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The construction equipment industry has seen steady growth over the last 10 years and no other piece of equipment has fueled this growth more than the skid steer.
Invented more than 40 years ago, these versatile and cost effective machines have grown into a billion dollar market and is one of the best selling types of construction equipment in North America. Nearly every major manufacturer, including Caterpillar and John Deere, is recognizing the trend and has started to move into the skid steer loader market dominated by the Bobcat brand.
"As large equipment becomes more expensive and out of reach, smaller equipment - i.e. Bobcat skid steers - are proving they can do a lot more and can take the place of a lot of larger equipment," says Bob Harrison, president of Surfwood Supply.
"The average Bobcat is $25,000-$30,000. The bigger larger equipment used in the past is now two and three times the price of a Bobcat. It's an easy buying decision."
According to sales manager Grant Phillips, there has been a continual increase in skid steer sales and he estimates demand has required Surfwood to increase their stock by 20 per cent.
"In North America, skid steers are a 60,000 plus a year unit sales group," he says. "The market has been growing steady at about 10 to 15 per cent, although some others may disagree and say it's down. But it's not."
Both Harrison and Phillips acknowledge the booming...