Herc President and CEO Larry Silber says in the release. “With both teams now on board, we have significantly improved our coverage in the dynamic Toronto and Chicago equipment rental markets as we continue to serve a diverse mix of construction, industrial and government customers.”

The Rapid Equipment and SkyKing deals follow another acquisition, which Herc announced in late October. In that deal, it acquired substantially all the assets of Reliable Equipment LLC, which has branch operations in Dover and Londonderry, New Hampshire. Financial terms of that deal also weren’t disclosed.

Herc Holdings, spun off from car rental giant Hertz in 2016, has 295 locations in North America. It posted $2.01 billion in revenue in the past 12 months.