Industry Update

Source: www.TurfMagazine.com

The AERA-vator has been rebranded as the SEEDA-vator.

First Products Rebrands AERA-vator

First Products has rebranded the AERA-vator. The SEEDA-vator name was trademarked by the company nearly 10 years ago, but replaced by the Universal AERA-vator. Due to customer demand, the SEEDA-vator name is back. A Universal AERA-vator with a seed box can once again be identified as a SEEDA-vator.

New John Deere Landscapes Location

John Deere Landscapes announced the opening of a new branch in Charlottesville, Va. The branch is located inside Virginia Tractor, LLC, a John Deere dealership.

Barry Larson

Smithco Appoints Sales Manager

Barry Larson has been appointed to the position of regional sales manager for Smithco, Inc. He will be responsible for the Midwest region and parts of the Northeast. Larson is a graduate of Penn State University’s two-year turfgrass management program. He has worked for Wisconsin Turf Equipment Corp., Medalist America Turfgrass Seed and Jacobsen.

Ditch Witch Holds Texas Road Show

The Big Texas Road Show, a seven-stop tour of Ditch Witch dealerships in Texas, wrapped up after having showcased a wide range of equipment to about 800 customers and potential customers. The road show was a collaborative effort among independently owned dealerships in Texas and Ditch Witch corporate headquarters in Perry, Okla. Stops included dealerships in Tyler, Houston, San Antonio, El Paso, Odessa, Amarillo and Fort Worth.

Grounds Guys Awards First VetFran Agreement

The Grounds Guys has awarded its first VetFran agreement to Michael Bagley, who will open his own Grounds Guys franchise in Olathe, Kan. The VetFran Program gives U.S. military veterans a discount toward the purchase of a franchise and includes hundreds of franchise concepts. Bagley served in the U.S. Army from 1987 to 1998.

LTR Makes Wish Come True

Liberty Tire Recycling worked with the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Pennsylvania and Southern West Virginia to grant the wish of 11-year-old Kyle Dempsey of Pittsburgh, Pa., who wanted his own swing set. Due to a medical condition, Kyle could be seriously injured if he fell on a playground. LTR donated Pinnacle Rubber Mulch to be used as the safety surfacing for his swing set.

A Hydrema MCV.

Hydrema Awarded Army Contract

Hydrema has been awarded a contract on area mine clearing vehicles from the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command to the U.S. Army Engineers. The five-year contract covers delivery of mine clearing vehicles (MCVs), spares, training and maintenance. Hydrema will provide a newly updated version of their MCV that fulfills U.S. requirements.

Foster Conant Begins Design on Three Projects

Foster Conant & Associates is in the preliminary design phase of three new multifamily projects in central Florida being developed by Atlantic Housing Partners LLLP, Winter Park, Fla. Under its scope of services, Foster Conant is providing design, construction documents and construction observation for landscaping, irrigation, site lighting, hardscape elements, signage and pool layout for the three new properties, Town Parke, Howell Branch Cove and Fountains at San Remo Court.

Gehl Welcomes New Dealer

Gehl Co. announced Iron Source, LLC, Georgetown, Del., as a newly appointed authorized dealer. Iron Source provides construction equipment sales, rentals and service in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia.

Riverside Mayor Ron Loveridge, right, presents Rob Starr of Toro with an award recognizing Toro’s water conservation efforts.

“Get Smart to WaterSmart” Conference Discusses Irrigation Efficiency

Toro’s 5th WaterSmart symposium, held at Toro Irrigation in Riverside, Calif., in July, brought together water district officials, irrigation experts, property managers and business people to learn first-hand about dealing with the growing water crisis by improving irrigation efficiency. Titled “Success Without Excess V,” the conference focused on identifying and eliminating water waste in outdoor landscape irrigation so healthy landscapes and manageable water bills can both be obtained.

The mayor of Riverside, Ron Loveridge, also made an appearance at the conference, and presented Toro with an award recognizing their water efficiency efforts. Other highlights of the conference included Fiona Sanchez, conservation manager for Irvine Ranch Water District, discussing the coming trend of tiered water rates and budgets, and the Great Sprinkler Giveaway, a collaboration involving Toro, Western Municipal Water District and Riverside Public Utilities.

Stihl Hosts Workshop

Stihl, Inc. hosted a three-day Manufacturing Technology Summer Workshop in Virginia Beach, Va. Activities included machining, molding, assembly and apprentice lab. The objectives of the workshop were to develop a future project for the upcoming camps and to give the Virginia Manufacturer’s Association a tool to use throughout the entire state of Virginia. The workshop taught high school students, teachers and counselors significant information about manufacturing in general. The core departments focused on were accessories, assembly, engineering, machining and polymers.

A Komatsu dump truck releases rubber ducks into the Chicago River for the annual derby.

Komatsu Supports Special Olympics Illinois

A 30-ton Komatsu America Corp. articulated dump truck released more than 30,000 rubber ducks into the Chicago River for the fifth annual Windy City Rubber Ducky Derby, which benefits Special Olympics Illinois. Rubber ducks are adopted by sponsors for a monetary donation and race down the river, with prizes awarded for the first ducks to cross the finish line. This year’s derby raised more than $250,000 for Special Olympics.

Case Sponsors Gas Rodeo

Case Construction Equipment was a platinum-level sponsor of the 16th annual National Gas Rodeo, held in Fairview Heights, Ill. Case was the exclusive provider of construction equipment for the event, including loader/backhoes and compact excavators. The National Gas Rodeo offers an opportunity for gas crews from around the country to showcase their professional skills.

Mike Rowe

Rowe Teams Up with Caterpillar

Caterpillar, Inc. announced that it is partnering with Mike Rowe, the creator and star of the Discovery Channel’s “Dirty Jobs” and founder of www.mikeroweworks.com. The two have joined forces to highlight the important work that Caterpillar customers perform every day. Rowe will be spending time with Caterpillar customers and dealers to get a real-world perspective on their jobs and how the two partner to be successful. These encounters will be featured on www.cat.com and at Cat dealerships across the country

ITT & Mercy Corps Collaborate for Flood Relief

ITT Corp. announced that through its partnership with Mercy Corps, it is donating five portable water treatment systems to the Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces of Pakistan in response to the recent flooding. The systems have the potential to provide clean water to as many as 200,000 people and are being deployed through Mercy Corps’ large-scale humanitarian aid response. This collaborative disaster response is part of a strategic partnership between ITT’s corporate citizenship program, ITT Watermark, and Mercy Corps to provide safe water and sanitation during emergencies.

CPC Signs Manufacturing Agreement

Certified Parts Corp., Janesville, Wis., has entered into an agreement with Liquid Combustion Technology, Travelers Rest, S.C., to jointly manufacture air-cooled engines for the outdoor power equipment market. The agreement will provide CPC with engineering, manufacturing and sales capabilities allowing it to reintroduce the Snow King line of snow thrower engines and other engines formerly manufactured and sold by TecumsehPower. The engines will be exclusively represented by LCT and sold under the Snow King, Lauson and LCT brands. They will be serviced exclusively by CPC and the existing TecumsehPower dealer/distributor network.

OPES Launches New Web Site

Oldcastle Precast Enclosure Solutions introduced a Web site specifically designed for the Enclosure Solutions segment of products and services offered by Oldcastle Precast. The site is available at www.oldcastleprecast.com/enclosuresolutions.

Pondemonium 2010 was held at Aquascape’s corporate headquarters.

Aquascape Hosts Pondemonium

Hundreds of distributors, contractors and retailers from across North America came together for education, networking and fun at Pondemonium 2010, held at Aqualand, the corporate headquarters for Aquascape, Inc.. A variety of hands-on training sessions and workshops offered the basics, and more, for what’s needed to succeed in today’s water gardening industry. Certified Aquascape Contractors honored during the closing dinner included Atlantis Water Gardens, Rockaway, N.J., CAC of the Year; Bloom’n Dales Landscape & Design, Brampton, Ont., Canadian CAC of the Year; Earth Works, Jacksonville, Fla., Rookie CAC of the Year; and Terra Nova Landscaping, Bedford, N.S., Canadian Rookie CAC of the Year.

John Deere Joins with CGA, DOT for Safe Digging

Representatives from John Deere Construction & Forestry, the Common Ground Alliance and the Department of Transportation rang the ceremonial closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange to promote awareness of underground utilities through the use of the national 811 call-before-you-dig phone number. Though awareness and use of 811 have significantly decreased the number of underground utility strikes in the U.S., the fact that there are still fatalities and damages from hitting gas and utility lines underscores the need for a continued safety campaign. To further encourage safe digging, John Deere will also share portions of safety videos on YouTube.

JCB Pledges $250,000 Worth of Support for Flood Victims

JCB pledged assistance worth $250,000 to help in the reconstruction effort in the wake of the devastating floods in Pakistan. The company donated two high-specification 4CX backhoe loaders with attachments to the country.

Isuzu’s new NPR ECO-MAX.

Isuzu Promoting Environmentally Friendly Trucks

Isuzu Commercial Truck of America, Inc. is conducting the ECO-Advantage Tour, a coast-to-coast showcase for the 2011 Isuzu NPR ECO-MAX. Two versions of the truck will visit 135 locations through November 17. The trucks meet 2010 emissions regulations and run on fuel-efficient engines. More information can be found at www.isuzucv.com.

Michael Worrall Derek Miller Brian DePaul

Hires at Stone Construction

Stone Construction Equipment added Michael Worrall as district manager for western Canada. Worrall has over 16 years of experience in industrial sales. He will serve equipment dealers and rental houses in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories.

Derek Miller was appointed to the position of district sales manager. He was previously part of the Stone sales team from 2003 to 2005, and has over 13 years of construction equipment sales knowledge. Miller will serve Arizona, California, Nevada and Utah.

Brian DePaul was named as regional manager for the Northeast. He brings a wealth of experience to Stone and worked most recently for Bartell Morrison, Inc.