Picture this: you have a great day ahead of you, you just need to quickly replace a leaky faucet at your pal’s house and. This should take about thirty minutes tops and you’ll be off to the next few stops to round out your day. Even though you don’t have a lot of time between stops, as long as you don’t run into too much traffic, you’ll get there in time for each one of them. As you pull out of your driveway with your Toyota Hiace, you do a mental review of everything you packed in the van last night to make sure you’ve got it all. Confident that you have all the tools to make it through the day without having to make a pit stop to a hardware store or back to your shop, you hit the road and are merrily on your way to the first stop.
As you’re making your way there, you hit a pothole and hear a discord of noises coming from your cargo area. This already sounds like bad news, and you’re already anticipating displaced materials, an overturned toolbox, and an overall mess in the back. As you reach your first destination and text your client to let them know you’re here, you ask yourself why you’ve never put in the effort to upfit your Toyota Hiace. Having to reschedule appointments, costly downtime and money were all legitimate reasons in the past. But now that you open the cargo door and see the mess that should have been organised materials, supplies and tools, those excuses are no longer a valid reason for not upfitting your prized possession.
As you continue to rummage through the mess in the back of the van, you’re probably thinking about the potential benefits some basic Toyota Hiace accessories, like a roof rack, can provide. While sure, ‘keeping your things more organised’ may be the first pro that comes to mind, there are a couple of more that might convince you to buy one for your ride.
Increased Revenue and Productivity
When you keep your tools and supplies organised, you can find them quicker, which enables you to get more done in less time. Getting more done in less time, means you’re earning more money, which ultimately means your Toyota Hiace accessories pay for themselves by letting you take on more tasks, which is going to be a nice return on your investment. Further, an organised van will make you more presentable to clients, and you’ll get a better brand image. Accessories like storage bins, tool boxes, shelves, etc. will also allow you to see your inventory of supplies and tools clearly, so you’ll know whether you have everything you need instantly.
Improved Ergonomics and Protection
Some accessories, such as tool drawers, can improve the ergonomics of your van simply by allowing you to get the tools and put them back without putting a strain on your body. For example, you can make it so that the heavier tools are stored closer to your cargo doors, which will let you reach for them with less strain. Additionally, you can have a drop-down ladder rack to further reduce strain. As far as protection goes, when your materials and tools are left unsecured, they can pose a threat to you, your van, and they can get damaged themselves. A small nail or screw can easily scratch your paint, and a heavier piece of equipment can dent the sides of your van or even your doors. You can get lockable storage solutions to protect your tools and supplies from theft.
Besides a roof rack and tool drawers, there are a couple of other van accessories you can look into, including:
- Bottle restraints can come in handy when you need to secure your bottles when driving, regardless of whether they’re cleaning bottles, paint cans, or anything else of the kind;
- Paper holders, although seemingly pointless, can help you keep your paperwork in check. They come with multiple slots, making it easy to keep your paperwork well organised;
- Utility hooks can be mounted on partitions, panels and shelves, and they’re ideal for storing a wide range of work items, such as tool belts, electrical cords and hard hats;
- Ladder racks are ideal for expanding your available cargo area space as they let you mount tools and supplies using the top area of your van;
- Roof decks are similar to ladder racks, and they can help protect the top of your van from damage. Further, they have multiple side rails and crossbars which can help prevent items from falling off. You can use roof decks to store ladders, secure hooks and ratchet sets, all while keeping the cargo area of your van uncluttered;
- Interior lighting solutions can make it easier for you to see so that you can safely move around your van. When picking the ideal lighting for your ride, make sure you get lighting that will illuminate the centre aisle area of your van as well as both of its sides.
