Tag Archive for: Countrywide

Countrywide Grounds Maintenance’s additional robot

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Countrywide Grounds Maintenance’s additional robot: Origin Amenity Solutions has recently delivered their latest GPS guided robotic line marking machine, the TinyLineMarker (TLM) Pro X, to long-standing customer Countrywide Grounds Maintenance (CW) in Devon.

Steven Hurley is the Regional Manager for CW Devon. one of 46 Nationwide Franchisees to provide complete grounds maintenance services for education facilities, housing associations, facilities management companies and estates.

Countrywide Grounds Maintenance's additional robot

Countrywide Grounds Maintenance’s additional robot

In early March 2023 Steven procured his second robot from Origin Amenity Solutions. He comments, “We carry out the line marking requirements for approximately 80 schools, colleges, and sports fields. There is planned acquisition of further schools this year so we need to be in a position to meet the additional requirements these will bring. After initial marking we carry out weekly over-marking so I anticipate both of our robots will be in use full time.”

TinyLineMarker robots are marketed and distributed exclusively in the UK by Origin Amenity Solutions which brings together four leading industry names – Headland Amenity, Rigby Taylor, TurfKeeper.com and Symbio.

Packed with a range of brand-new innovative features, the TLM Pro X is an exciting new GPS robot designed to make line marking projects as streamlined and effortless as possible.

Steven continues, “Our first robot is the Pro which has been brilliant. After five years it is still going strong, but it was time to add to the fleet.  We need to be able to offer high quality

line marking to all our customers in a timely fashion. The additional robot will ensure we can do that. Our original robot is a good robust machine, but I am very impressed with the new and improved Pro X. It is efficient and easy to use. The design and light weight of the machine makes it so convenient and easy to handle and transport. It has bigger wheels that are better at handling on rough or uneven ground which is ideal and well suited for the soft ground conditions we often have here in The Southwest.”

Steven is particularly impressed with one of the new key features, the multi-select tool. This tool gives users the ability to queue up multiple pitches to be marked out in a specific order of their choosing, and the robot will then mark out the designated areas. “This feature will be invaluable; it will save me so much time.”

When marking out multiple pitches, it is likely that any robot will run out of paint, which is where another of the new features comes in to play. The TLM Pro X features a simple yet revolutionary low paint alert system, ensuring no time is wasted. When the robot is running low on paint, an automatic alert is sent to the user’s hand-held tablet notifying them of the paint levels. This is a much-welcomed feature which avoids time being wasted marking out a field with no paint in the tank!

Not only does this feature notify the user of low paint levels, but the robot will also send an alert if there is a clog preventing the robot from line marking. A simple yet time saving feature which many TLM Pro X users are finding invaluable.

The Origin Amenity Solutions team offer onsite training, maintenance and general advice. “The robot is simply to set up and use but I like having the peace of mind that service is just a phone call away and my queries are always handled quickly and professionally.” Steven adds.

The TLM Pro X also boosts many more improvements, including general upgrades to the hardware and software for a largely improved experience on what was already a solid offering from the existing range of robots. The electronics within the robot have been enhanced, allowing for more reliable and powerful line marking in a range of project areas, and the external design has been enhanced, with the addition of buttons to activate pump and nozzle, enabling users to prime, clean and test without using the tablet.

Thanks to the design upgrade, the robot offers faster deployment and maintenance has been streamlined too, making all round care as minimal as possible to ensure users can focus on their line marking projects.

Steven sums up by saying, “I’m really delighted with the new robot. Its many new features are going to be invaluable to us and having a second machine mean we can service many more customers.”

Free demonstrations are being offered across the UK.  To book or enquire visit https://tinymobilerobots.com/tinymobilerobots-uk/

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Countrywide Grounds use Turf Tank Base Station

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Countrywide Grounds use Turf Tank Base Station: Countrywide Grounds, Shropshire, has been using the Turf Tank robotic line marker with GPS base station to achieve unrivalled accuracy wherever it is needed.

The Turf Tank is the only GPS line marker available that uses a base station. It provides an accuracy of +/- 1cm over 100m and ensures that the robot will overmark lines with supreme precision and mark out new pitches with ease. The base station allows the machine to be operated without cellular or real-time kinematic (RTK) connectivity and coverage. Using the closed system means the marker can be used anywhere with unprecedented reliability while matching the marking speed of every robotic line marker on the market.

Countrywide Grounds use Turf Tank Base Station

Countrywide Grounds use Turf Tank Base Station

Having this technology was a crucial factor for Countrywide Grounds director, Wayne Middleton, who has used GPS steered tractors during his work in agriculture.

Wayne explains: “We have come from an agricultural background where we used GPS probably for the last 12 to 14 years on our tractors. So, we set out to look for a GPS line marker because we knew what the technology was all about.

“We went to Saltex last November and looked at line markers and came across the Turf Tank. And after chatting to them and looking at the other options this was the one that grabbed us, purely because it is a base station based GPS rather than a sim card. Some of the places we go you can’t even get a mobile phone signal, and wanting a base station comes from out agricultural background because with the systems we use the base station is the way forward.

“The Turf Tank stands up very well to the agricultural technology we have used. I’ve been very pleased with how accurate it’s been. I mark eight football pitches for a league, and they get marked every week, and I’ve gone back in and overmarked them, and it hasn’t missed a beat. Each pitch takes 20 minutes, and the accuracy is always spot on.

“I can go and mow a football pitch and then set that off to start marking while I cut another pitch which makes great use of the time. And as a contractor, time is something you always need more of. We can also mark at night, which is a big plus for us going into winter because it means we can beat the weather and still provide a good service.”

As well as football pitches, Wayne has been able to use the robot to mark out year group areas for schools including numbers, and he has also completed 100m and 200m running tracks with various other sports in the pipeline.

While using the GPS technology is nothing new to Wayne, line marking and the Turf Tank are, making the assistance and back-up service from Turf Tank’s southern UK rep, Alex Robinson, vital.

“What I like about Alex is he has been very patient with us,” Wayne explains. “We first met him at Saltex and then had a demo of the robot in January 2020 on a very wet field. We were over the moon with how it performed, and since buying it in August, he’s always been at the other end of the phone.

“When it arrived, he was straight out and showed us how to use it, and if we need little pointers or a quick talk through something, he’s always happy to help.”

For more information on the Turf Tank One or to have a demonstration contact alex@turftank.co.uk (southern UK) or matt@turftank.co.uk (northern UK).

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Countrywide Advances With Solutions For All Grass Professionals

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Countrywide Advances With Solutions For All Grass Professionals: Further to the announcement made in October regarding Countrywide Farmers restructuring and subsequent exit from the Turf & Amenity market, we can now confirm the company has transferred the whole T&A division to an alternative provider, enabling the Turf and Amenity team to continue to service customers under new ownership.

From 1st November 2017 all current Countrywide T&A business will be managed through ADVANCE GRASS SOLUTIONS Ltd (AGS) based from their new HQ in Reading, Berkshire.

Countrywide Advances With Solutions For All Grass Professionals

Sam Honeyborne, Managing Director at AGS confirmed “We are all extremely excited by the opportunity that this new business presents and confident of a seamless transition from Countrywide, as we continue our growth plan in the UK amenity sector. The T&A team has made excellent progress in the past five years and has adapted to suit the evolution of the market, with the increased customer appetite for a high level of long term agronomic support. I would like to thank Countrywide for their help and guidance during this transition and assure our loyal customers and suppliers of service continuity throughout.”

AGS will provide a UK exclusive range of high quality turf maintenance products to include Sustane, Growth Products and Polyon in addition to established brands such as DLF Seeds, Farmura, Aquatrols and Bathgates. Technical support combined with exceptional customer service will be the company’s ethos. Sam offered an example of where he believes improvements can be made “Haulage and delivery has been problematic in recent years in the industry and most of our competitors presently outsource this requirement. Initially we are committed to delivering directly to our customers in the South but ultimately coverage nationally by 2020. Sam added “This will incur extra costs but will greatly improve our customer service and that is our number one priority”

Growth Products, who sponsored an award at the IOG dinner in November recently confirmed AGS as their UK exclusive distributor for amenity turf, horticulture and speciality agriculture. GP’s CEO, Clare Reinbergen was very confident about the future saying “We are extremely impressed with the AGS business plan and look forward to supporting Sam and the company’s key objectives. AGS’s field based technical team are undoubtedly one of the most comprehensively qualified and experienced units in the UK and will continue their reputation for sound advice and product recommendation.”

Sam Honeyborne was also pleased to announce that Sustane Natural Fertiliser market share in the UK continues to grow and has prompted the recent appointment of Russell Riley as Sustane’s UK Business Development Manager effective from November 2017. “Russell will do a fantastic job and I wish him all the best for the future” said Sam. “Our exclusive contract with Sustane means we will be working very closely with Russell to further increase customer awareness, at a time where chemical use is under growing regulatory pressure.”

AGS is presently developing a high quality web site and this, in addition to the AGS 2018 Product Guide, will be available in the very near future.

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