News

Two ‘Top 100’ companies merge services

BUNNELL, Fla. – Two of the industry’s larger landscape companies have merged maintenance divisions to better serve commercial clients.

Austin Outdoor acquired Cornerstone Solutions Group landscape management division, allowing Austin to expand in four Central and Western Florida markets. Cornerstone’s Jacksonville and Orlando locations will be consolidated with Austin’s; in Tampa and Sarasota, where Cornerstone is well-established and has a long history, the operations will remain under the Cornerstone brand, the companies said. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

“This will make a significant difference in the growth of our business from a statewide standpoint,” Austin Outdoor President William Dellecker said to Lawn & Landscape. “There is some overlap in certain markets where there are common clients. But many commercial clients, larger ones, will have a presence in other markets in the state, and that is a benefit as well. We’re able to serve a client in Florida wherever they may be, and that’s another plus, potentially, for our customers on a combined basis.”

With the addition of Cornerstone, Austin serves more than 500 properties and has revenue in Florida approaching $40 million. Austin also has taken on about 100 Cornerstone employees. Dellecker said he expects to hire at least 50 more employees in the peak season.

The merger allows two Lawn & Landscape Top 100 companies to join forces. Yellowstone Landscape Group acquired Austin in 2008. Yellowstone was ranked No. 11 on the most recent Top 100, with $74 million in 2010 revenue. Cornerstone was ranked No. 58, with $20.4 million in 2010 revenue.

John Faulkner, founder and chief visionary officer for Cornerstone, said the maintenance division was 50 percent of the company. Cornerstone is also a general contractor and landscape installer, both of which made up 25 percent of the business before the maintenance division was sold. He said he expects continual growth from the remaining divisions.

“We were growing so fast at a rate that was hard for me to keep up with,” Faulkner said of why he decided to sell the maintenance division. “I’ve always had this passion to build big businesses and it just seemed like we could get there a lot faster if I teamed up with somebody that had the same vision and the same culture as our company.”

While continuing his position at Cornerstone, Faulkner will help Austin maintain and grow market share in Tampa and Sarasota. Faulkner said he’s been approached several times over the years to sell, but Austin was the first cultural fit.

“The merger of Cornerstone with Austin Outdoor is a natural fit,” said Edward Schatz, Jr, Austin’s founder and president of Yellowstone’s Southeast region. Between the values they share and reputation they both have for high quality, these two organizations complement each other perfectly.”

– Carolyn LaWell

Sebert Landscaping rebuilds after fire

BARTLETT, Ill. – Sebert Landscaping didn’t miss a beat after a fire destroyed the building at its Romeoville location in January. While the building, office materials, small equipment and one truck, were lost in the fire, the company’s operations ran as normal, offering an important lesson in preparation.

“We concentrated most importantly (on the fact) that nobody was hurt, and we went right into making sure our clients didn’t feel any of the effect of the misfortune,” said Sebert’s General Manager Steve Pearce

Emergency responders were called to the fire at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 16, Pearce said. The building wasn’t occupied and no one was injured. At press time, the cause of the fire and its estimated damage were unknown.

The Romeoville branch has about 45 employees, 225 landscape clients, 100-125 snow clients and brought in about $4.5 million of Sebert’s $20 million in 2011 revenue, Pearce said. With no building, the branch was still up and running the next day.

“The next morning we had a winter event that required salting and sidewalk crews to go out,” Pearce said. “We made sure that happened without any hiccups. We got out and serviced our clients right away.”

All business and client files were backed up on computers so, first thing in the morning, the administrative staff called clients to reassure them that while the building was lost, the business wasn’t. Pearce said that voice to voice communication was crucial.

“It was good, we got a lot of support from our clients,” Pearce said. “I also did put an email message out later in the day thanking everybody for their support – just another message to say we’re going to be OK.”

Logistically, the company decided to continue to run its snow operation out of the Romeoville location because there was still room for the trucks to park, Pearce said. Space was made for the Romeoville’s management and support staff in the company’s Naperville branch office until a temporary office could be put on the Romeoville site.

“We are already in the preparation of getting prepared to rebuild,” Pearce said four days after the fire. “We will rebuild on the existing site, and right now our plans are to build our second LEED certified building to further enhance our belief in sustainability and what we believe in, which is being as green as possibly can be.”

– Carolyn LaWell

Briggs & Stratton shutting plants

MILWALKEE – Briggs & Stratton will shift its operations and close two plants to adjust to changes in the outdoor equipment market.

The Newbern, Tenn., facility, which manufactures walk-behind mowers and snow throwers, will close and move its operations to Briggs & Stratton’s McDonough, Ga., facility. The company will also close its Ostrava, Czech Republic plant, which manufacturers small engines for the outdoor power equipment industry, and shift that production to its Murray, Ky., plant.

The restructuring will affect about 690 employees at the Tennessee facility and 77 at the Czech Republic plant. It will also save the company $18 million to $20 million annually.

Since 2004, the U.S. lawn and garden market has declined more than 33 percent and Briggs & Stratton has felt those effects, company Chairman, President and CEO Todd Teske said in a statement.

“This significant and prolonged market decline is unlike any other this industry has seen in decades, Teske said. “In addition, we have taken actions over the past year to reconfigure and reduce our capacity and costs at our Poplar Bluff, Mo., engine plant. The actions announced today to consolidate our manufacturing footprint further, will better align our production capacity to the markets we serve.”

Operations are expected to wind down in the Czech Republic by March 15 and in Tennessee by approximately May 15.

Case unveils several new products

OMAHAWK, Wis. – Case Construction Equipment has made several introductions for the market, including a new excavator digging system and a new wheel loader and improvements to its loader/backhoe product line, which meet Tier 4 interim emission standards.

First, the company introduced the new 621F wheel loader model. The new machine provides up to a 10-percent increase in fuel economy over the previous model, while delivering faster acceleration, quicker cycle times and higher travel speeds.

The new Case 621F wheel loader, like other models in the product line, evolved from the company’s E Series machines. It features a 6.7-liter Tier 4 Interim-certified engine that delivers up to 162 hp. Classified as a 2.75 yd3 wheel loader, the Case 621F has an operating weight of 26,641 lb.

Second, the company announced Case Smart Digging Systems components, including new pin-on buckets, coupler buckets, the Case Multi-Fit Coupler and SmartFit bucket teeth system.

Case pin-on buckets are designed for heavy-duty, high-capacity applications such as digging in dense soil, clay, loose rock and gravel.

The Case Multi-Fit Coupler offers hydraulic latching, enabling excavator operators to quickly attach and detach buckets and other components without leaving the cab.

Finally, a variety of improvements were made to the N Series loader/backhoe product line. The upgrades include the application of cooled exhaust gas recirculation (CEGR) emissions-control technology as well as important improvements in performance, productivity and maintainability.

The Case 580N, 580 Super N, 580 Super N Wide Track and 590 Super N loader/backhoes feature 3.4-liter, turbocharged engines, ranging from 78 hp in the 580N to 108 hp in the 590SN.

USDA releases Plant Hardiness Zone map

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Agriculture updated its Plant Hardiness Zone Map for the first time since 1990, shifting zone boundaries because of warmer temperatures.

The new map is generally one 5-degrees Fahrenheit half-zone warmer than the previous map. The zone changes are mainly a result of the USDA using temperature data from a longer and more recent time period. The new map looks at a 30-year period, while the 1990 version used 13 years

For the first time, the map offers a Geographic Information System (GIS)-based interactive format and USDA’s website offers a “find your zone by ZIP code” function.

The updated version includes 13 zones, with the addition for the first time of zones 12 (50-60 degrees F) and 13 (60-70 degrees F). Each zone is a 10-degree Fahrenheit band, further divided into A and B 5-degree Fahrenheit zones.

The USDA developed the map with its Agricultural Research Service arm and Oregon State University’s PRISM Climate Group.

ValleyCrest names CEO

CALABASAS, Calif. – ValleyCrest Landscape Cos. has made more changes to its senior leadership team, promoting Roger J. Zino to CEO and naming Richard A. Sperber chairman.

Sperber has been president of the group of companies since 2011 and in 2008 was named co-CEO with his father Burt Sperber, the ValleyCrest founder who died last September.

Effective May 1, Sperber will take the role of chairman of the board, which the company said will allow him more time to focus on the vision and direction of the family of companies.

As part of the transition, Zino will be promoted to CEO and will remain in his current position as the president of ValleyCrest Landscape Maintenance. After a brief hiatus, Andrew J. Brennan has rejoined ValleyCrest Landscape Cos. as COO, a newly-created position reporting to Zino.

“The driver behind these changes is to keep ValleyCrest strong and on course for the next 62 years,” Sperber said of the company, founded in 1949.