WHY THE INTEREST
Depending on who you talk to the reason why owners are taking a hard look at robotic mowers will vary. For Brad Leahy, vice president of Blades of Green, based in Edgewater, Maryland, they are always looking for another line of service they can offer customers. “We’re not trying to necessarily reduce a labor shortage, which is what you have a lot of people trying to do, taking their existing mowing custom- ers, and just put robots on there and reduce their labor needs,” Leahy says. “I don’t see it quite that way, we’re just looking for another package.” Leahy has also heard that because
robotic mowers are only cutting a small portion of the grass at a time, yards look better over time as they are keep- ing weeds from popping up above the
g e ov ee m popping up above the
a t e ry p oa
p
obotic mowers have been on the scene for years now and many landscape maintenance com- panies have been watching and waiting to implement these ma-
chines at the right time. Most company owners acknowledge that robotic mowers aren’t a fad and expect them to become even more prevalent in the future as their technology im- proves.
If you are still on the fence about integrating robotic mowers, here are some insights from some businesses that are either testing them out right now or have al- ready implemented them into their services.
grass. They are currently putting those claims to the test at their “Lawn Lab.” In Yellowstone Landscape’s case, they’ve just recently decided to start testing robotic mowers as they feel the machines have developed enough that they are relevant to large-scale commercial applications. “There’s no denying that this tech- nology will have a role to play in the future of our industry, so we want to be a part of making sure these machines fit our needs as soon as possible,” says Joseph Barnes, marketing director for Yellowstone. At Plants Creative Landscapes, based in Decatur, Georgia, owner Pam Dooley says they first saw the addition of robotic mowers as an employee recruiting and retention tool, attracting new people to the industry and provid-
rec u e
eop
Blades of Green is currently testing out their robotic mowers to see how they perform in
different situations. Photos: Blades of Green
National Association of Landscape Professionals 31 N
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