IronPlanet, which says it is the third-largest auction company of heavy equipment in North America, sold $5.7 million of equipment in its May 20 Internet auction for B&A Construction.

"No other auction company can bring a global marketplace to a one-owner sale, without moving the equipment," stated Mike Groves, regional manager of the southeast area for IronPlanet. Over 3,100 registered auction attendees from across the U.S. and four other countries participated in the unreserved online auction. Each piece of equipment averaged 11 bidders.

The auction took place online with all bidding over the Internet, accounting for 100 percent of the auction's total sales. IronPlanet's auctions are exclusively online, allowing buyers to bid from anywhere in the world.

"Who would have thought someone would buy a $282,000 piece of machinery online, without touching the tracks?" continued Groves. "We had 20 different bidders on it."

Twenty bidders vied for a 1999 Caterpillar D8R crawler tractor in Georgia, that sold to a buyer in California for $282,000.

The auction included 50 pieces of equipment all located on B&A Construction's yard in Gainesville. IronPlanet was granted authority by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to liquidate the assets. The equipment was sold within five weeks from consignment to auction day. Founded in 1999, IronPlanet investors include Caterpillar, Komatsu and Volvo.

http://www.ironplanet.com