Olympic Park Turns Into Cutting-Edge Tech Testbed

/in /by

Future Cities Catapult has today announced the winners of £40,000 funding for UK SMEs to develop, test and showcase innovative technology solutions in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

Drawing on the legacy of the Olympic Games, the Government-supported centre for urban innovation invited SMEs to submit applications to encourage healthy and sustainable behaviours through technology.

Together with the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), four successful proposals have been selected, each receiving £10,000 to trial their solutions to residents and visitors within the park and surrounding areas. Technologies tackling social isolation, increasing health and eco-friendly activities, plus navigating the park with real-time data, will be deployed till the end of September 2017.

The winning SMEs are:

  • Betterpoints: A behaviour change incentivisation scheme encouraging the local community to undertake health, wellbeing and eco-friendly activities, for which they are rewarded with points that can be exchanged for high street rewards
  • OpenPlay: A sports marketplace that connects sporting facilities to individuals, encourages people to be more actice and enables people to make new connections
  • Living Map: A data platform and digital map that could enable the community and visitors to navigate, locate and move around the Park with greater ease
  • The Ecological Sequestration Trust and Groundwork London: A digital social-feed encouraging active lifestyles to local people who may be at risk of social isolation
    The competition is part of the Capstone project, a collaboration between Future Cities Catapult, Intel Labs Europe, Imperial College and University College London. The aim of the project is to demonstrate the ability of the Internet of Things interventions to solve real urban challenges in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

Scott Cain, Chief Business Officer at Future Cities Catapult, said:

“Quite rightly, our health and wellbeing in our cities is a hot topic at the moment, and it’s about more than sport. People want to feel good and that’s why we’re working with startups and entrepreneurs to encourage healthy behaviour and human interaction.

“The 2012 Games positioned London centre-stage as a sporting and pro-active nation and in terms of legacy and urban renewal. Our work in the Olympic Park will build on this legacy, by making the park a hotbed for innovation and tech and positioning the UK as a leader in next generation connectivity.

“Here at Future Cities Catapult we work closely with startups and SMEs to develop and test disruptive technologies, creating happy, healthy and more sustainable cities”.

Sam Parton, co-founder and CEO at OpenPlay, said:
“OpenPlay are delighted to be working with Future Cities Catapult and LLDC to get more people active in and around the Olympic Park.

“The park is the home of the Olympic Legacy and we’re working to make better use of existing assets in the area and to unearth activities taking place within them.

“The Open Call is a great way of showcasing how we can encourage people to adopt healthier behaviours and make new human connections”.

Mab Groundcare Appointed Ventrac Dealer

/in /by

Price Turfcare, the newly established business founded by Ransomes Jacobsen’s former International Sales Director, Rupert Price, has appointed MAB Groundscare, based at Goudhurst in Kent as a Ventrac dealer for the area.

At a recent training day at a private school in the Tenterden area, the MAB team were able to get an in-depth insight into the product and some of the various attachments that make the Ventrac a versatile workhorse for groundscare contractors, golf courses and establishments with large areas of grounds to manage.

As an added bonus, at the end of the training, the school were able to see a comprehensive demonstration of the machine’s capabilities.

Commenting at the end of the training and demonstration, Rupert Price said,
“I’m delighted that MAB have come on board and I’m sure they will provide the Ventrac product with a very professional presence in the area. The training went really well and I think it has proved to everyone that we have a viable and unique product for this industry sector.”

Mark Brown, Managing Director of MAB Groundcare added,
“The training day and subsequent product demonstration proved that we have made the correct decision to become distributors of the Ventrac compact tractor. It’s a great piece of kit and very versatile; just one power unit and range of accessories makes it an ideal choice for estate management and landscape contracting applications.”

About Ventrac
The Steiner family has always been about the business of making life simpler through practical engineering, design ingenuity and good old-fashioned common sense. Those early values passed on by the founder, Marvin Steiner continues to be the driving force that pushes the company to design and manufacture the highest quality equipment available, surpassing the needs of our ever-changing world. In 1998 his sons introduced the brand name VENTRAC and the Steiner brothers focused their energies on the new “next generation” all-wheel-drive compact tractor.

Ventrac’s versatility offers over 30 different attachments and combined with their patented Mount System (which takes less than a minute to attach or detach attachments) provides a compact power pack with maximum performance and versatility for many different sectors within the groundscare industry.

A Toro Stitch In Tine Saves Nine…

/in /by

Nine reasons why choosing the right tine is so important

Of all the management practices used to maintain healthy turf, it can be strongly argued that professional aeration has become the most valuable. Here Reesink Turfcare, exclusive UK distributor of Toro Parts, lists the top nine reasons reasons why choosing the right tine is so important for effective aeration.

Relieving surface or deep compaction, improving drainage, controlling thatch, and managing high temperature stress by increasing gas exchange, all require different skilled approaches or methods of aeration.

From coring, using hollow tines, solid tine aeration, slicing or spiking, water injection cultivation, deep tine aeration, and ‘linear’ aeration, there are certain considerations that can make the process easier and more efficient. Here we list the top nine we think will save you time and money and it all comes down to the parts you choose:

1. Tine quality
It’s now a lot more than just forking holes into the ground. Successful aeration is as much down to the quality and condition of the tines as it is the machine. In order to maintain the turf’s good health, it’s vital to ensure the very best equipment and parts are to hand. Toro tines are made through combining a strong alloy with a unique heat treatment process and a long-lasting tungsten carbide blend tip, resulting in a finished product that provides maximum strength and resistance to wear.

2. Hole quality
Clean-cut holes are important for a speedy recovery and the best way to ensure the speediest of recoveries is with tines that boast sharp edges and smooth sides. Michael Hampton, turfcare parts manager at Reesink Turfcare, says: “Toro tines are designed to produce precise consistent holes for fast turf recovery, a smooth finish and quick return to play.”

3. Inferior or spurious tines
Using inferior or spurious tines in a bid to cut costs can, in fact, cause operators to waste both time and money in the long run. Replacing broken or bent tines frequently, unclogging cores while on the job and collecting awkward core debris are all common side effects of will-fit parts and having to repair damage post-aeration is not only time consuming but leads to slower recovery and return to play. Put simply, “More man-hours and money are wasted cleaning up after inferior tines and buying and applying replacements, it’s just not worth it!” says Michael.

4. A perfect fit
Engineered and designed to fit the entire Toro ProCore range and get the best results from an aeration programme, choosing Toro tines ensures the perfect fit. Easily snapping into place or bolting on, when using Toro tines everything is aligned perfectly so nothing operational suffers when in use. Choosing will-fit tines can lead to poorer quality holes or wear to the machinery that is avoidable. As we know, fiddly ill-fitting parts waste time and effort, too.

5. Choice
Toro has a tine to suit every application. In fact there are over 150 tines to choose from meaning that no matter the turf application, soil situation or season, there’s something for everyone, guaranteed. Understanding the different tine options is important, you may be missing a trick to further improve the health of your turf if you’re just using, say, standard solid tines. Ask your Toro dealer or service centre about tines and what choices might be better suited to your specific applications.

6. Increased productivity
Regular aeration helps to keep the grass healthy, recovering from root compaction issues quicker, and with genuine Toro tines you can be assured of a tine that is designed to last three to four times longer than standard tines. This increase in longevity, not only means long-term dependable aeration with better soil, drainage and nutrient performance, says Michael, but “makes better use of your machinery maintenance budget too.”

7. Improved performance
Timing is vital when it comes to aeration – you’ll likely know when that is for your surfaces – and it is important not to be let down in the middle of the aeration programme. The tough design of Toro tines, including durable brazed tip joints that ensure a strong bond with in-built resistance to separation and breakage, importantly help maintain consistent aeration depths and reduces costly change-out and associated downtime.

8. Planning
Aeration schedules vary depending on soil type, budgets, resource, climate and usage and can be a balancing act for greenkeepers and groundsmen to ensure the health of the soil without disrupting play. Rest assured though, even if not stocking up, buying urgently required genuine Toro tines guarantees your timings and schedules need not be disturbed should there be a sudden need to make a replacement…

9. Service
When you need new tines, you get second-to-none parts back up with Reesink Turfcare. Reesink currently holds 15,000 Toro items available for delivery at 24 hours’ notice pretty much anywhere in the UK and 12,000 fast-moving lines are housed at the European distribution centre in Belgium with 48-hour availability. If all else fails, a 72-hour trans-Atlantic airfreight service comes into action calling on parts held at Toro’s Minneapolis manufacturing base. This is all at no extra cost to the customer and ensures downtime is kept to a minimum.

To stock up on tines or for more aeration advice, customers can get in touch with their local genuine Toro parts dealer or service centre.
Learn more about the products included in this story by visiting http://www.reesinkturfcare.co.uk

Groundskeepers: The unsung heroes

/in /by

Each day, groundskeepers across the country start their day at sunrise, helping to keep our schools tidy and green.

Meet three Brisbane groundsmen who believe their job is the best in the world.

Michael Shear – St Ambrose’s School, Newmarket…

Mr Shear swapped his job as an insurance officer 15 years ago for a life of worm farms and sports ovals.

“It was just not me and when I started here I just loved getting out of bed every day.

“It’s the best job ever; every part of it has been great.

He said each day was different.

“The fun part is never knowing what’s going to come up during the day.

“I start at 6:30am and I clean up from the day before and then things come up like leaking air-cons or bins.”

Seeing the children start school and grow up is also an enjoyable part of the job for Mr Shear.

“I call all the boys ‘sir’ and all the girls ‘miss’,” he said.

“Years later you see the kids grown up and how they turn out so great … that’s really good.”

Len Moss – St Mary MacKillop Primary School, Birkdale…

With more than 600 students at the school where Mr Moss works, remembering names is a daily challenge.

“I can remember a few of the names but it’s hard to catch them all. I don’t know how the teachers do it.”

Mr Moss was an electrician for 30 years before he turned to groundskeeping.

“You have variety and it’s great to have the kids around as they always want to say hello and see what you’re doing.

Each day Mr Moss can be seen mowing and cleaning.

“I do anything and everything from hedging to cleaning up after a kid that has been sick.

“I like to walk around the school seeing what you’ve done and what you’ve changed.

“Being part of the community is a big part of it … I’ll keep going for as long as my body lets me.”

Robert Miles – Holland Park State School…

For Mr Miles, his daily mission is to keep the grounds, the parents, the teachers and the children happy.

“I’m surprised when the kids notice the grounds so much, it helps me not see the hills so steep at the end of the day.

“I love creating the beautiful gardens and being able to make the place look better.”

Mr Miles, who was previously a musician, has looked after the grounds at Holland Park for the past eight years.

“I think this jobs suits me and the hills keep me thin.

“The biggest thing about the job is that you just have to keep at it and eventually you’ll get there.”

3G fake truth

/in /by

The coverage of non-league football was incredible last weekend.

Sutton United and Lincoln City were virtually wall-to-wall on any media outlet covering football. When Lincoln beat Burnley, away from home, it was quite simply sensational. I am full of admiration and respect for what they have achieved. The supporters will be in seventh heaven for a few days or even weeks and the clubs’ coffers will be awash with gold.

For Lincoln the adventure continues and who can say, now, when it might stop? For other National League clubs these stellar performances are an incentive to work even harder to achieve similar results next season, now that these two clubs have shown it can be done.

We have a particular connection with Sutton because of our 3G pitches. Our positive experience with 3G since 2012 encouraged Sutton to install theirs in 2015 and we had many constructive contacts along the way.

This is the reason I was particularly delighted with their FA Cup progress, as it showcased this fantastic pitch. In three rounds of the FA Cup, three 3G records were broken. The first time a League One, a Championship and finally a Premier League club had played a senior competitive match on 3G.

Each time the pitch played beautifully and there were no problems of any significance. Each match was marked by attractive, passing football along with robust, sliding challenges on occasions. Watching on TV it would have been easy to imagine the teams were playing on a Premier League quality natural mud and grass pitch.

Except that sadly we couldn’t. The media coverage of 3G had about as much basis in fact as a Donald Trump press statement.

Instead of pushing the achievements of a non-league club like Sutton in an unpatronising, analytical way by explaining in detail how the 3G business model has been the saving of their club like it has been of ours, the commentators and pundits jumped on every chance to criticise the pitch.

We were treated to comments about how Danny Wellbeck could not be risked on the pitch with a slightly injured ankle, how the pitch was very different and difficult (Arsène Wenger); how the pitch would be watered and would behave very differently to a dry one (Arsène Wenger again, who seems not to have noticed that it rains in England occasionally and that even mud-grass pitches are sometimes wet, sometimes dry); how Arsenal would have to beware “the ball suddenly deviating or stopping dead” (Martin Keown, for goodness sake ); that it was a good question (rather than a no-brainer) as to whether playing on 3G was better than playing on a traditional non-league bog (Graeme Le Saux).

Mr Le Saux is by the way an ‘Ambassador’ for the Football Foundation, who have been busy installing 3G pitches all over the country in recent years. Please Graeme, hurry up and tell The Football Foundation just how bad 3G pitches are, because it would appear they don’t know yet.

The worst part of hearing all this nonsense spouted by so-called experts, who really should know better, is the disrespect to non-league clubs. Here was one shining example of a non-league club, Sutton, using a top quality artificial pitch to improve the football they play on it, as evidenced by an astonishing FA Cup run.

But no, the media ignored the positives for the non-league club and concentrated on all the supposed negatives for the Premier League club. There were no plaudits for 3G pitches enabling the community to become fully involved in their non-league club by having football played on them virtually non-stop.

There was no mention of 3G clubs’ football academies bringing out the best of our youngsters around the country. No analysis of how 3G can make postponements a thing of the past and make a club financially sustainable. It was awful, patronising, embarrassing.

But I suppose it could have been worse…the pundits and commentators could have expressed astonished disapproval about other European countries, some of whom seem to have recently won World Cups, who foolishly allow and encourage these difficult 3G pitches in their top professional Leagues; they could have attacked the irresponsible FIFA people, who allow 3G in the Champions League and World Cup qualifiers and in the Womens’ World Cup finals; or even criticised professional rugby for allowing 3G to be used in senior club level and full internationals, when it’s clearly bad for your joints – I mean what do rugby people know anyway?

To read the original blog, click here