Somewhere in your network, a belt loader is sitting idle. Three stations away, someone is writing a purchase requisition for the same machine. Nobody planned it this way, but GSE procurement has become a lifecycle management job, and most organizations still run it like a purchasing function.
Procurement, fleet managers, operations, finance, and facility teams are all making equipment decisions under real pressure: availability, capital constraints, safety requirements, electrification deadlines, and demand that refuses to hold still. A strong surplus asset management program cuts through this. It gives enterprise-wide visibility on what you own, moves equipment to where it earns its keep, recovers cash from what does not, and makes your next replacement decision informed instead of reflexive.
Here are five procurement challenges a strong surplus asset management program will help solve by improving visibility, reallocating equipment, recovering cash, and informing replacement decisions.
Centralized asset visibility across every station lets you meet new equipment needs from your existing fleet before a purchase requisition is written.
GSE fleets are built station by station. Each location sizes for its own peak, its own contracts, its own contingencies. Add it up across a network, and you have real redundancy, especially when every station or ground handler carries reserve capacity for the same seasonal spike.
The industry already knows the cure. IATA points to GSE pooling as a way to right-size equipment across an entire airport instead of letting every ground handler build a private fleet. Pooling cuts redundant capacity, reduces airside congestion, and improves access to the expensive, rarely used specialty equipment nobody wants to own alone.[1]
A surplus asset management program applies the same logic inside your organization. When decision-makers can see every idle tug, ground power unit, air start, and hydraulic lift across the network, the purchase requisition stops being step one. The sequence flips. Check internal availability first. Price out redeployment and reconditioning. Consider qualified used equipment. Buy new only when nothing else meets the requirement. This is not about stripping operational reserves. It is about knowing the difference between equipment that protects service continuity and equipment that is just parked.
A surplus asset management program gives procurement several ways to meet urgent GSE needs beyond buying new, weighed against the urgency and duration of the requirement.
A new airline contract lands. A station opens. A tug dies during the morning bank. GSE needs rarely arrive on a convenient schedule, and new equipment lead times do not care about yours.
A surplus program gives procurement several options. Internal transfer, inspected used equipment, rental, repair, refurbishment, or new purchase, each weighed against the urgency of the need and how long it will last. This is where the secondary market earns its place. When the need is temporary, the equipment is headed to a lower-volume station, or you need capacity now while a bigger fleet decision is still pending, it is often the right call.
The same program prevents the fire drill in the first place. One centralized record of equipment type, location, condition, maintenance history, utilization, and market value means you spot the shortage in a report, not on the ramp.
Because charging infrastructure and grid capacity vary by station, GSE electrification has to be phased, and surplus asset management is what makes phasing financially viable.
The electric tug is the easy part. The hard part is everything around it: charger availability, electrical capacity, utility coordination, operating schedules, and a different equipment mix at every location. But the payoff is real. IATA reported in May 2026 that electric GSE can cut turnaround emissions by 35 to 52 percent, depending on equipment mix and electricity source.[3]
Airports Council International has flagged the catch: upfront costs and electrical grid limitations shape what airports can actually implement, and when.[4] The FAA gets it, too. Its Zero Emissions Vehicle and Infrastructure Pilot Program lets eligible airport sponsors use Airport Improvement Program funds for both the zero-emission vehicles and the infrastructure needed to run them, because one without the other is a very expensive paperweight.[5]
For procurement and facility managers, the takeaway is blunt. You cannot swap conventional GSE for electric on a one-for-one schedule. Readiness varies by station. So the transition has to be phased, and surplus management with a strong partner is what makes phasing work:
Handled this way, disposition follows your infrastructure plan instead of trailing behind it as an afterthought.
A strong surplus program applies triage to every aging asset, so equipment either earns further investment, funds newer equipment through resale, or exits before it becomes a safety liability.
Here is the number that should get budget attention: more than 29,000 aircraft ground damage events were reported in 2025. IATA calls ground damage one of the most persistent operational and financial risks in ground handling[3] and estimates the annual cost could hit $10 billion by 2035 without preventive action.[6]
The industry response is Enhanced GSE, equipment fitted with anti-collision technology that improves vehicle control and docking accuracy. IATA estimates that converting 75 percent of the global fleet of belt loaders, cargo loaders, passenger stairs, and passenger boarding bridges would cut the expected ground damage cost per turn by 42 percent.[6] Adoption is picking up speed. Since the Enhanced GSE Recognition Program launched in 2024, IATA has received more than 450 applications, validated 187 stations, and recognized 75 of them for reducing operational risk.[3]
So why is the transition still gradual? Because GSE is durable and expensive. It refuses to die on a convenient schedule, and nobody replaces a working fleet overnight.[7] That makes triage the real skill. A strong surplus program forces a clear answer for every asset:
Run that classification honestly, and something useful happens. The assets not worth further investment become the funding source for the ones that are.
Sound GSE lifecycle decisions require one consolidated view of location, condition, utilization, market value, and internal demand across every station.
Many bad GSE purchases share the same origin story: nobody could see the whole fleet. Records live in station files, maintenance systems, finance ledgers, spreadsheets, and the memory of a local manager who knows which tug is really down. The organization ends up not knowing what it owns or what each asset costs to keep.
The industry is already moving toward data discipline. IATA's Enhanced GSE Recognition Program requires participating ground handlers to submit structured fleet data: equipment type, manufacturer, date of manufacture, fleet quantity, and anti-collision system status.[8] That is the floor. A surplus asset management program builds on that floor by pulling operational, financial, and market information into one decision process, so location and ownership, age and condition, maintenance and certification records, utilization, and internal demand can drive better choices.
With a picture that broad, procurement can finally compare repair against redeploy against buy-used against buy-new on actual numbers, which sharpens the decision. And when assets are sold, the paper trail is already audit-ready.
A partner supports every stage of the GSE lifecycle from valuation through settlement. A vendor is only present for the sale.
An equipment vendor shows up for the transaction. A surplus asset management partner handles the whole arc: finding idle equipment, establishing market value, supporting redeployment, picking the right sales channel, reaching qualified buyers, screening them, managing settlement, keeping the records, and reporting the results.[2]
The difference matters because the best procurement outcome is not always another purchase. Sometimes the smartest move is relocating an asset you already own, extending its life, buying qualified used equipment, or selling before depreciation eats the value.
Liquidity Services approaches GSE consultatively, combining asset management, valuation, marketing, compliance, and sales support.[2] You keep control of fleet strategy. You gain market intelligence and disposition muscle you do not have to build in-house.
A structured process for finding, valuing, and disposing of underutilized ground support equipment across an aviation network. It combines centralized asset visibility, internal redeployment, and market-based resale into one governed workflow. The goal is to recover capital, reduce redundant purchases, and inform lifecycle decisions with real data.
Start with centralized asset visibility across every station so idle equipment at one location can meet demand at another before a new purchase is approved. IATA identifies GSE pooling as a complementary step, right-sizing equipment across an entire airport instead of letting each ground handler build a private fleet.
Enhanced GSE is ground support equipment fitted with anti-collision technology that improves vehicle control and docking accuracy. IATA estimates that converting 75 percent of the global fleet of belt loaders, cargo loaders, passenger stairs, and passenger boarding bridges would cut the expected ground damage cost per turn by 42 percent. With more than 29,000 ground damage events reported in 2025 and IATA projecting up to $10 billion in annual cost by 2035, Enhanced GSE has become central to industry safety programs.
Electrification cannot happen on a one-for-one replacement schedule because charging infrastructure, electrical capacity, and utility coordination vary by station. Surplus asset management makes phased transitions work by identifying which conventional assets to replace first, redeploying serviceable equipment to stations not ready to electrify, and recovering value from displaced units before storage costs eat the return. Recovered proceeds can then offset modernization spending.
Only when internal transfer, refurbishment, and qualified used equipment cannot meet the operational requirement. Weigh each option against how urgent the need is and how long it will last. Temporary needs, lower-volume stations, and interim capacity while a larger fleet decision is pending are usually better served by the secondary market than by new equipment.
Talk to your procurement, operations, finance, and facilities leads and ask:
If any answer is fuzzy, it is not a failure. It is found money.
Liquidity Services works with aviation organizations across North America and EMEA to turn scattered GSE inventory into visible, valued, and actively managed capital. We bring the platform, the buyer network, and the disposition process. You keep control of fleet strategy.
Start with a no-cost review of your current surplus program. We will show you what visibility looks like across your network and where the immediate recovery opportunities are.
International Air Transport Association "Ground Operations of the Future." GSE pooling and fleet optimization
Liquidity Services "Aviation & Ground Support Equipment." Asset visibility, redeployment, valuation, compliance, buyer access, transaction management, and sustainable recovery.
International Air Transport Association "Stronger Standard Implementation, Modern GSE, and Digitalization Are Key to More Resilient Ground Handling." May 19, 2026. Ground damage events, Enhanced GSE adoption, and electric GSE emissions reductions.
Airports Council International, North America "Navigating the Skies: Balancing Airport Upgrades with Electrification and Green Technologies." August 28, 2024. Electrification costs and electrical grid limitations.
Federal Aviation Administration "Airport Zero Emissions Vehicle and Infrastructure Pilot Program." Eligibility and funding for zero-emission airport vehicles and supporting infrastructure.
International Air Transport Association "IATA Initiative to Accelerate Transition to Enhanced GSE." May 8, 2024. Enhanced GSE technology, ground-damage cost projections, and estimated risk reduction.
International Air Transport Association "Enhanced GSE Recognition Program, Detailed Information and Participation." Fleet modernization costs and the need for phased implementation.
International Air Transport Association "Enhanced GSE Recognition Program." Fleet validation, program criteria, and required equipment information.