Profile: The Toro Company (TTC.N)

The Toro Company (Toro), incorporated in 1935, is engaged in designing, manufacturing and marketing professional turf maintenance equipment and services, turf and micro irrigation systems, landscaping equipment, and residential yard products. The Company classifies its operations in two business segments: professional and residential. A third segment called other consists of domestic Company-owned distributorships, corporate functions, and Toro Credit Company, a wholly owned financing subsidiary. The Company’s products are advertised and sold at the retail level under the trademarks of Toro, Exmark, Irritrol, Hayter, Pope, Lawn-Boy and Lawn Genie. Toro manufactures its products in the United States, Mexico, Australia, Italy, and the United Kingdom.

Professional

Toro designs professional turf and agricultural products and market them globally, through a network of distributors and dealers, as well as directly to government customers and rental companies. Products are sold by distributors and dealers to professional users engaged in creating landscapes, irrigating agricultural fields, and maintaining turf, such as golf courses, sports fields, municipal properties, and residential and commercial landscapes.

Products for the landscape contractor market include zero-turn radius riding mowers, heavy-duty walk behind mowers, mid-size walk behind mowers, compact utility loaders, and walk-behind trenchers. These products are sold through dealers and are also available through rental centers to individuals and companies who maintain and create residential and commercial landscapes on behalf of property owners. Toro markets products to landscape contractors under the Toro, Exmark, and Lawn-Boy brands.

The compact utility loaders are the products for the Toro Sitework Systems product line. These products are designed to improve efficiency in the creation of landscapes. The Company offer over 35 attachments for the compact utility loaders, including trenchers, augers, vibratory plows, and backhoes. During the fiscal year ended October 31, 2008 (fiscal 2008), the Company introduced the Toro TRX line of dedicated walk-behind trenchers, featuring a track design and the same control system as the Toro Dingo TX.

Products for the sports fields and grounds market include riding rotary mowers with cutting widths ranging from 5 feet to 16 feet, aerators, attachments, and debris management products, which include versatile debris vacuums, blowers, and sweepers. Other products include multipurpose vehicles, such as the Workman, that can be used for turf maintenance, towing, and industrial hauling. These products are sold through distributors, who then sell to owners and/or managers of sports fields, municipal properties, and residential and commercial landscapes. In fiscal 2008, Toro introduced the Groundsmaster 5900 Series of mowers featuring a 16 foot cutting width, the InfoCenter onboard diagnostics, the SmartCool system with auto-reversing cooling fan, a full-time four-wheel drive, and an optional climate-controlled cab. In fiscal 2008, the Company also introduced the Toro Workman MD Series line of mid-duty utility vehicles, featuring the superior ride quality (S.R.Q.) system that provides operators with stability and comfort.

Products for the golf course market include reel and rotary riding products for fairway, rough and trim cutting; riding and walking mowers for putting greens and specialty areas; turf sprayer equipment; utility vehicles; aeration equipment; and bunker maintenance equipment. The Company also manufacture and market underground irrigation systems, including sprinkler heads, controllers, and electric, battery-operated, and hydraulic valves. The golf course irrigation systems are designed to use computerized management systems and a range of technologies to help customers manage their consumption of water. The 835S/855S Series golf sprinklers are equipped with a TruJectory feature that provides water distribution control, as well as uniformity, nozzle flexibility, and system efficiency. The Network VP Satellite provides an upgrade path to customers with existing controllers, while the Turf Guard wireless soil monitoring systems are designed to measure soil moisture, salinity, and temperature through buried wireless sensors that communicate through an Internet server for processing and presentation to a user through the Web. In fiscal 2008, Toro introduced the ProCore Processor that processes and disperses aeration cores in a single pass, reducing time and labor required for turf aeration clean up. In fiscal 2008, the Company acquired deep-tine Soil Reliever aerators, featuring long tines that are driven into turf creating channels to turf rootzones and breaking up compacted layers of soil.

Turf irrigation products marketed under the Toro and Irritrol brands include sprinkler heads, brass and plastic valves, and electric and hydraulic control devices designed to be used in residential and commercial turf irrigation systems. These products are professionally installed as new systems and can also be used to replace or retrofit existing systems. The product line is designed for underground irrigation systems. Electric and hydraulic controllers activate valves and sprinkler heads in a typical irrigation system. Toro also offer wireless rain and freeze switches on some products in an effort to conserve water usage. The IntelliSense and Rain Master controllers self-adjust their watering schedules based on current environmental conditions. In fiscal 2008, the Company introduced the T5 Series of rotors, featuring the compact body and footprint of a four inch rotor, but with a pop-up height of five inches. In fiscal 2008, it also introduced the Irritrol I-PRO Series of spray heads that combine a pressure-activated wiper seal and an advanced formula lubricant to clean stem debris and virtually eliminate troublesome stick ups.

Products for the micro-irrigation market include products that regulate the flow of water for drip irrigation, including Aqua-TraXX drip tape, Aqua-TraXX PC (pressure-compensating), Blue Stripe polyethylene tubing, and Drip In drip line, all used in agriculture, mining, and landscape applications. These products are sold through dealers and distributors who then sell to end users for use primarily in vegetable fields, fruit and nut orchards, vineyards, and landscapes. Toro also offer a product life-cycle management program that includes a recycling service and permanent identification for ease of installation. In fiscal 2008, the Company enhanced the Aqua-TraXX line of premium drip tape with a Proportionally Balanced Cross-Section (PBX) design. The Aqua TraXX PBX advanced emitter design provides growers with spacing and flow rate selections to fit different soil type, crop, and application needs.

Residential

The Company markets the residential products to homeowners through a range of distribution channels, including outdoor power equipment dealers, hardware retailers, home centers, mass retailers, and over the Internet. These products are sold in North America, Europe, and Australia, with the exception of snow removal products that are sold in North America and Europe.

Toro manufacture and market numerous walk power mower models under the Toro and Lawn-Boy brand names, as well as the Pope brand in Australia and the Hayter brand in the United Kingdom. Models differ as to cutting width, type of starter mechanism, method of grass clipping discharge, deck type, operational controls, and power sources, and are either self-propelled or push mowers. It also offer a line of rear roller walk power mowers, a design that provides a striped finish, for the United Kingdom market.

The Company manufactures and markets riding products under the Toro brand name globally and under the Hayter brand name in the United Kingdom. It also manufactures riding mower products and attachments for a third party under a private label agreement. Riding products consist of zero-turn radius mowers that save homeowners time by using their maneuverability to cut around obstacles more quickly and easily than tractor technology. Toro also sell lawn and garden tractor models, as well as a rear engine riding mower manufactured and sold in the European market. Many models are available with a range of engines, decks, transmissions, and accessories.

Toro designs and markets home solutions products under the Toro and Pope brand names, including electric and battery operated flexible line grass trimmers, electric blowers, electric blower-vacuums, and electric snow throwers. The professional grade garden tools complement the home solutions equipment by offering a range of pruners, loppers, debris management equipment, and accessories.

The Company manufactures and markets a range of gas-powered single-stage and two-stage snow thrower models. Single-stage snow throwers are walk behind units with lightweight two- and four-cycle gasoline engines. The single-stage snow thrower models include Power Curve snow thrower technology. During the fiscal year ended October 31, 2007 (fiscal 2007), the Company introduced the Power Clear single-stage snow thrower to the North American and European markets, featuring the Quick Shoot control system that enables operators to change snow throwing direction, and a pivoting scraper that keeps the rotor in constant contact with the pavement. The two-stage snow throwers are designed for relatively large areas of deep, heavy snow falls and use four-cycle engines. The two-stage snow throwers include a range of models featuring the Power Max auger system for performance and the Quick Stick chute control technology.