OPEI celebrates 60th anniversary with pedal to the metal

The StaffMay 7, 2012

By C.M. Long

Small off-road engines, or SORE for short. That simple term belies the sheer enormity of the equipment that the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI) represents. As a matter of fact, at its 60-year anniversary mark, OPEI has become the international voice for a multibillion-dollar engine (SORE), utility vehicle and outdoor power equipment manufacturing industry and its suppliers.

Today, OPEI’s membership is diverse to say the least. Although largely associated with lawn and landscape, the OPEI membership makes equipment that takes care of lawns, forests, public spaces and medians; is critical to fire and rescue operations; provides a portable power source behind construction, building, farming, ranching, to name a few; and is vital during and after severe weather and other emergencies.

In fact, OPEI’s new president and CEO, Kris Kiser, does not shy away from emphasizing the importance of the SORE industry. “Oftentimes, people just don’t realize how pervasive and critical our machines are in the economy and everyday life,” Kiser said. “Utility vehicles and outdoor power equipment with small, but powerful engines empower everyone from the landscaper, forester and construction crew to fire and rescue and farmers, allowing them to perform the kind of jobs that protect us, serve our communities, and make our economy grow.”

All this from an organization founded by 11 mower manufacturers in 1952.

Standards spark formation

The impetus for founding the future Institute was the need for equipment safety standards. In 1952, 11 mower manufacturers chartered the Lawn Mower Institute, a non-profit trade association, which within four years began to accept engine manufacturers as members. Developing safety specifications for equipment was critical to ensure global competitiveness and help ensure consumer safety. By 1962, the re-named Outdoor Power Equipment Institute became an Associate Member of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

Over the years, OPEI has grown to be an accredited Standards Developing Organization (SDO) responsible for ANSI standards for a range of outdoor power equipment and the administrator for two technical advisory groups to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), representing U.S. manufacturers in the development of international standards for handheld and ground-supported outdoor power equipment.

Just last year, OPEI ramped up its standards work, adding staff and broadening the scope of its standards development. “Our members really depend on us to develop these important standards,” said Kiser. “We just developed the first-ever ANSI standard for utility vehicles (UTVs), and we’re playing a key role in developing an ANSI standard with the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) for determining available water for landscapes and estimating landscape water use.”

OPEI’s standing in standards development, and its ability to harness resources and influence to address member concerns, brings other organizations into its fold.

In 2001, OPEI absorbed the membership of the Portable Power Equipment Manufacturers Association (PPEMA) and took on the management of the Outdoor Power Equipment Aftermarket Association (OPEAA) in 2010.

Fred Whyte, president of Stihl Inc., helped to successfully engineer the merger of PPEMA and OPEI in 2001 and said that the merger reflected a natural progression in the industry. “It used to be that there were clear lines between handheld and wheeled goods manufacturers,” Whyte said. “Over time, however, the lines began to blur and there was enough consolidation in the business to warrant OPEI and PPEMA coming together under one umbrella.”

GIE+EXPO has grown to become the ninth-largest trade show in the United States.OPEI goes global

Before “green” became an en vogue adjective preceding economy or energy, green was the term used to describe the lawn, garden and power equipment industry, symbolizing how its products help keep our community areas growing and healthy.

Bringing manufacturers and suppliers together, in one central place, took form in 1984 when OPEI launched the industry’s first U.S. trade show, the International Lawn, Garden and Power Equipment Exposition (EXPO). Further expansion occurred in 2007 when the Green Industry Expo (GIE) merged with EXPO, creating the first Green Industry and Equipment Expo (GIE+EXPO).

Attendees from around the world — dealers, commercial landscapers, and other buyers — could walk up to the latest products, talk to company representatives, and attend educational sessions to help generate ideas for growth and business success.

In 2010, GIE+EXPO created a mega industry event by co-locating with Hardscape North America, giving dealers, retailers and distributors access to ideas, products and education on outdoor home design and improvement. As of 2011, GIE+EXPO had grown to report 17,500 participants with 750-plus exhibits, and was named the ninth-largest trade show in the U.S. by Trade Show Executive magazine.

“Over many years, OPEI has done a great job of making changes to the trade show format to adapt to and meet market conditions,” said Warren Sellers, president, Sellers Expositions, the managing organization for GIE+EXPO.

“For example, a dramatic change will take place in 2012 when we have an exclusive day on Wednesday, October 24, for dealers and distributors and other dealer-focused events. On this dedicated day, exhibitors and retail attendees will have exclusive time on the exhibitor floor to talk about products, pricing and agreements. And, for the first time in the history of GIE+EXPO, [the Equipment and Engine Training Council] and [the North American Equipment Dealers Association] will be offering certified training for dealership technicians.”

Kris KiserOPEI takes on public policy

In the late 2000s, the outdoor power and small engine equipment industry was finding itself in the crosshairs of several developments on Capitol Hill.

First, emissions regulations were being finalized with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Phase 3 and California Air Resources Board (CARB) Tier 3 requirements. OPEI wanted to have someone on the front lines to make sure the final rulings were fair, consistent and clear.

Second, and in many ways tied to the first issue, the media was taking aim at the outdoor power equipment industry, specifically mowers, and characterizing them as “dirty machines” that had no redeeming value.

There were also signs that lawns were about to be “thrown under the bus” by WaterSense and the EPA, as well as face unprecedented attacks and restrictions.

To meet these challenges, OPEI brought on someone who had a mix of legal, government affairs, public policy and Capitol Hill experience, and that was Kiser.

“I originally was hired on as VP of Public Affairs and told to hit the ground running,” said Kiser. “The industry had a slew of legislative and regulatory groups working on rules and regulations impacting outdoor power and small engine equipment, and there was no time to waste.”

Under Kiser’s guidance and the dedication of the OPEI Board and members, OPEI began to have a stronger voice and some “muscle” on the Hill. Kiser’s approach was to stand fast and firm behind the industry’s most important positions, but not to take an adversarial stance with the EPA, CARB or other groups.

“From my past experience, I knew that OPEI could achieve more by standing by facts, science and its credibility than attacking and being viewed as unreasonable,” said Kiser.

In a short span of time, OPEI and its members played a leading role in a series of guidelines and initiatives on the emissions front:

OPEI issued a Guidance Document outlining best practices and guidelines on tamper-resistance compliance for imported small engines, as well as lawn and garden products.
OPEI worked with other groups to pass SB1402, a California bill that immediately required the CARB enforcement program to be transparent, consistent and fair.
OPEI issued a Carbon Study showing that responsibly managed lawns sequester, or store, significant amounts of carbon, and that healthy turfgrass can capture up to four times more carbon from the air than is produced by the engines of today’s lawn mowers.

Responsible stewardship

All the while, a disturbing development was taking place in the WaterSense program. Under a WaterSense new home specification, EPA was developing and releasing draft specifications for new home construction that placed restrictions on the amount of turfgrass that could be used (new home sites were to be limited to 40-percent grass use on the site’s landscapeable area). “The alarming aspect to this was that the specs were going to be implemented nationwide, border to border, coast to coast, regardless of regional differences in climate or turf species — it was truly a one-size-fits-all type of specification,” stressed Kiser.

In the end, OPEI helped put the brakes on this WaterSense initiative, now under agency review to remove the 40-percent restriction. OPEI was also instrumental in the coalition effort to prevent the adoption of the 40-percent turf limitation in a national building code standard.

In the meantime, OPEI is working with stakeholder groups and ASABE — an accredited ANSI standards organization and recognized standards developer for engineering in agricultural, food and biological systems — to develop a standardized procedure for determining available water for landscapes and estimating landscape water use.

For OPEI, this indiscriminate attack on the American lawn — and the equipment that takes care of it — prompted the association to work proactively on establishing an educational program that presented the science behind growing and caring for green spaces with a focus on environmental stewardship and best practices for water and landscape use.

In 2009, the OPEI Education & Research Foundation embarked on the development of a science-based educational curriculum with Weekly Reader. Interest and excitement in the TurfMutt program grew so fast that by 2010, it had expanded nationally and partnered with Discovery Education, a highly respected, national curriculum development organization, and division of Discovery Communications.

The curriculum consists of a variety of free kindergarten through fifth-grade classroom resources aimed at educators who need to bring science into the classroom in an engaging way, and who also need lesson plans and materials that focus on scientific investigation, especially in the outdoors.

The dog behind the TurfMutt mascot is none other than the real-life rescue dog owned by Kiser. “We looked at ‘Lucky,’ my dog, one day and figured who best conveys the love and value of green spaces than a dog rolling in the grass in his or her backyard,” said Kiser. “Kids connect with this.”

According to OPEI Chair Jean Hlay, president and chief operating officer of MTD Products, “OPEI has done a great job of looking at our industry’s challenges and working on both immediate and long-term solutions. TurfMutt is a good example of a strategic program that takes a long-term view on educating and informing the public about the value of green space and the very real contributions of our industry.”

Protecting small, non-road engines

In 2008, ethanol moved front and center in the fuels debate on the heels of Growth Energy’s fuel waiver application with the EPA. Growth Energy wanted a partial fuel waiver to allow E15 on the market for newer on-road vehicles. This announcement sparked controversy as groups such as The Alliance for a Safe Alternative Fuels Environment (AllSAFE) and The Engine Products Group (EPG), both of which OPEI is a member of, challenged this development based on several key points:

EPA’s “partial waiver” concept would be based on somehow bifurcating the national production, distribution, blending, and marketing of separate E10 fuels (for non-road products and older automobiles) and then offering E15 fuels for newer automobiles only.
New blender pumps coming on the market allow consumers to “dial up” on what blend of ethanol they want dispensed. Many pumps are inadequately labeled and don’t sufficiently warn consumers about the potential harm that a “mid-level” ethanol blend may do to an automobile, motorcycle, boat, chain saw, lawn mower, all-terrain vehicle, snowmobile, generator or any other engine-powered product.

By 2010, OPEI, as part of the Engine Products Group, filed a legal challenge to EPA’s partial waiver for E15. As a result of this three-year-long contention in the media about increasing levels of ethanol, Kiser became the voice of the industry, supporting the spirit of the energy independence, but insisting that new fuels shouldn’t come on the market that can harm equipment or potentially cause harm to consumers without adequate consumer education and infrastructure protections.

“OPEI has been critical to our industry in providing advocacy, addressing regulatory issues, and offering public education in the proper use of OPE,” said Fred Whyte. “Certainly, OPEI’s efforts with regard to highlighting the serious issues in the expanded use of ethanol and encouraging a cooperative effort between industry and government in charting the proper course to best serve all stakeholders are commendable.”

OPEI Chairperson Jean Hlay, president and COO of MTD Products, is flanked by OPEI Vice Chairperson Dick Fotsch (left), president of the Global Power Group, Kohler Company, and OPEI President and CEO Kris Kiser (right). Hlay became the first woman to serve as OPEI chairperson in 2011-2012, and Fotsch will succeed her at the annual meeting in June as OPEI chairperson for 2012-2013.

By 2011, OPEI itself witnessed a series of internal changes that pointed toward a bold future and expansion of its services and membership base.

As Kiser took over the helm of OPEI, the OPEI Board also saw its first woman — Jean Hlay — elected to serve as the Institute’s Chair of the Board and Board member.

In quick succession, OPEI added two new positions to the standards team, and hired a new firm to expand its market forecasting and reporting program. Starting in 2012, OPEI market forecasts and reports will provide broader, deeper and more granular information, including adding electric- and battery-powered mower categories and eventually global data.

“OPEI has had to adapt and adjust to many changes and developments on the regulatory and standards fronts,” said Kiser. “The good news is that we are nimble and staffed to meet expected, and often unexpected, challenges head-on.”

Case in point: There is now an OPEI Canada, and OPEI is in the recovery and recycling business. After the Canadian province of British Columbia required OPE makers to recover and recycle equipment, OPEI created a Stewardship Plan in 2012 to help OPEI manufacturers comply.

OPEI Canada interfaces with Canadian authorities on extended producer responsibility programs, which require product recovery and recycling, and will also be working with Health Canada on consumer product safety issues.

Strength in membership

OPEI’s 2012 annual meeting will be one venue, in addition to GIE+EXPO 2012, where the membership can come together and celebrate OPEI’s 60th anniversary. Rather than rest on its laurels, Kiser is pushing OPEI to engage its members more than ever and make the annual meeting an event where real business gets done, and members leave feeling enthused about where the industry is going.

OPEI’s 2011-2012 officers and board members“The organization’s strength is in its membership, and my job is to harness that expertise and knowledge, and put it to work for the industry at large,” added Kiser. “Almost half our members are Associate members, so we have added an Associate member to our Board, who will be recognized at the annual meeting luncheon. Then, we have retooled the meeting to have more of a business format with members delving into and engaging with industry issues and formulating solutions and policies.”

In the end, when OPEI members come together, you get the feeling you might be at a family reunion, of sorts. “While in practical terms, OPEI members compete against each other on the open market, they also have mutual respect for each other,” said Kiser. “We get a lot done at our meetings, but we also like to have fun and renew enduring friendships.”

OPEI currently represents 80-plus members in the following commercial and consumer equipment and industries:

Agriculture (Tillers)
Construction and Trades (Portable power generators and power washers)
Lawn and Landscape (Residential and commercial mowers, garden tractors, pruners, trimmers, snow throwers, leaf blowers, and edgers)
Fire, Rescue/Emergency and Weather Events (Generators, chain saws, concrete saws, jaws of life)
Forestry (Chain saws, pole saws, chippers, grinders, and shredders)
Golf, Sport Fields and Recreation (Specialized cutting equipment and mowers)
Utility Vehicles (Low-speed, off-road)

The StaffMay 7, 2012