When landscape contractors’ services are in demand, landscape equipment is not far behind in growth. In the current issue of Landscape and Irrigation magazine, the 2013 equipment trends were revealed from various marketers and product managers within the landscaping and construction industries. In this blog post, as we often do spanning all 11 of the our industry specializations, we have compiled an overview of the top five landscape and lawn equipment trends that we found most intriguing.
Fuel-efficiency
Daryn Walters, director of marketing for Exmark, explains that “doing more using fewer resources” is important these days. Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI) and battery-powered products are greatly decreasing fuel usage for contractors, which allow their dollars to stretch quite a bit further. Exmark has been selling as many EFI Lazer Z S-Series mowers as they can build because of its fuel-efficiency and performance that is indistinguishable from that of gasoline-powered mowers.
Ergonomics
Equipment designed for maximum productivity by reducing user fatigue and discomfort is being taken into greater consideration when being purchased. The General Equipment Company improved its one-man and two-man hand-held hole diggers by utilizing proper ergonomics in order to increase the capacity of workers as well as minimize worker compensation issues.
Productivity and Dependability
We realize that productivity and dependability are two traits, but both work best together. Companies are willing to spend more money, if the products are worth the investment. More recently, SnowEx and TurfEx have developed lines that increase the amount professionals save on materials, labor and maintenance expenses, at a slightly higher price. Productivity and dependability at a greater price actually create a favorable cost-to-benefit ratio for contractors.
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| Photo credit to Landscape and Irrigation magazine (July / August 2013 issue) |
Mustang has improved the functionality of its products, which allows for easier operation by various workers. Kelly Moore, product and training specialist for Mustang skid-steer loaders explains, “Many companies have several different operators, and the machines need to be customizable to these different equipment users.” By simplifying the maintenance and operation processes, the company is saving time and money that may have been wasted by using more complicated or high-maintenance products.
Versatility
If a contractor can have one product that performs a multitude of tasks, that product is not only saving the contractor time on a project, but is also generating additional revenue. As a result, this saves on labor costs for customers. Andy Van Soelen, rental solutions specialist for Vermeer Corporation, notes that “compact size and variety of attachments to match” are desirable because Vermeer’s “mini skid-steer family offers more than 30 attachments,” which adds versatility and value to the collection.
Now that these top five landscape and lawn care trends have been revealed, it may be a good exercise to assess if your products meet these up-and-coming standards. Please post your comments and questions. We welcome your feedback and your own trends insights.
Learn about all 11 of the industries in which we specialize here: https://eberlycollardpr.com/our-industries.asp
~ Jasmine
