CLIENTS

When company founder Andreas Stihl realized in the 1920’s that people were working in the woods and forests mainly used axes and muscle power, he became preoccupied with one thought: “There must be a way to make working in the forest easier.” The thought grew into an idea, and that idea spawned an invention.

In 1926, Stihl designed and built the first two-person electric chain saw. Its portability revolutionized the forestry industry. Since that first chain saw launched more than 90 years ago, the STIHL name has stood for outstanding innovations, high-quality products and comprehensive service. Today, STIHL is represented in more than 160 countries, and STIHL products make work easier all over the world in professional forestry and agriculture, in landscape maintenance, on construction sites and for the discerning homeowner.

Recognizing that the U.S. was one of the largest markets in the world, in the 1970’s the Stihl family decided to open a manufacturing facility in Virginia Beach, Va. The location’s close proximity to one of the country’s largest deep-water ports and its ready-to-work labor force made Virginia Beach the ideal location. In 1974, in a rented 20,000-square-foot facility, STIHL Inc. (then STIHL American) opened its doors with 50 employees assembling one model of chain saw. Today, 2,100 employees, working in over one-million-square-feet of operating space, manufacture millions of powerheads a year on the sprawling 150-acre STIHL Inc. campus.

In our state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, skilled employees with the assistance of highly automated technology, work together to produce more than 80 models of STIHL equipment through vertically integrated processes and extensive quality assurance checks. These products are then distributed throughout the country through our 11 regional branches and distributors, sold through a network of more than 9,000 authorized local STIHL dealers and exported to more than 80 countries around the world. © STIHL