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Depending on the noise restrictions where you work, battery-powered equipment can allow for greater flexibility in your schedule. \u201cIf you want, you could start at daybreak and work till dusk because you don\u2019t have the noise,\u201d says Marchese. \u201cYou can work in a residential community, or you can mow during the day during classes. There\u2019s a lot of flexibility that rechargeable products give for greater productivity.\u201d<\/p>\n
He adds that the laws in Europe on what power equipment operators can and can\u2019t be exposed to are much stricter than they are in the U.S. \u201cWe think those laws will find their way to America, which will regulate the amount of vibration, noise and ingestion of fumes that can happen.\u201d He says an employee who uses a battery-powered trimmer will feel much better at the end of the day without having breathed in gas fumes and endured the vibration of a gas trimmer for hours on end.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s also reduced maintenance that goes into the upkeep of this equipment. Marchese explains, \u201cYou don\u2019t have any fuel lines to get snagged. You don\u2019t have carburetors to be affected by E85 ethanol. You don\u2019t have the normal need to change an air filter, spark plugs or the oil. All of that is taken away with a rechargeable product. It gives you so many more uptime opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n
The future of battery<\/h2>\n
\u201cThere are tremendous technological advances coming in battery cells,\u201d says Marchese. \u201cWe\u2019re just a small player in the lithium world. With lithium cars, lithium boat motors, lithium construction equipment, etc., the mass explosion of lithium power benefits us in a lot of ways.\u201d<\/p>\n
The development of batteries is being driven by the growth of the electric car industry. Companies like Greenworks Commercial use battery cells sourced from companies like Sony and Panasonic, the makers of the same lithium-ion batteries used by Tesla and other electric car manufacturers. \u201cThe battery industry is driving toward batteries with longer run times and less weight, which will then fall back into our products,\u201d says Marchese.<\/p>\n
To him, the potential for battery is virtually endless. He says in the years to come, you\u2019ll see more products being driven off a single-sized, same-volt battery. Not only will one battery be able to run your string trimmer, hedge trimmer and backpack blower, it will be incorporated in your trailer setup. This will allow you to charge your cell phone, run a power tool, operate stationary work lights and more.<\/p>\n
Conrad believes the battery-powered equipment industry, especially the mower market, is just taking off. \u201cIt\u2019s proven it can be done and it\u2019s just going to keep growing. In 10 years, it\u2019ll be the norm.\u201d<\/p>\n
Robotic automation<\/h2>\n
With its own battery-powered equipment product line, Husqvarna is no stranger to the battery trend, but its sights are set on something a bit different. The 330-year-old Swedish manufacturer based in Stockholm has proven its ability to adapt with changing trends. And while the industry continues to evolve and transition to battery power, Giovanni Crespi, director of product management, Husqvarna Group North America, believes the more permanent solution for lawn care is autonomous robotic mowers.<\/p>\n
He acknowledges it\u2019s in a very early stage but says it\u2019s a trend that\u2019s picking up speed. What started out as a concept a few years ago has now transformed into discussions with landscape companies about how they can feasibly implement robotic lawn mowers in their businesses.<\/p>\n
Being one of the pioneers in the robotic mower industry, Crespi says, \u201cWe foresee that there will be a longer-term transition to a robotic, autonomous solution because the benefits that robotics bring to the table are larger than the battery.\u201d The main benefit he says robotics offers is financial savings via reduced labor costs. While a robotic mower handles the grass cutting, your employees can be working on the edging, trimming, etc., reducing the overall time it takes to finish a property.<\/p>\n
A \u2018clean\u2019 fuel alternative<\/h2>\n
Battery power and robotics aren\u2019t the only gas alternatives making inroads in the industry. Jeremy Wishart, director of off-road business development at the Propane Education Research Council, says using propane-powered mowers is a trend that\u2019s growing.<\/p>\n
When the Washington, D.C.-based organization began its initiative for landscape contractors to use propane-powered mowers in 2013, close to 500 mowers were being converted every year. Since then, the adoption rate has grown to as many as 4,500 mowers that are either purchased as an original equipment manufacturer propane model or converted in the aftermarket each year.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we\u2019ve seen over the last seven years is those who have made the switch to propane have not gone back. In fact, they\u2019ve actually upped their usage of propane mowers,\u201d says Wishart. \u201cI have not seen a landscape contractor that has switched over to propane and given it a real try move back to whatever he was using before. It\u2019s been a very positive trend, and I think that\u2019s going to continue.\u201d<\/p>\n There are currently around a dozen original equipment manufacturers right now that offer propane mowers. Between the different models, configurations and deck sizes, there are around 150 different propane mowers currently available on the market. If you want to convert an existing mower to propane, the cost depends on your model. On average, Wishart estimates the cost is $800-$1,200 per mower by the time you buy the conversion kit and either convert it yourself or have a mechanic do it.<\/p>\n There are also some nice incentives for switching to propane. PERC offers contractors $1,000 per qualifying mower purchase or $500 per qualifying conversion. An applicant is eligible for up to 25 incentives per year or $25,000, whichever comes first.<\/p>\n Propane mowers can save money over the lifetime of the mower, thanks to the fuel\u2019s unique advantages. They cost about 30% less per hour to operate than gasoline and also have reduced maintenance costs.<\/p>\n Compared with gas mowers, propane produces up to 17% fewer greenhouse gases and 19% fewer nitrogen oxide emissions than gasoline. With propane mowers there is no need to sacrifice work time for trips to the gas station. Convenient refueling options include on-site cylinder exchange and dispensing.<\/p>\n Wishart explains that the progression of companies adopting propane is typically gradual. Companies generally start with one, two or maybe five to 10 propane mowers. The following year they\u2019re adding 20, 30 or even 40 more. Within three to five years, they\u2019ve got 100% of their fleet operating on propane.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re going to see a lot more consumer research and interest in alternative fuels. What propane offers as a fuel from a cost and environmental standpoint really cannot be matched by gasoline or diesel,\u201d says Wishart. \u201cWhen you start to factor in things like the ability to reduce fuel costs and emissions and the drive to be more efficient within your job and as a company, I think that\u2019s what\u2019s going to lead the charge in these next several years.\u201d<\/p>\n Barnes Inc. is a full-service landscape company in Madison, Wisconsin, with over 150 employees. The company began looking into alternative fuels about 10 years ago. They converted two mowers to propane in 2014. Since then, the company has converted the majority of its commercial- sized mowers to propane. Its long-term goal is 100%.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a very easy thing for us to switch as many of our mowers as we possibly could to propane,\u201d says Mark Barnes, CEO of Barnes Inc. \u201cWe were concerned we were going to lose power. But the fact that these propane mowers are all fuel injected, we don\u2019t appear to be losing any power. And the other thing that\u2019s nice is we could tell immediately that the fuel burns much more cleanly, and we are having less engine-related problems because of it.\u201d<\/p>\n Using propane saves the company around $15,000-$20,000 every year. \u201cPropane is half the cost of regular gasoline. So multiply that by 60 or 70 mowers every day. We save a lot of money annually by using propane on our mowing fleet,\u201d says Barnes.<\/p>\n Andy Fritsch, director of operations at Barnes Inc., says that while he and the rest of the Barnes team work in an industry where carbon emissions are high because of equipment use, that doesn\u2019t mean they can\u2019t take steps to minimize their carbon footprint.<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t have any problems with leaks, spillage, any of that. With the use of propane, you\u2019re showing a commitment to do something more than you have to do,\u201d says Fritsch. \u201cWhat we consider important at Barnes Inc. is putting ourselves a little bit above the competition. And I think the propane use that we incorporate into our business also reinforces our message: Be a little different to make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n While alternative fuels are one of the hottest trends in the equipment world, manufacturers are creating other solutions to help landscapers increase efficiency, especially as they seek ways to accomplish more work with fewer people. \u201cLabor shortages nationwide have forced professional landscape contractors to do more with less, making productivity and efficiency a major challenge for them,\u201d says Nick Minas, product manager, John Deere Commercial Mowing.<\/p>\n With this in mind, the Moline, Illinois-based manufacturer created both its M and R Series commercial walk behind mowers with redesigned controls and improved weight distribution. This enhances operator comfort and requires less effort to raise the front end of the mower.<\/p>\n Another solution, developed by John Deere, is Mulch On Demand technology. MOD enables the operator to switch between mulching and side-discharging without leaving the seat. The feature reduces the time spent cleaning up clippings from driveways and sidewalks by allowing the operator to easily close off the discharge chute.<\/p>\n This emphasis on efficiency is a big drive for other manufacturers too. \u201cAs labor has become tighter, it\u2019s become a big focus for contractors to be able to have more productive machines that require fewer laborers,\u201d says Mitch Hoffman, marketing manager for the residential landscape contractor division at The Toro Company, Bloomington, Minnesota.<\/p>\n Hoffman is seeing contractors opting toward mowers with larger cutting deck sizes to be able to mow more in less time. He gives the example of Toro\u2019s 7500-D model that comes in a 96-inch cutting deck size, which he describes as \u201ca really productive machine\u201d that one operator could use to mow a property rather than two guys on smaller machines.<\/p>\n The same thing\u2019s happening with commercial walk-behind mowers. Hoffman says Toro\u2019s largest model, the 30-inch TurfMaster HDX, is really starting to take off. As they see contractors who have been utilizing Toro\u2019s 21-inch Heavy Duty move up to this 30-inch option, Hoffman knows these trends will only grow over time. \u201cContractor productivity is going to continue to be a focus going forward and will likely become more important as labor markets continue to tighten,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n In addition to bigger deck sizes, another trend is the growing popularity of the stand-on mower. Minas says that \u201cthe stand-on size is appealing, as it makes it easier to get into tight spaces and uses less space on a trailer.\u201d These machines can also be versatile. Hoffman explains that Toro\u2019s GrandStand Multi Force is not only a stand-on mower, but you can use different attachments for multiseason flexibility by adding plow, power broom and bagging attachments.<\/p>\n For Husqvarna, efficiency goes beyond the equipment itself. Crespi says that fleet management is a growing trend that prompted the company to develop its own solution for landscapers to monitor the utilization of their equipment. Next year, the company will go live with its fleet management system, a concept it\u2019s been testing for some time now. Crespi explains that \u201cit will essentially gather data from all the different sensors that we have on our machines and then translate that data into easy information operators can use to improve their business and better manage their fleet.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe world is full of information, and you have data everywhere. But what people don\u2019t have is time to translate this data. Our job has been, \u2018How do we translate this data to easily reflect what the company can do to improve their business?\u2019\u201d This new solution intends to help companies improve productivity and utilization of their products and also help monitor equipment maintenance.<\/p>\n \u201cUptime and fuel-efficiency continue to be top concerns of professional landscape contractors, driving manufacturers to develop more solutions for equipment,\u201d says Minas. He says one example is the growing incorporation of electronic fuel injection engines in lawn mowers.<\/p>\n EFI runs more efficiently than carbed motors, and therefore offers reduced emissions and noise output, as well as greater fuel efficiency. Minas says while they\u2019re \u201ccommonly used in smaller block engines, we are now seeing more and more options in the mid-block range and greater. Providing up to 25% more fuel savings, the benefits of EFI drive this trend.\u201d<\/p>\n As trends in the industry emerge and grow, it\u2019s comforting to know that equipment manufacturers are keeping up with high-tech, helpful solutions. With a multitude of different factors affecting the industry, including gas, noise and emissions regulations, increased competition, labor challenges and the need to operate more efficiently, choosing the right equipment can play a big part in the success of your business.<\/p>\n And remember, change is a process. Take time to consider what makes sense for your business, your customers and the area where you live. Maybe this year you start out converting your handheld tools to battery-powered alternatives. Maybe next year you upgrade to mowers with bigger decks or ones that use alternative fuels. By keeping up with trends as they grow, you\u2019ll avoid getting left behind in the years to come.<\/p>\n With numerous factors shaping the outdoor power equipment industry, are you ready to keep up with changing times?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4653,"parent":0,"template":"","main-categories":[32],"class_list":["post-3800","features","type-features","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","main-categories-equipment"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/innovativepixel.com\/IGIN\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/powering-up-for-change-3.jpg\")
Propane benefits<\/h2>\n
The propane difference<\/h3>\n
Do more with less<\/h2>\n
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Emphasis on efficiency<\/h2>\n
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This article originally appeared in Irrigation & Green Industry magazine.<\/em><\/h6>\n
Sarah Bunyea<\/strong><\/a> is digital content editor of Irrigation & Green Industry.<\/em><\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"