Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/620622
October 2015 • Equipment World Spec Guide 3 on record | by Richard Ries U nder the optimism of economic recovery lurk the lessons of the past several years. Those lessons breed caution. Manu- facturers have realigned their offerings to help balance the optimism/cau- tion scale. They have bolstered their core product categories while divesting those product lines that make less sense to their corporate direction. Volvo dropped their backhoes, cold planers, and motor graders. Intensus also axed their graders. Hyundai is out of the skid steer market. Dynapac's name is now incorporated into model names for Atlas Copco roadbuilding equipment. Hyundai has entered the hydraulic breaker market with 15 models. Kubota became a player in skid steers and Wacker Neuson now offers wheel loaders. Depending on how you look at it, the year since publishing last year's Equipment World Spec Guide has been chaotic – or not. Examine individual manufacturers or specific categories of equipment and there's been lots of action. On the macro scale, however, it's been pretty much business as usual. There were 3,316 total models listed in the 2014 Spec Guide; this year the number is 3,370, representing a growth rate of just 1.6 percent. So the big picture is one of stability and modest growth. But some of the close-up views tell a different story. Of the top five categories with the highest percentage of reduction in model counts, four were in compaction. In fact all compaction categories saw reductions; the smallest by percent was combination drum and smooth tire compactors with a reduction in models of 7.69 percent. There was less homogeneity among the top five gainers. The largest gain by percent was scraper tractors with a 100 percent increase in models listed from 2014 to 2015. That's skewed, however, by Deere's dominance in this small category and the fact the com- pany totally revamped their line this year. The middle ground weighted the whole chart toward stability. Nineteen categories saw changes in model listings of less than five percent and eight of those had zero percent change. Some of the change was driven by the need to meet Tier 4 Final emissions regula- tions. But OEMs are good at reading mar- kets and looking at the changes in models listed can indicate what markets they think are hot or not. Whether you use the Equipment World Spec Guide for spotting market trends or to compare specs on any of the 3,000+ mod- els listed, it's a great tool for bringing value to your business. Manufacturers shift offerings in market recovery