New John Deere Fleet At Abridge

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New John Deere Fleet At Abridge: Based in 160 acres of beautiful Essex parkland with stunning views of the countryside which can stretch as far as London on a clear day, Abridge Golf Club at Stapleford Tawney near Romford describes itself as combining traditional values with a modern outlook.

Course manager Geoff Smith welcomes what he also describes as a ‘new dawn’ at the club, with recent developments including a third successive John Deere course maintenance equipment fleet deal with local dealer P Tuckwell Ltd at Ardleigh, near Colchester. This is based on a John Deere Financial operating lease with PowerGard Protection Plus warranty and maintenance cover for the duration of the lease, based on simple monthly payments.

New John Deere Fleet At Abridge

This deal has been complemented by the arrival of a new teaching professional and a new golf club fitting centre installed by Golf Principles of Basingstoke, as well as plans for a redesign of the clubhouse plus an overhaul of the practice facilities and driving range. A new full wall-to-wall Perrot state of the art irrigation system, the first one of its kind in the UK, is also being installed by contractors M J Abbott this winter.

“It’s a really exciting time for the club,” says Geoff Smith. “With this new investment, the first for several years, we are aiming to bring the course back to Open Qualifier standards and keep ahead of the competition. The only real asset we have is the golf course, so it needs to be looked after.

“Members can already see what we’ve achieved, and our board members believe the course is the best it’s ever looked. A neighbouring club’s greens chairman even said that he’d heard Abridge is in absolutely magnificent condition.”

With this third package deal, 100 per cent of the equipment has been leased compared to just 40 per cent with the club’s first agreement. “The terms of the deal and the service package have improved each time, and with this latest investment we know exactly where we are budget wise for the next five years, with no hidden costs,” says Geoff.

The package covers 26 John Deere machines, including PrecisionCut and TerrainCut walk-behind and ride-on mowers for the greens, tees, approaches and rough, compact tractors and a front loader, Gator utility vehicles, an amenity turf sprayer and a bunker rake, plus ancillary equipment.

“We looked at all the main brands and had machines on demonstration – all of my staff get to try them and report back on their likes and dislikes,” says Geoff. “Our mechanic Paul Aylett, deputy course manager Ben Scrivener and I then evaluate the staff’s findings and look at price options and back-up issues.

“For us it all comes back to the dealer and the service we’ve historically had and continue to get from Tuckwell and sales manager Neil Peachey. All the advice, help and extra support really count – it’s a good relationship, and it works well for both sides. Our machines do a lot of work and if Paul cannot solve things, I need to know that someone from the supplier can be with us within 24 hours.”

Geoff Smith also says he’s very impressed with the new John Deere 9009A rough mower, which provides much better definition around the course. “When it was first demonstrated I didn’t want it, I thought it was too big, but Neil said he’d take it back if I really didn’t like it – and it stayed!

“I like the new 220SL walk-behind greens mowers too – we hand cut five out of seven days in high season, using lights and front brushes, and they do a very good job. The new A Model mowers with the TechControl display on the CommandArm are great as well, allowing every machine to achieve the same consistent finish across the course.”

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

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Kubota’s New Ride-On Mower

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Kubota’s New Ride-On Mower: Kubota UK’s extensive range of market leading and high performance machinery solutions is expanding with the release of a new professional zero turn ride-on mower.

Designed to meet the ever-changing needs of turf professionals, the ZD1211 offers exceptional quality and performance, combined with easy to complete maintenance.

Kubota's New Ride-On Mower

Engineered to create a superior cut every time, the ZD1211 is equipped with a three-blade, 140 mm deep, 1.5m rear discharge deck, and optional mulching kit. This is combined with Kubota’s unique baffling system, a new technology that has been specifically designed and developed in the UK to maximise mulching performance.

The ZD1211’s innovations go further, with its front axle offering two positions, oscillating or rigid. This allows users to achieve their desired cut easier as the machine adapts to the terrain they’re working with. In the oscillating position, the mower will follow the contours of the ground and in the rigid position, the mower will offer a uniformed cut.

The machine’s front axle is also offset, which means the front wheels are aligned with the return stroke of the blades.  This raises the grass where the wheels have travelled over, then cuts the grass to provide an even cut of excellent quality.

Powered by a three-cylinder Kubota 18.5kw diesel engine, the ZD1211 features HST transmission for smooth responses and easy directional change, including making a zero turn. Its 49-litre fuel load capacity, combined with its low fuel consumption, offers great autonomy, cutting down the time expenditures usually necessary for fuelling.

Operator comfort is another key feature of this machine. Adjustable operating levers and a luxury seat with reinforced suspension and elevated backrest ensure greater productivity whilst minimising fatigue.

For added convenience, routine maintenance of all of its critical parts and functions can be carried out with ease due to the accessible engine hood. The front axle also has the ability to be used as a jack to raise the front of the machine for general maintenance of the mower deck. This includes fitting a mulch kit, changing the blades or cleaning the deck, which can all be achieved with a reduced time scale as no tools are required.

Adrian Langmead, Groundcare Business Development Manager for Kubota UK, said: “This latest generation continues the evolution of Kubota’s commercial mowing solutions. As a business, we are constantly looking at ways to enhance our product and service offering to ensure our end-user customers can do their jobs more productively and efficiently. The ZD1211 delivers the power and durability sought after by all turf professionals, with a mower deck that offers even faster and better cutting performance.”

For more information on Kubota and its extensive range of solutions visit www.kubota.co.uk or call 01844 268000.

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Council Makes First Toro Purchase

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Council Makes First Toro Purchase: North East Lincolnshire Council has purchased Toro for the first time, due to to its competitive price in the tender process, and having received recommendations from other local authorities.

Chris Whitfield, assistant fleet manager who co-ordinated the purchase, says: “We were in the market for two cylinder mowers, replacing like-for-like. Recently we’ve been purchasing more flail mowers in response to the longer periods we have between cuts, but these cylinder mowers are intended for roadways, parks and open spaces; areas that require cutting more often, for which a cylinder mower is perfect.

Council Makes First Toro Purchase

“We followed the usual procedure by putting the request onto ‘Yotender’ and the Toro LT3340 cylinder mower met our specification and came in with the most competitive price.”

A good start, but North East Lincolnshire Council had never owned a Toro machine before so Chris needed a bit more to go on: “Jon Wright from Russell Group arranged for us to have the LT3340 on demo for a week. It looked great, performed well and the team confirmed it would be a good choice.”

It was at this point that Chris decided to refer to colleagues from the ‘Yorlincs’ regional fleet forum, a group of fleet managers from over 17 local authorities and councils sharing best practice, advice and experiences.

“I wanted to see if anyone had experience of using Toro and specifically this machine,” says Chris. “Very quickly I had positive reviews. East Riding of Yorkshire Council in particular stood out, they had a regional fleet of 17 Toros, including 12 LT3340 mowers. The fleet has been in use for a couple of years and the team using them gave good feedback – they had no issues, in fact they had nothing but praise for the brand.”

This is certainly feedback with which Reesink Turfcare, the UK distributor of Toro, is familiar. The heavy-duty, four-wheel-drive triple LT3340 mower is one of Toro’s hardest working grounds mowers, with Nigel Lovatt, Reesink regional manager, saying it is a machine councils and contractors appreciate for its durability, strength and performance.

With all that in mind, Chris confirms that there was no reason not to go with Toro!

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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Coffee With Terra Spike

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Coffee With Terra Spike: A head greenkeeper based in Buckinghamshire has inspired a challenge among users of the Wiedenmann Terra Spike.

After taking delivery of a new GXi8 HD in December, Gerrards Cross GC’s Adam McColl reckoned the machine was smooth enough to balance a full cup of coffee without spilling while it spiked its way across a tee or green.

Coffee With Terra Spike

Within hours his observation was relayed to others prompting greenkeepers and groundsmen across the country to get involved, posting on twitter when they succeed.

Adam, who heads the team of seven at the south Buckinghamshire Club, said:

“The coffee challenge just seemed possible. Aerators have moved on, modern practices mean the machine stays calm even when going deep.   With the multi ribbed belt drive system and the way the crankshaft is balanced, the GXi 8 always remains stable. If you hit something there is no shock transfer to the tractor or the driver. It elongates the life of both the machine and the tractor. It’s all about smooth.”

Coffee With Terra Spike

Gerrards Cross Golf Club a parkland course with extensive woodland and views across the Misbourne Valley, had some fairly specific criteria for choosing a Wiedenmann aerator.

“We need to stay ahead of golf and not stop play,” continued Adam McColl.  “Previously that wasn’t happening.  At 1.8 m this is 60 cm wider than before so a combination of extra width and greater speed will mean an end to interruptions and lead to more frequent repetitions.  This machine has a specific feature – Advance Tine Control – that ensures we get very clean tine entry and exit even where there’s compaction.”

Another major reason for Adam McColl choosing a Terra Spike, was the improvement it would bring to getting sand into the profile to ultimately benefit drainage.

“At demo we gave the 18th green one pass using 20 mm tines.  In the weeks before our own machine arrived we could see a tangible difference just from that one occasion.  The green still puddled but the water residue shifted a lot quicker.

“The bigger picture however is to get between 180-200 tonnes of sand on the greens across the year.  Assuming it remains dry enough we’ll continue with the 20 mm tines and go for 40 tonnes between now and the end of March plus an additional 40 tonnes at spring renovations when we will probably hollow core.  During summer we switch to lighter 8 mm tines and hope to achieve between 20 – 40 tonnes. Then come autumn it will be back to the 20 mm tines and around 60-80 tonnes.

“Last year we didn’t even get to our target of 140 tonnes but we’re focussed on getting this additional sand to help create drainage channels.”

Eddie Jack, Field Sales Manager at Ernest Doe in North Walsham said: “Adam called it correctly with the smoothness of the machine. He really started something. Looks like I’ll be buying the coffees for the foreseeable future.”

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

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Kubota’s Cashback Mower Offer

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Spring into action with Kubota UK’s Cashback Domestic Ride-on-Mower offer: Following high demand, Kubota UK’s popular ride-on mower cashback programme has returned for another year, providing lawn lovers with the perfect opportunity to produce a pristine lawn this spring.

The leading groundcare manufacturer is offering cashback opportunities across a number of its powerful, versatile and economic ride-on-mower solutions, including its first ever zero turn domestic ride-on mower, the Z122R.

Offering operators the opportunity to achieve the perfect cut across their lawn with its innovative technology and wide ranging features, the incentive is available to our domestic customers purchasing the Z122R, T Series and GR Series ride-on mowers from a Kubota dealer across the UK & Ireland.

Available from the 13th February until the 30th June 2018, our domestic customers can claim a significant £300/€400 cashback on both GR2120(S) models, whilst £200/€270 cashback is available on both GR1600(ID) models, T1880 and Z122R ride-on mowers.

For more information on Kubota and its extensive range of solutions for the groundcare and agriculture sectors visit www.kubota.co.uk or call 01844 268000.

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