Equipment Appraisal Blog | Understanding Machinery Appraisals

What Kind of Equipment is Evaluated During a Graphic Arts Printing Equipment Appraisal?

Posted by Equipment Appraisal Services on Mon, Jun 29, 2020 @ 08:00 AM

Man in printing house showing client printed documents
Is printing and graphics a central concern of your business? If it is, the value of that equipment can make up a solid portion of your business' overall assets. However, that equipment is often misrepresented in terms of value in your balance sheet. Because this type of equipment often has a long lifespan, equipment depreciation rates used in tax tables may reduce your equipment's value to zero long before it has stopped providing value for your business. Here's a quick look at the kind of equipment you can get an estimate of value with during a graphic arts printing equipment appraisal.

What Kind of Equipment is Evaluated During a Graphic Arts Printing Equipment Appraisal?

  • Sheetfed Offset Presses: Used for a wide range of different printing purposes, sheetfed offset presses are often at the heart of businesses that provide a number of products in different sizes, including newspapers, advertisements, postcards and similar paper products. Because sheetfed offset presses deal better with this range of sizes, it provides superior flexibility in daily operations.
  • Web Presses: Producing documents using huge rolls of paper rather than individual sheets, web presses deliver efficiency and economy for many businesses, providing a better option for mass production operations. However, it represents a serious investment for many businesses, which can be rolled into your balance sheet for more accurate figures.
  • Pre-Press Equipment: From high-end computers that are designed to handle the burden of graphics design to the specialty equipment you use for providing proofs to clients prior to mass production, your pre-press equipment keeps orders rolling in without getting in the way of your mainstream operations.
  • Bindery Equipment: As anyone in the business can tell you, what the product looks like on the press can be very different than the finished product. Folders, stitchers, trimmers and similar machinery help turn loose paper into a quality finished product, with sharp folds, quality binding and neat edges.
  • Materials Handling Equipment: When you need to move pallets of paper or other material to keep your presses rolling, the equipment you use in this process is the lifeblood of your business, keeping things from grinding to a halt when a new shipment arrives or a machine needs to be replenished to continue getting the job done.
  • Shipping Equipment: Unless you run a local-only shop, you're probably going to have to ship your products to your customers. Whether it's shipping scales, conveyor belts, packaging machinery or similar equipment, being able to get your finished product boxed and out the door helps keep your workspace free for operational purposes.
By having a graphic arts printing equipment appraisal performed on your business, you can ensure that you have an accurate estimate of the value of your business assets, giving you a more accurate balance sheet. When presented in an appraisal report from an accredited equipment appraiser, you can use this information to help in a range of different situations, whether it's filing an insurance claim after an equipment fire, appealing a bad tax assessment or securing financing for growing your business.

Tags: printing equipment appraisal

What's Covered During a Family Entertainment Center Asset Valuation?

Posted by Equipment Appraisal Services on Mon, Jun 15, 2020 @ 08:00 AM

happy father and son playing driving wheel video game in playground theme park
When your life's work is based around providing an amazing place for families to have fun, your focus is on building your business and keeping people coming in the doors. But when you're focusing on growth, have you considered the value of your business assets into the equation? Whether you're considering upgrading your arcade games, adding some landscaping equipment to your fun farm or upgrading your cleaning equipment to keep things fresh and sparkling, knowing the value of your equipment can help you make smarter business decisions. Here's a look at the kind of equipment a family entertainment center asset valuation can cover.

What's Covered During a Family Entertainment Center Asset Valuation?

  • Games: Whether it's the machinery that is the backbone of your bowling alley, a few video games on the way through or a whole complex of carnival-style games, you've put a lot of money into these entertainment assets. An accredited equipment appraiser can properly calculate the estimated value of this equipment, making it easier to decide when it's time to replace a less-popular game or one that's beginning to show signs of aging.
  • Facility Maintenance Equipment: Keeping your facility clean and looking great is an important part of how your business is viewed in terms of public opinion, which in turn can drive more - or less - business in your direction. Knowing the value of steam cleaners, landscaping equipment or floor buffers allows you to get a fair deal when it's time to replace them for an upgraded model.
  • Kitchen Machinery: Maybe your business has a snack bar, or it could be a full-scale restaurant that feeds hungry families during a busy day of making memories. No matter the level of complexity or size, an equipment valuation can include your kitchen and restaurant equipment, making it easier to decide if it's time to switch out your soda fountain machinery or if you should focus on a new refrigerator instead.
  • Computers: If you're still working with an older system, you've probably considered whether it's time to change it out for a tablet-based system that provides more options. But how will you know when it's time to make the change based on your current system's value? Having an appraisal done will make it easier to decide, because you'll know what your current system will bring in when it's sold.
  • Security Assets: With the situations families can face these days and the lowering cost of security features, many family entertainment centers have added cameras, trackers and sensors to help keep their patrons of all ages safe and sound. But those assets have a value that can be leveraged when it's time to make upgrades to your facility. Knowing what those assets are worth can make it easier to document your company's value.
By having a family entertainment center asset valuation performed on your business' equipment, you can gain a much better idea of what your equipment is actually worth beyond simple, standardized tax depreciation. However, it's important that you work with an accredited equipment appraiser to ensure you're receiving an accurate estimate of your equipment's value from an independent third party. Make sure you ask your appraiser about their accreditation at the beginning to ensure you're getting your money's worth out of your appraisal.

Tags: family entertainment center asset appraisal

How Does an Expert Witness Appraisal Report Help Settle Your Business Dispute?

Posted by Equipment Appraisal Services on Mon, Jun 01, 2020 @ 08:00 AM

Witness swearing on the bible telling the truth in the court room

Whether you're facing a potential court case, legal settlement, mediation or negotiation, knowing how to present the value of your equipment is of vital importance. Unfortunately, there are many situations where that value may be a matter of dispute. How do you independently and accurately explain what your machinery is worth? One of the best ways to do this is through an Expert Witness Appraisal Report. This type of valuation takes a detailed external look at the value of your assets that may be involved in a business dispute that is being litigated. Here's a summary of how this type of appraisal can help support your equipment values.

How Does an Expert Witness Appraisal Report Help Settle Your Business Dispute?

When you're facing a potential court case or other legal action, it is vitally important to independently support and ultimately prove your side of the case. In situations where damages are being measured in part based on the value of your tangible assets, an expert witness equipment appraiser can provide you with a solid way of doing this.

In a similar fashion, an experienced expert witness equipment appraiser can testify in deposition, arbitration or court as to the methodology and opinions of value derived in the report itself. An accredited equipment appraiser who has experience with these types of engagements, can provide the necessary expertise to discuss their background and specific details involved with the appraisal.

The information they rely on from you should include the equipment's age, make, model, capacity and other specifications, as well as repair and maintenance history during the asset's lifespan. With all of this information at hand, as well as the expert appraiser's independent research and analysis, the valuation report will be highly supportable and credible in the view of attorneys, judges, juries, and arbitration panels.

Regardless of the specific business dispute that is being litigated, an experienced equipment appraiser can structure the expert report to focus on the measurable levels of value that directly impact the case, while bringing available independent market data and accepted appraisal techniques to the forefront of the case. Based on the experience and expertise of an independent equipment appraiser who can provide a supportable and credible valuation report, you will be able to confidently argue your case. The methodologies and approaches utilized by the appraiser should be in conformity with both the American Society of Appraisers (ASA) and Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP), who are considered two of the top tier independent valuation organizations in the world, and are accepted in a wide range of circles for all appraisal needs.

By understanding what an expert witness appraisal report can do for you when faced with a business dispute under litigation, you can ensure that the value of your tangible equipment assets are being accurately and fairly represented. It is of critical importance that you work with an accredited equipment appraiser who has ample experience with preparing these expert reports as well a resume with a history of recent trial and deposition testimony. This gives you the best opportunity to realize a favorable outcome with your case.

Tags: Expert Witness Appraisal Report