The countdown to the Rugby World Cup has begun!

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With under 1,000 days to go until Japan host the 2019 Rugby World Cup Finals for the first time, Harrod UK made a special trip over to the land of the rising sun to visit 2 of 12 venues that have been confirmed to stage the tournament matches.
Harrod UK’s Sales Development Manager, John Robinson made the 13 hour flight to Tokyo to soak up some of the anticipated atmosphere that has already been generated by this fantastic tournament. John commented “This fascinating country and her wonderful people are starting to embrace the tournament already, and we’re still 2 years away! It’s going to be phenomenal place to be once the tournament commences”.

The Shizuoka Ecopa Stadium in Fukuroi is the first stadium to install a new set of Harrod UK’s, 17m Millennium rugby posts. When quality equipment is required for major events, the UK’s leading sports post manufacturer were once again, the first port of call. John goes on to say “We have a very proud history of supplying and more importantly, delivering to many major sporting events across the UK and around the world. Overseeing the installation of this first set of rugby posts into the Ecopa Stadium was a special moment, especially when I was invited to kick the first goal through their new posts. It was an invitation I couldn’t refuse despite having a half dozen film crews zooming in on my technique!”

Kofu Field Co. are Harrod UK’s official distributors in Japan. They are now busily putting together proposals for the remaining stadia over the coming months. The Sapporo and Kumamoto Stadiums will bring its challenges for their rugby post installation because of their retractable (floating) pitch. A challenge that Harrod UK will thrive on to execute!

Mount Lawley GC Impress After Switching To Jacobsen

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Ipswich, Suffolk (February 24, 2017) Mount Lawley Golf Club, located in Perth, Western Australia, has taken delivery of a fleet of machinery from renowned turf equipment manufacturer Jacobsen. Local dealer McIntosh & Son made the delivery.

The Golf Club decided to invest in brand new machinery to improve the playing surface of the golf course for the members of the club. The machinery leased through Jacobsen included two Eclipse 322 ride-on greens mowers, two LF570 light fairway mowers, one LF1880 super-light fairway mower, one AR722 rotary mower, one GP400 greens mower and four Eclipse2 walking greens mowers.

Rohan Farrow, Interim Course Superintendent at Mount Lawley Golf Club commented on the new additions to the shed:
“I carried out a lot of research before committing to Jacobsen machinery. I looked at our capital expenditure and took things into account, such as reliability, running costs and back-up support, before putting a case forward to the club. Jacobsen came out on top in all of the criteria and the demos that we had on the course, so it was an easy decision in the end.

“I am particularly impressed with the quality of cut that the Eclipse 322 and the Eclipse2 mowers produce. The members have noticed the difference on the greens, and the team really enjoys using the machines; they are easy to use and in my opinion, they are the best cutting machines in the industry.”

The Eclipse2 walking greens mower also features a unique password-protected LCD menu which allows users to set the frequency of clip, mow speed and other settings to customise the mower to course conditions. There is a range of models available in both Hybrid or Electric.

“I also spoke to other Jacobsen customers before purchasing any machinery, and their feedback was very positive. Everyone spoke very highly of the machines; especially about the quality of cut and improvements they have seen on their respective courses,” Rohan added. “I am particularly excited about the LF1880 fairway mower; I believe it will transform the course here and double our efficiency when cutting surrounds.”

Mike Foskett, Regional Sales Manager at Jacobsen commented on the new fleet at Mount Lawley,
“This is a significant deal for us; Mount Lawley is a top-end club and has been using competitor equipment for a long time. We are pleased that they are seeing results on the golf course with the new Jacobsen equipment, and we look forward to building upon our relationship with Rohan and his team in the years to come.”

Mount Lawley Golf Club is located just 10 minutes from the centre of Perth city and is one of Western Australia’s premier sporting clubs. Since its formation in 1928, the Club and has hosted numerous State and National Amateur golf events and hosted the Western Australian Open Championships in 2013. The course measures 6,234 metres (Par 72) with a USGA Scratch Rating of 73 and is consistently ranked in Australia’s top 100 courses.

National Campaign Saves Harpenden Park

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A recreation ground in Harpenden which is used by hundreds of people in the town each year has been granted legal protection from any future development, thanks to a national campaign to find and protect green spaces throughout the country.

Westfield Recreation Ground in Harpenden, is one of more than 100 sites identified by members of the public as part of the search launched by the Carnegie UK Trust and Fields in Trust to find and protect over 900 ‘lost’ playing fields and it’s new status was marked by a plaque unveiling at the site on 16th February by the Town Mayor of Harpenden, Councillor Mrs Nicola Linacre.

The fields were set up with the aid of a grant of £200,000, the equivalent of £10m in today’s money, from the Carnegie UK Trust between 1927 and 1935.

As part of the nationwide #FieldFinders search, Fields in Trust has analysed the submissions and shortlisted 20 sites which have already begun to make significant progress in improving legal protections associated with their site to protect them from future development.

Alongside the Westfield Recreation Ground, which was identified as an historic Carnegie field by local historian, Councillor Teresa Heritage, other successful sites have also been discovered in Adlington in Lancashire, Lossiemouth in Scotland, Lydbrook in Gloucestershire, and Stalham in Norfolk.

Douglas White, Head of Advocacy at Carnegie UK Trust, said: “A requirement of the original grant made by the Carnegie UK Trust more than 80 years ago to establish playing fields throughout the country was that these green spaces would remain public areas for the community in perpetuity. The aim of the new #FieldFinders campaign was to ensure that this legacy lived on.

“We were absolutely inundated with requests from members of the public upon launching the search last year and we are delighted with the result of being able to identify so many. Filtering through the entries and pairing them with the original 900 Carnegie fields sites is no mean feat and we thank the Fields in Trusts team for all of their efforts.”

The sites shortlisted by Fields in Trust were also invited to apply for two improvement grants worth up to £5k as part of the campaign and the Westfield Recreation Ground was successful in winning one of these. Following local consultation the Carnegie improvement grant contributed to a major redesign project including additional fitness trail elements and repositioning the multi-use games area. Alongside the enhanced sport facilities, new play equipment and increased seating were added.

The Town Mayor of Harpenden, Councillor Mrs Nicola Linacre, said: “Now that Westfield Recreation Ground has been granted legal protection from any future re-development, local residents are reassured that the park will be there to be enjoyed for generations to come.

“We are so pleased to have received funding from the Trust. This has allowed us to make the site more attractive to local residents; improve play equipment, install a fitness trail and offer more seating so people can sit and enjoy the open space. We’re delighted with the improvements!”

Helen Griffiths, Chief Executive at Fields in Trust, said: “Our public green spaces are places to relax, play sports or hold community events. Ensuring they are around for years to come is a top priority so we are delighted that we have been able to protect these valuable assets for the long-term and to fund the improvements with Carnegie Trust Grants.”

A plaque has now been erected in the Westfield Recreation Ground to recognise it as a protected Carnegie-Fields in Trust site.

To read the original article, click here

Olympic Park Turns Into Cutting-Edge Tech Testbed

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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

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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.