“A lot of users today are still using an exposed blade skinning knife in order to strip cable.
The M12™ and M18™ Cable Strippers are another example of a tool designed to improve safety. Neilly said their main focus is developing products that are innovative and getting people home safer, as well as the end of their career. “It’s just one of those things where you show it to someone on a safety committee or someone who works in standards, they immediately see the value of it because of the safety aspect, as well as the time savings and labour savings that are associated with that.” “It’s probably been our most requested item in the last 6-8 months,” he noted. The M18™ Angler automates that process, feeding fish tape and pull wiring with a forward and reverse button. You compound that over 30-40 years in the trade it’s going to lead to some long-term stress injuries.” It’s all hand and repetitive motion, so imagine pulling 200 feet of wire, it can be pretty exhausting. “Our engineers went out into the field, and they noticed electricians specifically we’re pulling wire through long runs through multiple bends of conduit. An example of that is their M18™ Angler, which launched in 2021. If the tool is being over-used it will shut down to give it an opportunity to cool down, “instead of ending up in the service centre and the user being without a tool.”Īs Neilly mentioned, Milwaukee will consult end-users to assess what they are looking for in tools and implement that in their R&D process to address issues they run into on the job. They also have overload protection to prevent the tool. If you’re drilling a hole into a concrete wall and it catches on some rebar, instead of twisting and taking the user for a ride, it will actually measure once the tool gets 15 degrees out of alignment and shut the tool down so the user doesn’t get injured when using the tool.” So, you have power on-demand, you’re not wasting battery power in lighter applications like driving a screw or something simple like that.”įrom a smart technology/safety perspective, Neilly added that, ‘we have engineered controls within some of our tools, our rotary hammers for example, we have a gyroscope in the tool that recognizes a bind-up situation. On an 18-volt cordless drill, for example, Neilly explained, “it’s actually measuring the load on the end of the tool and adjusting the battery output based on that load. Neilly added that, they have an intelligent system within their tools, their battery and charger are “truly connected.” “The other piece to that is, we switched from brushed to brushless motors using electromagnetics,” which means less wear and tear on the tool and longer motor life, “motors that, proprietarily, we designed from the ground up for the task at hand.” “Now with the more powerful cells we’ve acquired, the electronics packages inside the tools, and a more durable pack construction designed for the industrial user, we’re able to, like I said, cut that cord or remove that gas tank in certain situations.” Whereas before, battery technology really wasn’t a true replacement of corded or gas products.” On the innovation, from the Milwaukee perspective, the advancements we’ve made in the lithium battery technology have allowed users to truly cut the cord. When it comes to cordless tool trends, he said, “Directly from the user its three things, innovations, sustainability, and productivity. Neilly now manages teams for six trade groups across Canada. His success in that market led to him becoming the first utility specialist in Canada for Milwaukee Tool, where he developed a strategy to partner with utility customers in Ontario before being tasked with rolling out a national strategy for utility customers. Neilly gained his experience covering an area from Orillia to Timmins, Ontario when he first joined the company as a Field Sales Rep, as well as on their Job Site Core Trade Specialists in the GTA where he found his niche working with utility clients.
“When I joined TTI (Milwaukee’s parent company) it was kind of a perfect match, I had some marketing knowledge from my business degree and some industry experience from working in the trades.” from Brock University, as well as experience working in the construction industry.
Brent Neilly is the Group Marketing Manager with Milwaukee, he has a background in business communications with a B.A.