BLOOMINGTON, Minn. - The Toro Company announced May 1, 2001, that it has signed a letter of intent to purchase the assets of Electronic Industrial Controls Inc. (EICON), an irrigation controller engineering and manufacturer in Englewood, Colo., for an undisclosed sum. The acquisition is expected to be complete by about mid-June, according to Bob Finkenbiner, Toro Residential/Commercial Brand Manager.
"EICON provides a high quality control package for the commercial, government and municipal markets and will clearly strengthen Toro's product offering in this segment," said Kendrick Melrose, chairman and CEO of Toro. Melrose added that Toro would also gain valuable engineering expertise from EICON to help Toro expand the controller segment in its residential and commercial markets. He also said Toro gains "innovative irrigation software design and radio frequency control solutions, which are critical technologies."
With Toro’s stronger presence on the golf side of irrigation, the company’s acquisition of EICON positions Toro to expand its other market reaches, Finkenbiner said. "Getting a sentinel type product fills out a line for us that we didn’t have before. It means that we’re more than just golf," he explained.
Products that will be added to Toro’s line include satellite, wall mount, pad and multiple station controllers. EICON features multiple station controllers that control from 12 to 96 stations, however, Finkenbiner said Toro will initially focus on the 24- and 48-station controllers. He also explained that EICON features controllers that manage noncontiguous sites, which makes them ideal for commercial applications.
Gary and Mary Jane Henry started EICON in 1969. As founders of the company they were instrumental in developing the first radio maintained remote control for an irrigation application. The company’s first automated central control system was developed in 1977 and installed on a Toro controller on a Colorado golf course. Further product development created lines like the EICON Universal Central system and the Ceres Central system. The Ceres system is currently installed on golf courses, parks, municipal turf areas, corporate and school campuses and even controls the water supply for the nation of Bermuda.
"We liked the culture of the Henry’s and their organization. They’re very customer responsive, and they’re pretty innovative," explained Finkenbiner. "We also liked the fact that by Toro acquiring EICON, we get an immediate presence in the commercial control section of the marketplace."
Although EICON is an established company with satisfied customers, its growth in the marketplace has been limited by its physical size. "The big hole that EICON had was lack of distribution," Finkenbiner explained, "and one of Toro’s strengths is a good solid distribution channel."
EICON currently has seven employees involved in the design, building and selling of their equipment. They will become Toro employees when the deal is completed. The research and design portion of the business will remain in Englewood, said Finkenbiner, but Toro will most likely move production to a different facility, as EICON’s current manufacturing area is too small for the amount of product Toro anticipates to distribute.
"We’d like to be successful, we think that we’re going to figure out a way through acquisition or either new product development to grow the business," said Finkenbiner. "Acquiring EICON gives a great base."
For more information about Toro visit www.toro.com.
The author is Internet Editor of Lawn & Landscape Online.
