ISEKI makes life easier

ISEKI makes life easier: Paul Shapter, Head Gardener at St Catherine’s College, one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford, claims that his new ISEKI ride-on mower has made life a lot easier.

St Catherine’s College, affectionately known as St Catz, is the largest college within the world-famous University of Oxford. The college is renowned for its modern architecture and many restful open spaces which offers a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.

Paul and his team maintain these open spaces which comprises of gardens and lawns; and he revealed that he was looking for something to make life a little easier for everyone.

“We are all getting a bit older, a bit creakier, and our backs are a bit more susceptible to damage,” he said. “Therefore, we started looking for something that would make everything a lot easier and after some searching, we came across the ISEKI SXG326, which we found to be very cost efficient.”

Tough, reliable, and productive, the SXG326 has been built for the most demanding users. It has a larger operator platform for a comfortable working environment and a 54” (1.37m) mower deck with wider overlapping which provides enhanced productivity and a superior quality of cut. A 2-pedal hydrostatic control and more legroom is featured while the large capacity, high torque 1123cc diesel engine is powerful and fuel efficient.

The new instrument panel and dial in height-of-cut adjustment makes the SXG326 the most operator friendly and intuitive large compact tractor mower on the market. Hopper capacity is an impressive 600 litres with an easy to remove collector that allows for simple cleaning and maintenance. The SXG326 is available in road homologated version with lighting kit and handbrake.

Paul explained how the SXG326 has indeed made life easier at St Catz.

“I think the versatility of it is one of the best features – as well as cutting grass excellently it is also like an outdoor hoover. It is great at sweeping up and collecting a whole range of debris. This gives us the diversity to use it in the autumn just as much as we use it through the summer and spring. I find that it picks up remarkably well in all weathers whether it is wet or dry.

“The high tip is really good, and it means that one person can do the job a lot quicker without having someone running around fetching, carrying, shovelling, cleaning up or tipping. It combines all sorts of efficiencies.

“The size of the box is another big plus – being able to collect that amount of grass and condensing it into a huge box is fantastic. Another good feature is that all the basic maintenance points are accessible and easy to get to.

“Adjusting the height is a simple manoeuvre – there are no rulers or measurements involved, it is a simple wheel that just turns to adjust the height of cut – it is incredibly easy.

“I think what really makes a big difference for us is the lack of blockages,” continued Paul. “The size of the chute and the way that the blades cut mean that it is all gathered and shot out the back quick enough not to block.

“Essentially, you just can’t beat the value of this ISEKI machine and I would certainly recommend it to all gardeners and grounds people.”

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Makita’s new radio lanterns

Makita’s new radio lanterns: Makita has launched three new cordless radio lanterns for its LXT and XGT battery platforms. The DMR055, DMR056 and MR009G have all been designed to offer function and entertainment for both leisure and professional applications.

The DMR055 18V/14.4V LXT Cordless Lantern is a work light delivering ultra-bright illumination, versatility, and convenience. Featuring a built-in AM/FM radio, and lamp extending to 360-degree light coverage, users can choose between lighting the entire workspace or a focused area thanks to its flexible settings. The lantern is also equipped with a memory function to recall the user’s preferred brightness and light tone levels. For convenience and mobility, this new product features a strap with hook, allowing the lantern to be hung up to illuminate upwards, horizontally or towards the floor.

Makita's new radio lanterns

Makita’s new radio lanterns

The 18V/14.4V LXT DMR056 and 40VMax XGT MR009GZ are packed with further features in addition to the above, including an LCD digital display, Bluetooth and DAB/DAB+ Radio station frequency. Users can choose from two brightness settings and three light tone settings: Daylight White, Neutral White and Warm White. What’s more, the DMR056 and MR009GZ also have two flashlight modes: torch and strobe and are equipped with a USB output port for charging mobile devices.

Makita has designed its latest additions to offer impressive continuous run times: On a single, full battery charge, the 18V LXT DMR055 has a radio run time of 52h, a lantern run time of 16h, or a combination of 12h (when used with the 5.0Ah BL1850B battery). The 18V LXT DMR056 has a radio run time of 44h, a lantern run time of 16h, a combination of 12h, or a flashlight run time of 30h (using the 5.0Ah BL1850B battery). For professionals using the XGT battery platform, the 40VMax MR009G provides 51h of radio time, a lantern run time of 34h, a combination of 21h, or a flashlight run time of 66h (when used with the BL4050F 5Ah battery).

Speaking on the new additions, Kevin Brannigan, Marketing Manager at Makita UK said: “While power tools are what we are known for, Makita aims to bring performance, quality and convenience on site in various ways. For this reason, we are very excited to be launching our new range of lantern radios – equipped with an impressive light and sound quality radio, and even more impressive battery run time.”

To browse Makita’s range of cordless solutions, visit: www.makitauk.com.

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Whitemoss appoint Jay Condliffe

Whitemoss appoint Jay Condliffe: Following year on year growth over the last 2/3 years, Whitemoss are delighted to announce the appointment of Jay Condliffe as the new Area Manager for Wales, Shropshire Cheshire and parts of Greater Manchester.

Jay will be discussing Complete Bunker Solution products, BunkerMat, MegaFlo and the full range of bunker sands.

Whitemoss appoint Jay Condliffe

Whitemoss appoint Jay Condliffe

As well as operating in the field, Jay will join the BunkerMat fitting team and they have a very busy autumn/ winter schedule ahead.

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PSD’s new partnership with GRIN

PSD’s new partnership with GRIN: PSD Groundscare are delighted to announce a new partnership with GRIN, the world class Italian manufacturer of long grass mowing solutions.

GRIN was founded in 2005 to change the perspective of garden maintenance. The creation and development of the product offering has a common philosophy; to improve the quality of life, to innovate and simplify and to propose sustainable solutions. The GRIN mulching mowing system operates without a grass bag allowing for quicker and more profitable maintenance.

PSD’s new partnership with GRIN

The patented GRIN system – MOWING, NO GRASS BAG, NO WASTE – must not be mistaken for the CONVENTIONAL MULCHING mowing system. Both systems are based on bag-less mowing, but were developed to meet different needs.

The main benefits of the GRIN mowing system include:

– MOWING HEIGHT AND FREQUENCY:
With Grin it is possible to maintain the same mowing height and mowing frequency as with a grass bag type mower.

– GRASS PULVERISATION:
In standard mowing conditions, Grin pulverises grass into very fine fragments, which are deposited on the soil and absorbed as fertiliser.

– MOWING WET GRASS:
With Grin it is possible to mow wet grass much better than with a grass bag type mower.

GRIN mowers provide time saving mowing. Not only do they offer a high quality of fine cut, but the pulverised grass within the deck is so finely cut that it then returns to the ground as almost invisible fertiliser, returning valuable nutrients to the ground.

All the GRIN lawn mowers are designed, produced and assembled to the highest quality standards: the 3 mm thick steel frame and mowing deck, the engine protection cone for accidental impact, the professional tractions, the steel wheels, the centralized mowing height adjustment, the foldable handlebar are just some of the strengths. The MADE IN ITALY production ensures professional users reliability and robustness. Thanks to the experience gained alongside gardeners, it has been possible to find practical and convenient solutions for daily and intensive use.

Benefits include:

  • It pulverises grass very fine
  • The result is perfect in long and wet grass
  • It works on all types of lawn
  • It is not necessary to mow more often
  • It is built to last

New to the UK market, the comprehensive range of high quality, robust mowers offer highly efficient solutions for local authorities, landscapers, groundskeeping, contractors and private users to help create the perfect landscape.

PSD has a long-standing track record of expertise in long and wet grass mowing solutions and the GRIN range of mowers are perfectly set up for working in UK conditions.

The new range of machinery from GRIN is set to be launched to dealers at an exclusive event early in October, before being unveiled to the industry at Saltex on the 2nd & 3rd November.

PSD Groundscare is the exclusive UK distributor of niche specialist landscaping equipment, with an extensive range of products from market-leading names and innovative European manufacturers including Eliet and Koppl.

PSD Managing Director Chris Gibson said:

“We’re extremely excited to add GRIN to our portfolio and to be at the forefront in the UK distribution of this fantastic product line and we look forward to being able to launch them to our dealer network in October and the UK market at Saltex”.

GRIN CEO Franco Ghezzi, comments on the new UK venture:

“Having developed the continental European market for over 15 years, I am very happy for the start of this new partnership with PSD Groundscare.

Their professionalism, technical and commercial competence and the deep-rooted presence on the lawn maintenance market represent key features for the development of this collaboration and to support our company and our products on the important UK market.

Furthermore, PSD Groundscare has immediately appreciated the unique qualities of our lawnmowers, our innovative mowing system, and the completeness of our product range.

Therefore, one of the most important services they will offer to every dealer and end-user will be the possibility to test the machines.

All this together with the good feeling that was immediately created between our two teams and a very similar mindset, are the key factors which make me very satisfied with the agreement found between our 2 companies.”

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