Steven Zbrozek rests the blade of his cordless M18 Fuel Super Sawzall on a block of wood. In this particular demonstration, the product is going head-to-head against a 15A corded version of the same tool. He counts down.

“Three, two, one.”

The cordless reciprocating saw slices easily through the wood; a piece drops to his feet. Seconds later, another block falls next to the corded tool.

“It’s the most powerful Sawzall Milwaukee has ever built, corded or cordless,” Zbrozek says.

Zbrozek’s demonstration on May 2 is part of the 11^th annual New Product Symposium – a yearly event that showcases Milwaukee Tool’s newest products to members of the media and, this year, a number of tradespeople as well.

Introducing new products

Milwaukee Tool introduced dozens of updated or new products at the New Product Symposium. To view some of those tools, including their specs and when they will be available, visit our photo gallery from the event.

“This is our profession right here,” says Don Martineau of William F. Lynch Co. in Worcester, Massachusetts. “We do plumbing, HVAC and piping, and we were invited here to see what products they have.”

Ray Beaudry, also of William F. Lynch Co., says their company has been a part of the Milwaukee Tool program for years.

“The tools have served us well,” Beaudry says. “It’s a good opportunity to come out here and see these new products [and] get a chance to test them out. I’m pretty impressed.”

Of all the tools they saw that day, however, one stuck out as a favorite among many tradespeople and media members alike – the 8-1/4” table saw with OneKey.

“I would take the table saw,” Martineau says without hesitation.

“I was also going to say I would take the table saw,” Beaudry agrees, chuckling.

They've got the power

The biggest product announcement at the 2018 New Product Symposium involves the company’s cordless tools. The newest generation of M18 FUEL battery-powered electric tools feature advanced REDLITHIUM battery and brushless motor technologies, which combine to create the company’s most powerful and most efficient cordless tools to date. Many of the tools, the company says, now outperform their corded 15A counterparts.

“[These tools] can now deliver more work than the outlets,” says Paul Fry, vice president of cordless product management. “[They’re] the most powerful 18V motors ever developed, period.”

He adds that the new battery packs perform 30%-50% more work per charge over the previous battery packs, and the tools in which they are used are now twice as powerful as their previous cordless versions.

He added that the company worked hard to keep the battery packs compatible with previous M18 tools.

“We purposely made the M18 FUEL battery system backward-compatible with previous battery packs so Milwaukee Tool owners wouldn’t have to buy new tools,” Fry says.

This article was originally posted on www.pmmag.com.