Ritchie Bros.’ first Houston auction of 2018 sold more than 3,800 heavy equipment items generating more than US$40 million.
The two-day heavy equipment auction, held Feb 13 and 14, attracted more than 5,500 people from 56 countries — including about 3,900 online bidders. Online sales accounted for more than US$23 million, about 57 per cent of the items sold.
“We had a record number of bidders who were very active in our Houston auction this week, helping us achieve strong prices across all equipment categories,” said Alan McVicker, regional sales manager for Ritchie Bros. “The Houston auction is a great platform to build momentum leading up to some other big Ritchie Bros. events this month.”
Heavy equipment buyers from the United States purchased 80 per cent of the items sold. Texas buyers alone accounted for 46 per cent of purchases. International buyers from as far away as India, Malaysia, and Australia purchased 20 per cent of the equipment.
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Equipment in the Houston auction was sold for more than 550 owners. The selection included more than 150 excavators, 105 compactors, 65 skid steers, 55 cranes, 35 dozers, 25 loaders, 310 truck tractors and 240 trailers. All items were sold without minimum bids or reserve prices.
Heavy equipment auction fast facts
- Gross transactional value – US$40+ million
- Amount sold to online bidders – US$23+ million
- Total registered bidders (onsite and online) – 5,500+
- Online registered bidders – 3,900+
- Number of lots sold – 3,800+
- Number of sellers – 550+
The Houston auction is followed by Ritchie Bros’ largest Orlando auction to date. Starting Monday, Feb. 19, and running through Saturday, Feb. 24, Ritchie Bros.’ six-day mega-auction in Orlando will feature items from every industry, laid out across a 200-acre auction site.
With more than 12,800 items listed to be sold for more than 1,000 owners in Orlando next week, this will be Ritchie Bros.’ largest auction ever.
Equipment highlights include 765 excavators, 520compactors, 475 skid steers, 380 loaders, 300 dozers, 165+ articulated dump trucks, 155 cranes, 380 aerial work platforms, 430 truck tractors and 195 dump trucks.
