Tag Archive for: Bright

New starters herald a bright year

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New starters herald a bright year: Following on from a record-breaking year in 2022, Capillary Concrete, the world-leader in sportsfield drainage and moisture control, has made a number of key appointments aimed at enabling it to move even further forward in 2023 and beyond.

In the golf sector, the company’s biggest market, Capillary has appointed Niklas Svantesson to establish its business in Canada. Swedish, Svantesson was for some years course manager at Halmstad Golfklubb in the south-west of the country, where he was awarded Golf Course Manager of the Year in 2007, and took charge of preparing the course for the Solheim Cup in the same year. For the past eleven years, he has been club manager at Gothenburg Golfklubb in Sweden’s second city, the country’s oldest club. He moved with his family to the United States in 2022 to lead Capillary Bunkers’ drive into Canada, and also to play a key role in the further development of the revolutionary Capillary Hydroponics technology.

New starters herald a bright year

New starters herald a bright year

Svantesson says: “The Capillary Bunkers solution has proven itself for many years and I’m looking forward to introducing it to the Canadian golf community. The development of the new revolutionary system Capillary Hydroponics for heavily loaded grass surfaces and sports arenas will arouse interest in many places in the world. To grow grass with water from below without any sprinklers in a closed plant bed where you control the gas exchange, moisture level, nutrient supply, disease control without leakage. The fact that there will be no negative environmental impact and it is 100 per cent natural feels right, and the saving of 80-90 per cent of water consumption per year and that the pumps are powered by a solar panel opens up great opportunities in places in the world where there are both energy and water shortages.”

Another Swede, Louise Torgersen, has joined the company as manager of Capillary Equestrian, its solution for controlling moisture levels in riding arenas. A Swedish international showjumper and twice winner of the national championship, with a background in events and marketing, she will work with the company’s sales team, using trade shows, other events and social media, to increase its presence within the equestrian sector. “For me as an equestrian, it feels great to work with a system that I think will revolutionise the industry of equestrian footing,” she says.

An engineer with a passion for horses, Alexandra Kettil has joined Capillary Concrete’s product development team. She studied engineering at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, and has a degree in industrial engineering and management. Since graduating in 2019, she has worked with two different startups developing innovative products for the equine industry; at Capillary Concrete, her role will involve developing ideas into marketable products.

Finally, Brandy Laymon has joined Capillary’s office in Wellington, Florida, as staff accountant. Born and raised in a small town in Kentucky, she moved to the Sunshine State four years ago after receiving her masters degree in accountancy. “City life is quite a culture shock, but I’m enjoying every minute of it,” she says. “I am looking forward to being able to use my skills to help the company grow. I cannot wait to see what the future holds for Capillary Concrete in the coming years.”

Company CEO and founder Martin Sternberg says: “The last two years have been an amazing ride for us, with huge growth in our core markets and expanding into new territories and sectors. Now, and with these new appointments, we are set to make the next move forward. We know our technology is the best in our fields, and we are very excited to be able to bring it to new users.”

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Bright Future Ahead After SALTEX College Cup

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Bright Future Ahead After SALTEX College Cup: The SALTEX College Cup returned to the NEC once again at this year’s event and highlighted just how well young grounds staff are academically prepared for careers in the industry.

The SALTEX College Cup, sponsored by Ransomes, is a national student-led sports-turf challenge. It is an academic test of turf management knowledge for student competitors who are enrolled at colleges throughout the UK on relevant courses of study.

Bright Future Ahead After SALTEX College Cup

Askham Bryan College, Bridgwater & Taunton College, Myerscough College and, last year’s winners, the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) Greenmount Campus competed for a chance to have its name engraved on the trophy in support of their respective turf programmes.

In teams of four, the colleges embarked on the two-hour competition consisting of paper-based multiple choice and short answer questions on turf management, plus a case study which required a more in-depth written answer. The students were also presented with live test samples in which they had to identify potential threats to the health of turf.

CAFRE, from Northern Ireland, claimed the top prize for the second year running although Askham Bryan were only one point behind in what was a closely fought competition between all of the colleges. CAFRE was awarded the trophy, a £500 cheque for the college’s turf department, and each student received a £50 Amazon voucher. The team was also presented with a prize that money can’t buy – the chance to get involved with pitch preparation at the 6 Nations, Scotland vs England, at BT Murrayfield Stadium.

Results were announced on the first day of SALTEX and CAFRE’s senior tutor, Paul Campbell, revealed his delight at picking up the trophy for a second successive year.

“A combination of excitement and disbelief ensued among the squad as they emulated the achievement of 2016 – particularly for team captain and rugby fan Michael Dundee as he realised he was on his way to BT Murrayfield – and he didn’t need a ticket!

Paul continued: “CAFRE staff and students fully support the concept of the SALTEX College Cup – it provides a forum for showcasing and acknowledging the skills of young people making a career in the industry and allows college staff to benchmark how their programmes are performing against other specialist colleges in the UK. The excellent organisation of the event, the generous sponsorship and the once-in-a-lifetime experience afforded to the winners will mean healthy competition for next year`s team and guarantees CAFRE will return to defend the title in 2018.”

Commenting on the sponsorship of the 2017 SALTEX College Cup, Ransomes senior director Alan Prickett said: “The SALTEX College Cup was another success this year, and we were delighted to have sponsored it for the second year running. Ransomes has a commitment to educating the next generation of groundscare professionals, and we aim to support this in a variety of different ways, including sponsoring the SALTEX College Cup competition. CAFRE, based in Northern Ireland were deserved winners again this year.

Congratulations to CAFRE and we look forward to seeing if the college can retain its title for a third time next year!”

For more information visit www.iogsaltex.com

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