Looking to next season

LAKE ZURICH, Ill. – From hedge trimmers to pressure washers, ECHO had plenty to reveal at its press event in early October.

Lawn & Landscape visited the ECHO facility located just outside Chicago, where the company debuted 20 new products. Its “20 for 2020” campaign continued into GIE+EXPO as a showcase for what ECHO customers will be able to buy once the new year begins.

The timing was not coincidental: Debuting the products a few weeks before the annual show was a deliberate strategy to get ECHO on buyers’ minds going into GIE+EXPO.

“What company puts out 20 in one year? That’s a huge feat and we wanted to make a big deal about that,” said Ken Osberg, the director of marketing at ECHO. “This was to kick off the GIE+EXPO season. Everybody talks this time of year about getting their badges and such, and we wanted to be part of that narrative. We have a story to tell, so we wanted to get that message out.”

The press event also included a tour of the company’s manufacturing facility, which employs roughly 900 people plantwide. Lake Zurich Mayor Thomas Poynton also attended the tour.

The products. Debuting so many products in one sitting might seem daunting, but Osberg said the ECHO team answered the challenge accordingly.

“The timing is difficult. We’re such a seasonal business, and we have some key milestones in the year,” Osberg said. “We have a sales meeting, we have the GIE+EXPO show, so to have everything ready from an announcement perspective and to be ready to have everything ship, that’s probably one of our biggest challenges. All of it needs to hit to be ready for the (next) season.”

ECHO revealed five new hedge trimmer models, all of varying length or shaft style. The HC-2210 trimmer’s RazorEdge blades are 22 inches long and feature a full spring suspension system to minimize vibration. The company also released the HC-2810 with 28-inch blades, and both of those hedge trimmers feature a front-facing exhaust to minimize plant damage. The HCS-3810 and HCS-2810 models are straight shaft trimmers and respectively include 38-inch and 28-inch blades. The SHC-2620S Shafted Trimmer features a two-stage air filtration system, 21-inch double-sided, double-reciprocating blades and a 51-inch shaft to reach tall hedges. All but the SHC-2620S are powered by a 21.2cc engine and can reach 10,750 RPMs. Meanwhile, the SHC-2620S includes a 25.4cc engine and 2,500 RPM blade speed.

ECHO heard customers wanted lighter equipment regarding the hedgers, so they took chunks of unnecessary plastic and cut small holes in the blades and gears.

“It was a big focus of the engineers to take out some weight,” said product manager Brad Mace. “They looked at every piece of this thing. This really helps guys who use this all day long – they get fatigued. It really helps to take weight out whenever you can.”

Then there were the two generators – the 3500W Generator and the 10,000W Generator – which were constructed to be compact and easily stored or transported. The EGi-1200W, 2300W and 4000W inverters are also built to be compact and can power all sorts of electronics that landscapers might use. Plus, the 2300W and 4000W inverters can be controlled with ECHO Command, an app that communicates with the products using Bluetooth to monitor load, fuel level and run time.

ECHO designed four different pressure washers, some of which are specifically designed for homeowners while others work best as a commercial option. The PW-3100 is largely for residential use, while the PW-3200, PW-3600 and PW-4200 are choices in varying power for professionals. The PW-4200 includes a 4.0 GPM max flow and is ECHO’s most powerful option to date. The model numbers show each product's max PSI. 

The company also revealed its pair of new backpack blowers: the EB810 and EB770RT. The former blower is powered by a 79.9cc engine and produces roughly 44 Newtons of power, plus roughly 211 MPH of air speed. The EB770RT includes a 63.3cc engine and generates 33 Newtons of power, although it also creates an air speed of 234 MPH.

ECHO also debuted the RB-60 Broadcast Spreader that includes a 60-pound hopper for applying pesticides or herbicides. The RB-100W spreader is designed for rock salt and ice melts, so it has a spiked auger to break up clumps. The company also debuted its SRM-2320T Straight Shaft Trimmer, which features a 21.2cc engine and two-stage air filtration system. It’s designed for light to medium trimming.

Lawn & Landscape magazine’s sister publication, Golf Course Industry, also attended the event and wrote more about ECHO's autonomous mowers, which were also revealed at the press event but weren't technically part of the company's 20 for 2020 campaign.