Essex Rental Corp. Appoints Terry Howard President of Coast Crane Company

Coast Crane CEO Dan Goodale to Retire

BUFFALO GROVE, Ill.--()--Essex Rental Corp. (Nasdaq: ESSX) ("Essex") today named Terry Howard President of its wholly owned subsidiary, Coast Crane Company (“Coast Crane”). Mr. Howard will be responsible for all personnel and operating activities at Coast Crane, and will succeed Dan Goodale, whose planned retirement as CEO of Coast Crane will begin on April 30, 2011.

After 26 years at Coast Crane and more than 40 years of service to the crane industry, Mr. Goodale stated, “It is time to move on to the next chapter of my life and to spend more time with my family and see the world.” Ron Schad, President and CEO of Essex Rental Corp., thanked Mr. Goodale for his significant contributions to Coast Crane, his impact on the industry and for all his support through the recent ownership transition. Mr. Schad commented, “Dan has done an outstanding job preparing Coast Crane and the management team, including Terry Howard, for the exciting opportunities that await us in this rapidly changing industry. Everyone at Coast Crane thanks Dan for his years of dedicated service.”

Mr. Howard, 44, has more than twenty years of experience in the construction equipment industry, including rental and sales. Since 2009, he has held the position of Vice President of Operations for Coast Crane and was previously the Branch Manager of Coast Crane’s Alaska location for 14 years. Before joining Coast Crane, Mr. Howard was an Equipment Fleet Analyst for Alaska Pipeline Service Company and held the position of Rental Manager for Construction Machinery Inc.

Mr. Schad concluded his comments regarding the appointment, “Essex is very excited to have someone of Terry’s caliber leading Coast Crane. Terry’s leadership will be vital as Coast Crane and Essex continue to focus on building upon our three core competencies: rental equipment, distribution, and aftermarket support.”

About Essex Rental Corp.

Essex, through its subsidiaries, Essex Crane Rental Corp. and Coast Crane Company, is one of North America's largest providers of mobile cranes (including lattice-boom crawler cranes, truck cranes and rough terrain cranes), self-erecting cranes, stationary tower cranes, elevators and hoists, and other lifting equipment used in a wide array of construction projects. In addition, the Company provides product support including installation, maintenance, repair, and parts and services for equipment provided and other equipment used by its construction industry customers. With a fleet of over 1,000 cranes and other construction equipment and unparalleled customer service and support, Essex supplies a wide variety of innovative lifting solutions for construction projects related to power generation, petro-chemical, refineries, water treatment and purification, bridges, highways, hospitals, shipbuilding, offshore oil fabrication and industrial plants, and commercial and residential construction.

Some of the statements in this press release and other written and oral statements made from time to time by Essex and its representatives are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These statements include statements regarding the intent and belief or current expectations of Essex and its management team and may be identified by the use of words like "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "plan", "will", "should", "seek", the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Essex's expectations include, without limitation, the continued ability of Essex to successfully execute its business plan, the possibility of a change in demand for the products and services that Essex provides, intense competition which may require us to lower prices or offer more favorable terms of sale, our reliance on third party suppliers, our indebtedness which could limit our operational and financial flexibility, global economic factors including interest rates, general economic conditions, geopolitical events and regulatory changes, our dependence on our management team and key personnel, as well as other relevant risks detailed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K and other periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and available on our website, www.essexcrane.com. The factors listed here are not exhaustive. Many of these uncertainties and risks are difficult to predict and beyond management's control. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, results or events. Essex assumes no obligation to update or supplement forward-looking information in this press release whether to reflect changed assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events or changes in future operating results or financial conditions, or otherwise.

Contacts

Essex Rental Corp.
Martin Kroll
Chief Financial Officer
847-215-6502 / mkroll@essexcrane.com
-OR-
INVESTOR RELATIONS:
The Equity Group Inc.
Melissa Dixon
Senior Account Executive
212-836-9613 / mdixon@equityny.com
or
Devin Sullivan
Senior Vice President
212-836-9608 / dsullivan@equityny.com

Contacts

Essex Rental Corp.
Martin Kroll
Chief Financial Officer
847-215-6502 / mkroll@essexcrane.com
-OR-
INVESTOR RELATIONS:
The Equity Group Inc.
Melissa Dixon
Senior Account Executive
212-836-9613 / mdixon@equityny.com
or
Devin Sullivan
Senior Vice President
212-836-9608 / dsullivan@equityny.com