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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Toro Trio Impresses Duns Golf Club

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Toro Trio Impresses Duns Golf Club – Duns Golf Club, an 18-hole parkland course established in the Scottish Borders in 1894, has recently taken charge of three new Toro machines, which join the existing fleet to maintain almost 100 acres of turf. And since the Toro trio purchase less than a month ago the undulating course is “really starting to impress”, says club captain Derek Bates.

Toro Trio Impresses Duns Golf Club“The Toro machines were trialled over a number of weeks and it soon became obvious, from the response of head greenkeeper Andy Chambers and his assistant Stuart Thomson, that they ticked all the boxes,” confirms Derek.

The machines purchased were the Reelmaster 5610-D, Greensmaster 3250-D and the “excellent” Groundsmaster 4300-D. Derek says: “The course which covers 97 acres with many undulations is really starting to impress now. The greens are the highlight of the course thanks to the Greensmaster 3250-D. They are immaculate and visitors are impressed with how fast and slick they are playing. The machine follows the undulations effortlessly, giving a consistent cut and climbs any hills with no problem.”

And the greens aren’t the only talking point, the fairways are also turning heads with some help from the heavy-duty Reelmaster 5610-D: “The fairway mower’s DPA cutting units are giving a great after-cut appearance and visitors have compared our fairways to that of baize on a pool table,” says Derek.

The final machine in the trio is the Groundsmaster 4300-D. According to Derek: “The greenkeepers use the GM4300-D to chew through the roughs with ease and report that, like the other Toros, it is very comfortable to operate.”

Derek says the deal was made easy by Reesink rep Mike Turnbull: “After lengthy discussions with Mike, an excellent deal was struck. We considered the fact that the machines have low fuel consumption and brilliant residual sale values. Reesink and Toro provide a first class backup service, too, ensuring optimum performance and longevity. All these factors led us to believe that by choosing Toro the club has made the right decision for its future.”

With visitors raving about the results provided by the new machines within a month, it clearly was a good decision.

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Greetham Valley Just Got Greener

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Greetham Valley Just Got Greener – Environmental Golf Course of the Year invests in Toro’s Reelmaster 5010-H 

Greetham Valley Just Got Greener

The Environmental Golf Course of the Year, Greetham Valley Golf Club, gained its title at the prestigious national Golf Environment Awards 2017 for its extensive efforts to increase biodiversity and reduce its carbon footprint. The club’s conscientious environmental attitude is also evident in its recent decision to purchase the Toro Reelmaster 5010-H hybrid mower, known for its ability to cut fuel consumption by up to 20 percent.

Ecological best practice is important to all staff at Greetham but none more so than course manager Adrian Porter who, among many other ecological projects, has implemented iniatives ranging from reducing chemical usage and controlling pests, disease and weeds using holistic methods, to creating wildflower meadows and constructing 17 new ponds.

Adrian says: “The environment and sustainability is at the forefront of the club’s mind in every decision it makes. As an industry-leading innovator with greener mowing options, Toro matches our forward-thinking approach.

“We invested in the Reelmaster 5010-H as its PowerMatch technology greatly reduces fuel consumption and therefore our impact on the environment. We really value biodiversity, so the fact that the more fuel-efficient electric cylinder drive reduces exhaust pollution and removes oil leaks are bonuses that won’t upset

wildlife or players.”

The 5010-H boasts environmental benefits without sacrificing results: “The after-cut appearance remains superb because the cutting decks follow the undulations of the course. Plus the lightness of the machine means no turf damage and reduced soil compaction,” says Adrian.

Greetham Valley Golf Club has been a Toro customer for 23 years and Adrian says he’s “always been able to rely on Reesink’s customer service”: “Any issues or queries are resolved quickly and our relationship with Reesink representative Andy Humble is great. He often pops in to make sure we’re happy and is always on hand to answer any questions.

“We remain exclusively loyal to Toro thanks to this service and the machines’ reliability. The machines are always of great build quality and the investment is worth every penny – especially as Toro’s reputation means they will have a great resale value in years to come.”

In addition to the Reelmaster 5010-H the club purchased a Groundsmaster 4500-D, Workman HDX, ProCore 648 pedestrian aerator and a Greensmaster TriFlex 3400 to join its existing Toro fleet.

Adrian speaks of the latter: “We bought another 3400 because we were so impressed with the versatility of the two we already had. Together, the three machines do the job of five thanks to interchangeable cutting heads that can be swapped quickly to a series of different groomers, verticutting or tees units.

“It’s made a big difference to our day-to-day productivity: we go out in the morning using 11-blade units on the greens and swap them later in the morning to 8-blade units for the tees, surrounds and approaches.”

He continues: “We invested in all the machines because we have a replacement period of five to eight years to ensure reliability and keep downtime at a minimum. We have a small fleet and Greetham’s 276 acres to maintain, so we can’t afford for machines to be off-duty!”

Adrian heads up a team of nine greenkeepers, one gardener and one mechanic. On top of maintaining 45 holes, Greetham’s greenkeeping team use their skills and Toro machinery to tackle sports pitch maintenance and landscaping jobs in the surrounding area.

According to Adrian: “Our Toro [MultiPro 5800-D] sprayer is an old favourite that’s been invaluable for this side of the business. Its accuracy is excellent as the machine’s Pro Control calibrates everything on the move. The team and I have our hands full, but the extra work is possible thanks to great people and reliable, innovative Toro machines.”

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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