Answered by Allen Rudd, National Marketing Manager, www.takeuchi-us.com
How long has your company been involved in the landscaping industry?
Takeuchi, a pioneer in the equipment industry, developed the world’s first compact excavator and introduced the world’s first compact track loader. These two products have transformed the North American construction equipment markets. Seeing a need and acting on it is Takeuchi’s focus, building machines that incorporate solutions into every component and feature.
What are some of the mistakes you’ve seen landscapers make?
Not enough research and analysis before buying equipment. They should analyze their own work history and the types of work they do. Then demo and compare equipment that gives them the best performance for their applications. Two competitive machines may have the same horsepower but completely different methods of transferring that power to an application. Don’t rely on spec sheets and salesmen, run the equipment.
Does your company help find solutions for these mistakes?
Takeuchi has a team of product managers who assist in various degrees and stages of the acquisition process. We encourage hands on demos of products. The potential buyer needs to understand what the machine is supposed to do, then see if it will do it.
Takeuchi offers training that includes bringing all competitive brands to one location, allowing attendees to run all the equipment, under the exact same conditions, then compare.
What kind of after-sale support or training do you or your distribution network offer?
We utilize state-of-the-art adaptive ERP, eCommerce, and automated warranty claim processing and reporting. Customers have 24-hour-a-day access to all the information and support they need. At our U.S headquarters, the parts department currently carries over 56,000 individual item numbers, in excess of 1.7 million pieces, with a first pass fill rate consistently above 98%.
What trends do you see affecting the future of the landscaping market and how will your company address them?
With the residential housing marketing in a decline, the trend seems to be for homeowners to invest in their current homes rather than the higher cost of a new home purchase. A lot of this investment seems to be in the form of landscape improvement, making the residential market strong. Irrigation systems and backyard retreats are growing in demand.
Takeuchi is the leader in developing compact equipment and that is the category for the landscape market. Our products range in size and ability to handle any and all of the needs of a landscape contractor. Just match the machines with the needs and applications.
Run them all and pick the machine that gives you the best performance in your application. Also, look at serviceability, reliability, and resale. You can tell a lot about a machine by how many you see in the used equipment magazines. Talk to other contractors and find out what they are saying about the machine you are looking to purchase.
