Outdoor Power Equipment Market Expands in 2004 Dec 2, 2004

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The Outdoor Power Equipment Institute's (OPEI) estimates for commercial turf care products, consumer lawn and garden equipment, and gasoline powered hand-held equipment, indicate that the outdoor power equipment market expanded in the 2004 model year (September 2003 to August 2004).

Estimates indicate that the commercial turf care product category increased 27 percent in 2004, including a 7-percent increase in commercial turf walk-behind mowers and a 39-percent increase in commercial riders. For the 2004 model year, OPEI estimates that nearly 300,000 commercial turn outdoor power equipment units were shipped.

OPEI also announced shipments of consumer lawn and garden powered equipment totaled nearly 8.6 million units, an increase of 5 percent, during the 2004 model year. Walk-behind units increased 6 percent to 6.5 million units, while all riding mowers increased 3 percent to 1.8 million units. Favorable weather in most of the U.S. and increased new housing sales were said to help consumer sales.

In addition, estimates for gasoline powered hand-held product shipments increased 5.4 percent to 12.5 million units. Hand-held blower increased 20 percent to 1.7 million units, while chain saws increased 15.7 percent to 2.5 million units.

In 2004, five hand-held products were added to OPEI's shipments program. The new categories were stick edgers, engine drills, earth/ice augers, hand-held tillers, and pole pruners.

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