Reesink Turfcare Service Branch In East Anglia Expansion

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Reesink Turfcare service branch in East Anglia expansion: Reesink Turfcare has concluded a recruitment drive to expand its service branch in East Anglia with five new members joining the team in St Neots, Cambridgeshire.

Reesink Turfcare service branch in East Anglia expansion

Stuart Hall joins the company as service manager and Andrew Carpenter comes on board as parts supervisor. Both appointments further strengthen the philosophy of the brand to provide knowledge and expert advice while also giving customers direct access to maintenance, servicing and parts support.

In joining Reesink Turfcare at its East Anglia service branch, Stuart is fulfilling a long-held ambition to work for the company and brings to the role 16 years’ experience servicing and maintaining Toro‘s turfcare machinery. He says: “As workshop manager at John O’Gaunt Golf Club, where I worked for 25 years, I have been on the ‘other’ side of things and know exactly how important it is to be able to rely on distributor and manufacturer back-up and prompt parts delivery.

“I have worked through the preparation and hosting of major events including the 2010 Ryder Cup and can vouch that in order to keep to deadlines and tight schedules having direct access to factory-based technicians is essential.”

And that’s exactly what the teams at all Reesink Turfcare service branches offer and it’s also exactly why Reesink prides itself on recruiting those who understand that level of requirement and can confidently deal directly with customers, adding value and building strong relationships.

A couple of years as a service manager for a machinery dealership in Bedfordshire confirmed to Stuart that this was an area on which he wanted to focus his career.

Similarly, Andrew Carpenter is well aware of the high level of service expected from a distributor. Having worked for nine years with Lely Turfcare, this move continues a successful career during which Andrew progressed from temporary warehouse team member to parts sales supervisor. It was in this role that Andrew became the company’s first point of contact for technical parts queries and developed into the company’s TYM tractor product specialist.

Stuart and Andrew will be supported by a team that includes three newly appointed technicians. Matt Thomas, a mechanical engineer, and Liam Pindred with five years’ experience as a workshop technician and production workshop supervisor at Reesink, join the mobile technician team; and Keith Knight brings two years’ experience in the Reesink assembly and service department to the branch in his new role of internal workshop technician.

The Reesink Turfcare East Anglia branch operates from Reesink’s headquarters, supporting the region’s professional grounds maintenance customers, including golf clubs and sports clubs, leisure sites, local authorities, landscape maintenance contractors and large estates and private gardens.

Stuart concludes by saying: “The East Anglia branch provides its customers with access to experts in their fields, offering advice and guidance straight from the manufacturer and distributor, but with a local understanding. This recent expansion demonstrates the importance the company places on its local networks and why the region has developed a strong Toro and TYM customer base. These are exciting and busy times!”

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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18 Cub Cadet Infinicut™ Units At Wimbledon

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Mower fleet replaced at Wimbledon with 18 Cub Cadet Infinicut™ units: MTD Specialty Turf Products (formally ATT) has completed the order of 18 Cub Cadet Infinicut™ mowers to The All England Tennis Club at Wimbledon. 

18 Cub Cadet Infinicut™ Units At Wimbledon

The Cub Cadet Infinicut™ is a visually striking machine and has one of the shortest footprints of any walk behind mower on the market allowing ultra-low heights of cut.  The order comprised fifteen 21” models and three 30” variants and just 3 weeks before the tournament commenced, the grounds team took time out to line them all up for a photoshoot.

The Cub Cadet Infinicut™, with LiPo battery power, was supplied on trial for the 2016 tournament and was so successful with the grounds team, and for that matter the BBC because it made no noise during their daily briefings to air, that a firm order was placed.  They had them on demo before and during the 2016 tournament and were really impressed with the build quality of the units.  Says Head Groundsman Grant Cantin, “The new Infini mowers leave us a quality cut that is paramount to our operation here at Wimbledon.”

The Wimbledon venue is in close proximity to housing, and the site itself is compact with lots of closed structures within it, so switching over to a mower that produces extremely low levels of noise has been welcomed by all.

Tennis courts need a mower of 21” width in order to facilitate equal striping over the courts, and the 22” Infinicut™ was easily adapted to accept 21” cutting reels.  The reel motor position was also an issue but again switching it over to the opposite side, in order to present a clean side of the mower to the edge of the court, caused no problem.  Adaptations of this kind are possible because of the ‘state-of-the-art’ design of the unit where most other products on the market haven’t changed much in forty years.

They also took delivery of a number of SMARTUltraGroomer cassettes to go into the 21” units.  These cassettes remove huge amounts of debris, resulting in a smooth surface, with no detrimental effects on the surface.  The cassette will also remove seed heads in Poa annua turf and on newly established courts, it can help reduce the ingress of Poa annua by “grabbing” individual plants before they get a chance to take hold.

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Toro Brings The Wow Factor

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Toro Brings The Wow Factor And More Members To Chevin Golf Club – Chevin Golf Club’s first Toro fleet has brought the wow factor to an already impressive course and according to course manager Andy Mellor club membership has increased. 

Toro Brings The Wow Factor

The 18-hole course six miles north of Derby, which is a mix of parkland and moorland, has long impressed its players for its good test of golf over 6000 yards. However, when Andy joined the club a year ago, from St Austell Golf Club in Cornwall, he felt he could take the club to the next level by bringing in Toro.

“The course was in a good state when I arrived, but as with everything I felt there were some areas where improvements could be made,” he says. “We’re a part-parkland course and one of the problem areas was the finish we were getting around the trees and on the roughs. I have used Toro before and I thought the answer to the problem would be the Groundsmaster 7200, and I’m pleased to say I was right. The accessibility it gives is fantastic, it’s in and out of the trees in no time. The range of cuts is extensive and that has allowed us to create a more bespoke cutting regime and a much smarter aesthetic on the roughs.”

Joining the GM7200 in the deal are the Greensmaster TriFlex 3400, Groundsmaster 4700-D, Reelmaster 3100-D, Reelmaster 3100-D with Sidewinder, Reelmaster 5510-D fairway mower and the ProCore 648 aerator, and Andy comments it is “a good selection of machines that work really well together”.

But making a particularly good impression with the five-strong greenkeeping team is the Reelmaster 3100-D with Sidewinder, with Andy calling it “the machine of the moment”. Andy says the machine earns this high praise because of the option to shift the cutting units from side to side: “The Reelmaster and Sidewinder combination is a winner. Being able to move the cutting units left and right gives an extra 24 inches and increases the overhang for trimming. The team finds this particularly beneficial when it comes to maintaining the bunkers and lakes and ponds. There’s no risk of damaging the walls because the weight is balanced away from the edge, and of course therefore there’s less risk that the machine and operator may tip into the bunker or lake!”

He continues: “Bringing in Toro has eliminated all the niggles and little problems remaining on the course and as a result playability is further improved. Member retention is excellent and since Toro came on board, 60 new members have joined.”

It’s not just the machines though, the service from dealer Cheshire Turf Machinery has played a large part in Andy’s satisfaction. “I had a fantastic relationship with the Toro dealership Devon Garden Machinery who covered my previous club and the backup and support from Cheshire Turf Machinery here has been brilliant, too,” he says. “Nothing is too hard for my contact Chris Halley and it’s clear Reesink Turfcare takes a great deal of care over which dealerships to work with.”

Next for Chevin is an increase in utility vehicles. Quotes from Cheshire Turf Machinery are in and the wheels are in motion for Chevin to have a completely Toro red fleet.

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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Worcestershire’s Smart Cut Wins Wychavon District Council Contract

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Worcestershire’s Smart Cut Wins Wychavon District Council Contract – Specialist grounds maintenance business Smart Cut Limited has retained the open spaces and verge maintenance contract with Wychavon District Council following a competitive tender.

Worcestershire’s Smart Cut Wins Wychavon District Council Contract

This is the fourth successive contract Smart Cut has won under a competitive tender in recent years.

This latest contract for the maintenance of open spaces and verges, critically involves Smart Cut providing a dedicated team made-up of eight team leaders with a number of supporting operatives, to carry out all works across Wychavon District Council.

The team will undertake all grass maintenance work throughout the 664km2 Wychavon district, which includes the towns of Droitwich Spa, Evesham, and Pershore.

The scope of works to be delivered by Smart Cut under the Wychavon contract includes grass cutting on designated verges and open spaces, shrub bed planting and maintenance, management of the annual tree planting programme, stream and hedge maintenance work, and weed control.

Smart Cut, which has its head office, workshop, machinery store and training facility at Bishampton near Pershore, is part of the £5million annual turnover Smart Cut Group, and has worked for Wychavon District Council on many of its maintenance contracts since the company was founded in the early 1990s. The relationship originally began when Smart Cut’s founder Tom Rimell started The Vale Golf Course in 1989 and the maintenance contract transferred to Wychavon District Council from the DSO.

Lynn Stevens, Senior Parks and Greenspace Officer of Wychavon District Council, commented: “Smart Cut has given Wychavon good service over many years, and we’re pleased that the company has been successful in retaining the contract.

“We know that Smart Cut’s staff work well with our Greenspace Officers to effectively sort out work programmes and day-to-day schedules, and that they are very good at responding to emergencies or last-minute problems. Furthermore, Smart Cut was able to demonstrate its continuing relevant and extensive expertise, labour, resource and quick response times in the event of queries with a live, online system at its heart to deliver even speedier responses and solutions.”

Commenting on the contract win, Smart Cut Director Tom Rimell added: “Wychavon District Council was looking for a supplier with a robust environmental policy embedded in its day-to-day operations and Smart Cut’s green waste recycling systems, in place for 20-years, and our suite of tried and tested machinery and bespoke recycling bays at our Pershore base, adequately fulfilled this important, specific contract requirement.

“Not only are we able to meet all of the contract supplier criteria in this way, Smart Cut also has an enviable track record of delivery and service for Wychavon, and recently has won at least four successive contracts all under competitive tender, which I believe shows and demonstrates the quality of our work and customer service.

“We are of course delighted to have retained the contract, especially following a highly competitive tender process.”

The company’s Commercial Manager Dawn Wallis, added: “Smart Cut Ltd is thrilled to have retained the WDC verges contract once again, which I believe serves to reinforce an already strong relationship forged over many years.”

Smart Cut is a grounds maintenance contracting business specialising in all areas of grass care to include mowing, scarifying, seeding, verti-draining, fertilizing, spraying, and its team also undertakes tree planting, shrub bed planting and maintenance, hedge trimming, path edging, and hard standing spraying.

Since it was founded in 1994, Smart Cut has grown into a Group comprising five companies with a combined annual turnover in excess of £5 million, employing over 100 staff, providing grounds maintenance and landscaping services to a wide variety of customers across the West Midlands, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire, including local authorities, district and town councils, sports centres, schools, pubs and housing associations.

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Complete Weed Control Embraces Innovative Jacobsen SprayTek

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Complete Weed Control Embraces Innovative Jacobsen SprayTek  – The south and central Wales branch of Complete Weed Control, the specialist contract service franchise, has purchased a Jacobsen SprayTek XP sprayer to help with the eradication of weeds in the region. 

Complete Weed Control Embraces Innovative Jacobsen SprayTek

Chris Philips, Sarah Philips and Alan Abel are directors of Complete Weed Control – South and Central Wales. Commenting on the decision to purchase the Jacobsen SprayTek XP, Chris said,

“When the opportunity arose to purchase a new sprayer, we booked in numerous demos to see what was available on the market. The Jacobsen SprayTek was the first machine we had on demo, and we used it as a benchmark to compare the others to. As it happens, no other sprayer matched up to it. The technology and innovation is miles ahead of anything we have seen, and it’s important to us that we are investing in cutting-edge products that will be current for the next 10 years.”

The Jacobsen SprayTek XP features a 1,136l spray capacity and a reliable manual electric system for pressure-based spraying, computer control for flow-based system, and advance GPS mapping system for reduced chemical cost. The robust triangular truss boom is available in a variety of widths with breakaway protection, and are cross-folding for narrow transport width.

“Complete Weed Control is committed to utilising new technology and minimising the use of pesticides.” Chris continued. “The SprayTek XP fits our company ethos due to the GPS which allows us to accurately map out a golf course or piece of land to spray so that we do not waste expensive product by reapplying pesticides to the same area, or spraying where we don’t need to. This has made a huge difference economically to our business, and our customers as well.

“We have had a relationship with our local dealer, Keith Morgan Mowers, for 25-30 years now, and we have always received good service. Jon Morgan looks after us particularly well, and the after-sales support that we have received provides us with confidence to purchase other machinery that we might require in the future.”

Complete Weed Control was established in 1982 in South Wales as a franchise. The company are specialist contract service providers within the amenity market which includes golf courses, local authorities, industrial areas, utilities, sports arenas and cricket grounds.

For more information, visit: www.jacobsen.com/europe

To find out more about Complete Weed Control, visit: www.completeweedcontrol.co.uk

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