ForConstructionPros.com

New entrants to the sweeping business might think sweeping material off the pavement is such a basic task that there's little difference among equipment. But veteran contract sweepers and sweeper manufacturers know better. Manufacturers listen to their customers and monitor the market to determine what type of equipment to introduce next or what updates they need to make to keep their customers happy. And as this overview demonstrates, contractors looking to find a sweeper can find the unit they want.

Following is a selection of equipment from 13 manufacturers of sweeping equipment. Considered individually these sweepers demonstrate how a particular manufacturer has worked to develop a sweeper that contractors can put to effective and profitable use. Considered as a group these sweepers demonstrate not only the breadth and depth of the industry's manufacturers but their commitment to developing the equipment their customers need.

Schwarze S233SE sweeper aims at garage sweeping
Introduced at the Schwarze Roundup last October and National Pavement Expo West last November, Schwarze Industries' S233SE is a single-engine, gasoline-powered sweeper mounted on a Chevy C2500 chassis.

Rickey Hyatt, national sales manner, direct sales team for Schwarze Industries, says the S233SE is not the manufacturer's first single-engine machine - it also markets the 333, a low-profile parking lot sweeper - but Schwarze decided they needed to develop a sweeper specifically for the parking garage niche.

"The 333 can be used inside parking garages but it was designed for parking lot sweeping. It's just not short enough to work in some parking garages," Hyatt says. "So we felt we really needed something more cost effective for contractors to use in parking garages."