ANNANDALE, Minn. — Malco Products has won two 2023 Pro Tool Innovation Awards, one in the hand tools and cutting category for its Andy aluminum-handled offset-left snips, and the other in the spacers category for adjustable siding gauge.

Now in its 11th year, the Pro Tool Innovation Awards program evaluates hundreds of tools from a wide variety of industries and manufacturers. This year, 99 manufacturers and brands submitted more than 465 products in dozens of categories for a chance at an award.

The products chosen stood out for their innovative features, superior power delivery, revolutionary ergonomics, technological advancements, safety features, or exceptional value, a press release from Malco said.

“We are pleased to receive this recognition from the Pro Tool Innovation Awards, as going the extra mile to create tools that help our end users perform better on the jobsite is the number-one priority at Malco,” said Rebecca Talbot, Malco’s vice president of marketing. “Both of these tools were designed with the end user in mind, and include specific features designed to improve speed and efficiency on the job.”

“This marks our 11th year of hosting the PTIA Awards, and each year we witness an increasing level of innovation from both large and small companies,” said Clint DeBoer, executive director of the awards and CEO of Pro Tool Reviews LLC.

“Every Pro Tool Innovation Award celebrates a product developed by people who really believe that the standard we're used to is no longer good enough,” DeBoer added.

According to Malco, the new Andy snips help HVAC and construction trades professionals make longer, tighter, higher-quality straight and left-curve cuts in many types of materials, including sheet metal, metal roofing, aluminum, stainless steel, steel siding, and vinyl.

The new Andy snips also won a Silver award, in the Hand Tools category, in the 2023 Dealer Design Awards, which are sponsored by The NEWS.

Malco’s new adjustable siding gauge, the company said, is an all-in-one installation tool that eliminates the need for different gauges for different siding widths, while also eliminating the need to use shims and/or have more than one person on hand to help complete a project. It’s specially crafted for siding and construction professionals, making it a good tool for rapid siding installation and saving contractors and installers time and money, Malco’s press release said.