Power tool [r]evolution

by Clair D. Urbain

There is a lot of movin’ and shakin’ going on in the power tool business. DeWalt’s parent company, Black & Decker, will own Porter-Cable, Delta, Oldham Saw, DeVilbiss Air Power and FLEX brands by the end of the year, barring anti-trust intervention.

Atlas Copco, the parent company of Milwaukee Electric Tool, has the “for sale” sign out on the big red brand and the industry is hot with speculation on who the new owners will be. That may even be decided before this issue hits your mailbox.

I’ve visited with many tool hounds and read screen after screen on Internet forums run by power tool devotees about this changing industry. Most don’t like the consolidation going on and, worse, the outside-U.S. production of these tools. But most understand that our economy is very intertwined with the world economy, and this is inevitable.

Nearly 20 years ago, I was an agricultural writer following the 1985 farm crisis. As the notion of small family farms was wiped out by the reality of corporate agriculture, machinery companies that served smaller farmers went bankrupt or entered into interesting mergers that changed the complexion of the industry forever.

If you think some of your fellow power tool users are devoted to a brand, consider the shock and dismay farmers loyal to a certain brand and color of equipment felt when their favorite, yet floundering, company was taken over by a much smaller player with deep pockets. Or when another Midwest-based tractor company was taken over by a German concern.

One contractor I visited with questioned the recent Black & Decker acquisition: “Is nothing sacred?” In a world economy, the answer is very little.

If you look at the power tool industry, it’s a crowded field. Trusted brands compete head to head with new brands that have their roots firmly established overseas. The majority of today’s power tools are manufactured on the other side of the globe. Customers are demanding higher performing tools, while expecting new technology to be available for less cost than the last one they bought. Some buyers price-shop so intensely that margins in every link of the supply chain suffer. No wonder the power tool industry is shaking up.

Change isn’t always easy. The power tool industry will get realigned and the best brands will survive and thrive. Just remember that every time you buy a tool, you are casting a vote. If you let price alone drive your decision, you are telling the power tool companies you want low-priced tools, not ones that perform and help you turn your labor into money.

Or if buying USA-made tools is important to you, let your wallet speak for you. If service and selection is more important than price, remember to look first to your construction distributor – not some big-box store – for new tools.

We’re all part of the power tool [r]evolution, so if you feel strongly about where the industry is going, remember that every tool or accessory purchase you make – and where you make it – helps tell the industry where you want it to go.

Published in the September/October, 2004 issue of Contractor Tools and Supplies magazine.

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