Premier Equipment Solutions selects Chasi AI for dealership platform

Premier Equipment Solutions has selected AI provider Chasi to improve customer service and operational visibility across its seven-location equipment dealership platform. 

The East Hartford, Conn.-based company plans to begin implementation in early August, Chief Operating Officer Jim Grande told Equipment Finance News. 

“We’re a small company. We don’t have a million-dollar call center,” he said. “This is something that is almost a virtual contact center that gives us all that information without having to have a 10-person contact center.” 

The initial rollout will focus on:  

• Capturing after-hours calls;  

• Transcribing customer conversations; and  

• Directing inquiries to the correct department. 

Grande described the technology as a “force multiplier, not a force reducer.” 

“This isn’t about doing more with fewer people,” he said. “It’s about using our people and growing our company but using technology to make every one hire maybe the power of four hires.” 

Premier, backed by Brenton Point Capital Partners, is building an equipment sales, rental, parts and service platform in the Northeast through acquisitions.  

For example, it acquired dealership New England Power Equipment and rental house Saybrook Rentals earlier this year.  

The company operates Bobcat and John Deere dealerships and is working to unify locations that previously operated more independently. 

The initiative comes as more equipment dealers consider adding AI tools. 

About 28% of North American farm and heavy-equipment dealers were using AI in 2025, according to DIS’ 2026 Equipment Dealership Technology Trends Report, released Nov. 4, 2025. An additional 23% of dealers said they planned to adopt AI. 

AI for customer needs 

Premier plans to use Chasi to track missed calls, monitor response times and better understand customer demand, Grande said. For example, customer conversations could reveal recurring equipment problems. 

“This is voice of the customer 24/7,” he said. “It isn’t just me doing a survey or going out to a site visit and saying, ‘What should I stock? What do you guys need?’” 

The system could help Premier identify issues before they snowball, Grande said. 

“It just lets us take customer data and do something with it and help us fix customer problems before they become big customer problems,” he said.  

Grande said Premier selected Chasi in part because of its experience with equipment dealerships and its work with Bobcat and other industry participants. 

“They really had that native, equipment-first mindset,” he said. “It helps them more natively understand our customer base and what we’re trying to do with the product.” 

Premier will evaluate the rollout using measures such as after-hours calls captured, customer response times and opportunities recovered from missed communications, Grande said.  

He also said the company expects the technology to support its bundled equipment and leasing strategy, including using connected data for proactive maintenance and equipment uptime. 

“We can’t do that without the right technology that helps us monitor your equipment, reach out to you, proactively schedule your maintenance [and] send out a technician before you even know that your equipment’s breaking,” he said. 

AI, however, cannot replace standardized processes and foundational technology, Grande said. 

“We’ve got to set that foundation first,” he said. “Then we’re layering in technology where we can to help us grow a little faster.” 

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