POWER SHIFT
POWER SHIFT
ECHO ’ s eForce tools use battery packs with standard 18650-size cells , but the company says “ more to come ” on new tech
looking for something that will last for the full day . But while many of them consider a ‘ full day ’ to be eight hours , they ’ re not cutting for eight hours , but that ’ s their expectation .”
Briggs & Stratton itself is an interesting study of the electrification evolution . In its 100-plus year history , B & S has produced more than 200 million gas engines . And the Milwaukee manufacturer calls itself “ the world ’ s largest small engine producer .” The first engine I ever pulled to life was a Briggs & Stratton – that might be true for you too . Today , the company is evolving to become a “ provider of power .” The company ’ s Vanguard commercial power division markets li-ion battery packs and V-Twin gas engines . It also boasts about being “ a leading designer , manufacturer and marketer of lithium-ion battery … products .” Wam said that the company ran a marketing campaign years ago to fight in favor of gasoline , and the comments it received from consumers were not good . “ Many people told us we needed to evolve ,” she said . Had it not done so , it might have become the modern-day
Kodak , a company famous for eschewing the digital camera biz .
At the opposite end of the evolutionary spectrum from Briggs & Stratton , Kress promotes “ The death of gas ” on its website . “ Welcome to the post-gas era ” announces Kress with a web headline over its battery-charging system . Kress has been marketing battery-powered tools – and only battery-powered tools – to the North American market for one year , though its roots are deeper in Europe . With a focus on equipment powered by fast-charging batteries for commercial users , Kress is trying to reach landscapers and OPE pros to address their expectations of electric tools .
Performance is Money “ The first thing landscapers ask us for ,” said John Sloan , director of sales for Positec ’ s Kress brand , “ is a substitute for gas equipment . Most companies have tried battery tools , and they want to know about battery run time . We could engineer a battery to run for two hours , but it would be too heavy .”
One OPE dealer I surveyed added this comment to his response : “ I will be
impressed when an F16 jet could perform with battery on par or better than today ’ s jet .” While innovative aviators are developing and testing batterypowered jets , I doubt they will impress this anti-battery dealer anytime soon .
When comparing batteries to gasoline ( or jet fuel ), I need to cover the topics of energy density and motor efficiency , even if briefly . I ’ ll start by paraphrasing an ancient question : “ If an oxcart is carrying a load of grain to market , how far can it go before the oxen eat up all the cargo ( i . e ., their fuel )?” All vehicles that carry their own fuel face this problem . The grain as fuel has low energy density , and the ox as a motor has low efficiency , but they used what they had .
Fast forward and look at gasoline ; it has a significantly higher energy density than a li-ion battery . Some of that difference is offset by the high efficiency of electric motors in converting stored energy into motion . Internal combustion engines are inefficient ; they ’ re unable to use all of gasoline ’ s inherent power . That inefficiency , plus the heat , noise , maintenance , and exhaust , is why we ’ re talking about batteries today ( and hydrogen tomorrow ?).
To be clear , none of the manufacturers I spoke with said the performance equivalency is there – battery to gas . “ The biggest limiting factor right now ,” said John Powers , director of product management for ECHO , “ is energy density . Power equipment is a hard challenge to solve .” With a car , he says , you can install more batteries because weight is less of an issue . With most handheld equipment , like trimmers and blowers , you can fit enough energy in a tool and it ’ s easy to access chargers when needed . But he says larger tools like backpack blowers and mowers present a bigger challenge .
What the manufacturers present is a revision to the power question . “ We try to
20 OPE Business July 2023 www . OPEBusiness . com