Eco Village New For SALTEX 2019

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Eco Village New For SALTEX 2019: New for 2019, SALTEX visitors can expect to experience the latest green technology in groundscare in a new area on the show floor, which is purely dedicated to environmentally-friendly products.

The trend towards sustainable and environmentally-friendly practices in groundscare is gathering pace. Today, an increased number of grounds personnel, greenkeepers, landscapers and contractors are looking for products that can deliver quality results but also reduce carbon footprints to the environment.

Eco Village New For SALTEX 2019

Although more than 80 per cent of SALTEX 2018 visitors rated their overall show experience as being excellent, the post-show survey also revealed that visitors thought the exhibition could benefit even further from a wider choice of eco-friendly products and services.

The all new Eco Village at SALTEX will feature a programme of daily demonstrations of cutting-edge sustainable technology – offering visitors an opportunity of seeing a number of products in action.

Furthermore, industry experts, within this village, will offer advice on green technology and how it could benefit current working practices.

Commenting on the Eco Village, SALTEX event director Matthew Knight, said: “Each year we listen to every single piece of feedback and implement tangible changes that will make the SALTEX experience even better.

“It is great to see groundscare manufacturers committed to reducing the environmental footprints and with the increasing demand for battery-powered products it makes sense to launch a new area at SALTEX, which solely focuses on these technologies.

“There has been a huge amount of interest from companies that are looking to participate and we are expecting to stage a fascinating and varied demonstration programme.”

SALTEX 2019 takes place at the NEC, Birmingham on October 30 and 31.

For more information visit www.iogsaltex.com

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Gary Smith Joins STRI Group

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Gary Smith Joins STRI Group: STRI Group is delighted to announce the appointment of Gary Smith as an agronomic consultant, based in its Scotland office.

Smith has worked in the turf industry for over 25 years, mainly in a professional technical support role, including various new product launches in the chemical, nutrition and biotech industries.

Gary Smith Joins STRI Group

Until recently he was employed by Symbio UK and previously at Agrovista UK and Scott’s UK (now ICL) for 14 years.

Paul Woodham, STRI’s general manager of agronomy, said: “It’s an exciting time to welcome Gary who comes with a wealth of technical knowledge and industry experience. Gary will be a great addition supporting our operations across the business.”

Smith is one of several new faces to join STRI Group in May, as the business continues to grow across its global territories.

Consultant Samantha Maxwell joined STRI’s Melbourne-based business SportsTurf Consultants; Kate Breare and Oliver Thornton are the new trials officers at STRI’s UK research team.

STRI Group’s recent expansion has also seen new roles created, for a Planning & EIA consultant, as well as a CAD technician, in its new Consultancy division. Full details can be found on the jobs section of the STRI website.

Lee Penrose, STRI Group director, said: “STRI is always searching for ambitious and talented individuals to continue our growth as the leading provider of turnkey plan, design, build and operate services into sports developments. Engaging with industry leaders such as Gary ensures our work exceeds the expectations of our clients.”

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Century Up At Gleneagles

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Century Up At Gleneagles: Gleneagles in Perthshire, Scotland has recently celebrated the 100th birthday of its iconic King’s and Queen’s Courses, with a little help from local John Deere dealer Sandy Armit of Double A.

Designed by James Braid and created using nothing more than manual labour and horse and cart, both courses were officially opened on 1 May 1919 and have an illustrious history.

Century Up At Gleneagles

The King’s Course hosted a famous match between the ‘Big Three’ of Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Gary Player in 1966, as well as the popular Bell’s Scottish Open on the European Tour from 1987 to 1994, the largest spectator event after The Open at the time. The Queen’s Course has also hosted great names from entertainment and sport, including Sean Connery and Alan Shepard, the only man to hit a golf shot on the moon!

In more recent times, and under Gleneagles’ new ownership by Ennismore, both courses have benefited from extensive renovation projects. These have seen them realigned to Braid’s original design vision with wider fairways, bringing strategically placed bunkers back in play, and the reintroduction of Scottish heather in key areas.

As part of the special centenary celebrations, Gleneagles staff recreated several historic archive photographs from the 1920s, including an image of a tractor pulling a set of gang mowers on a fairway. This was replicated with a 1941 John Deere Model B tractor, equipped with a set of trailed cylinder gang mowers. The tractor is owned by Sandy Armit and is usually on display at the dealership’s headquarters in Cupar, Fife.

Gleneagles signed an exclusive contract with John Deere in 2017 for the supply of golf course maintenance equipment and related technology to the three championship golf courses at the award winning hotel and golf resort.

Century Up At Gleneagles

John Deere also celebrated its own centenary last year, as March 14, 2018 marked the 100th anniversary of the day Deere & Company bought the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company of Waterloo in Iowa and officially entered the tractor business for which it would become famous worldwide; tractors are still made at Waterloo to this day. The Model B tractor that was loaned to Gleneagles is still John Deere’s all-time bestselling model, with 300,000 sold from 1935 to 1953.

For more information, visit: www.JohnDeere.co.uk

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Groundsman Targets Improvements

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Groundsman Targets Improvements: Swindon Town groundsman Marcus Cassidy hopes beneath the surface improvements, as a result of continued investment over the summer, can help improve the County Ground pitch even further next season.

Town were confirmed as winners of the Grounds Team of the Year award for League Two on Wednesday night, one place better than last season’s efforts that saw Cassidy and his army of volunteers earn Highly Commended.

Groundsman Looks To Improvments

Stonehouse-born Cassidy now has his eyes focused on the summer – where he will be working seven days per week to ensure the County Ground’s surface is in top condition for Town’s pre-season schedule in July.

He said: “To pick up the award is very pleasing. It’s not just good for me, but for the club as well.

“It shows the investment that the club has put into the pitch has worked well.

“We haven’t got a bottomless pit, so we’re trying to improve things little by little – whether that be improving renovation or investing in the machinery.

“From here, we’ll look at what budget we have got for next season and see how we can best spend that money to improve next season.

“Everyone sees the grass on Saturday and thinks it is in that condition all week, it definitely isn’t.

“The pitch can look awful in the week – we can pick up different diseases, and the weather has a big say in that.

“It’s about getting things just right for Saturday at 3pm.”

Cassidy’s work was put on show to the nation last month when Phil Neville’s Lionesses hosted Spain in a pre-World Cup friendly at the County Ground, a game England won 2-1.

That game itself presented challenges to Town’s groundsman, who has now completed 18 seasons with the club.

Yeovil’s visit in League Two on Saturday was followed by Spain’s training session at SN1 on Monday, before the game itself took place on Tuesday.

With the help of apprentice Connor Collins – who has now secured a role at Bournemouth for next season – Cassidy said planning for that week proved tough, but achievable with the help of the team behind him.

He added: “I was really banging my head against the wall that week – getting the fertiliser programme right was important.

“A lot of planning went into that week to get the pitch into the condition it was in.

“The volunteers are invaluable. They get free entry, but they’re out there in the wind, rain and sunshine.

“Also I must mention our apprentice Connor Collins. He’s had a very good year – and that’s shown in the pitch as well.”

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