In a competitive landscape where commercial mowing equipment must deliver both power and precision, AriensCo has struck gold with its latest model.
AriensCo’s Gravely Pro-Stance Ultra stand-on mower received the 2025 Editor’s Choice Award from trade publication Green Industry Pros, which recognizes the hottest products in the landscape industry. The product was selected as a winner in the magazine’s mowing and maintenance category, marking the latest recognition for AriensCo, a Brillion-based manufacturer of outdoor power equipment.
“Winning the 2025 Editor’s Choice Award … is a major milestone for AriensCo and the Gravely brand,” says Chief Revenue Officer Stephen Ariens. “It validates the innovation, craftsmanship and customer-centric design that went into the Pro-Stance Ultra, our latest and greatest stand-on commercial lawn mower.”
Gravely, a brand of AriensCo, offers a full line of commercial zero-turn lawn mowers and other commercial job site equipment. The Pro-Stance Ultra was first introduced at the 2024 Equip Expo in Louisville, Kentucky before hitting dealerships last May.
Ariens says the Ultra was designed to “trade up” from the original Pro-Stance and lead the commercial stand‑on segment, which is projected to grow by 10% in the next two years. Stand-on mowers have become the preference of many commercial landscapers as they allow for more natural shock absorption and faster access on and off the equipment compared to ride-on models.
The Ultra’s development process was based heavily on feedback from power equipment dealers and landscape contractors who requested greater comfort during long shifts, easier serviceability, more powerful engine options and larger deck sizes to cover more ground quickly.
“Feedback from dealers and landscapers played a pivotal role. We wanted this machine to deliver on everything our customers wanted, so we had to take a significant amount of time in the development and prototype phases collecting customer voices and field data,” Ariens says. “The feedback led to the Ultra’s forward-pitched controls layout that helps reduce operator wrist strain and our new serviceable blade spindles.”
Compared to the original Pro-Stance, Ariens says the Ultra offers Gravely’s largest commercial stand-on deck at 72 inches, up to a 38.5-horsepower Kawasaki FX1000 EFI engine, a high‑capacity 16-gallon fuel tank and hill performance capabilities up to 20-degree slopes.
One of the Gravely brand’s most significant innovations addresses a persistent challenge. Spindle failures as a result of coercion and debris are one of the most common problems for lawn maintenance pros. Gravely’s cold-forged aluminum blade spindles operate at cooler temperatures compared to cast-iron designs, making them more resilient to threats from heat and moisture.
Ariens says one of the Ultra’s biggest design challenges was balancing innovation with simplicity and functionality.
“We wanted to offer the best of both worlds in this machine. Our oversized operator pad is one example,” he says. “It extends below knee-height to prevent painful impacts and spreads across the width of the machine. But despite its large size, it doesn’t inhibit serviceability. Instead, it aids maintenance through its ability to flip down for easy access to the engine oil drain, filter, et cetera.”
This balance was struck through a shared effort between AriensCo’s Wisconsin and Tennessee operations. “The Ultra is a product of deep collaboration,” Ariens says. “Engineering and product development teams in Wisconsin led the design, while manufacturing and testing were supported by the Tennessee team.”
Looking ahead, Ariens says the company plans to maintain its focus on customer-driven design for future Gravely products.
“Our crown jewel is our commercial business,” he says, “and delivering products that exceed our customers’ expectations is what matters to us.”
