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Galway Bay’s New John Deere Fleet

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Galway Bay’s New John Deere Fleet: Designed by Christy O’Connor Jnr, a former Ryder Cup golfer, Galway Bay Golf Resort at Renville near Oranmore is not a links course, but is described as ‘parkland by the sea’, with the stunning backdrop of Galway Bay and the rugged curves of the Atlantic coastline always in sight.

Earlier this year this championship course hosted the Carey Cup, a tournament that pitched Ireland’s best amateurs from the Golfing Union of Ireland (GUI) against some of those from the USA, representing the Metropolitan Golf Association of New York (MGA).

Galway Bay's New John Deere Fleet

The resort has also recently been recognised both on and off the course with two awards, one for Best Customer Experience Golf Course in Ireland at the 2017 IGTOA Awards run by the Ireland Golf Tour Operator Association, and Best Golf Club Restaurant in Connacht at the YesChef Awards.

Course superintendent Damien Coleman, who is the current president of the GCSAI (Golf Course Superintendents Association of Ireland), gained further special recognition for the club last year when he was one of three European greenkeepers selected by the R&A to join the team of 46 worldwide volunteers that worked at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil.

“The Olympics was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and a great experience both for me and for the club, even though I was gone for three weeks at the height of the summer,” says Damien, who has worked at Galway Bay since 2008. “The director of the club Ronan Killeen was still very happy for me to go however, especially as it brought the course a lot of positive media attention.”

With the club approaching its 25th anniversary in 2018, it decided that its ageing John Deere course maintenance equipment fleet needed replacing. Many of the machines had been acquired over 10 years ago in the club’s first substantial deal with local dealer Mid West Mowers at Glasson, near Athlone in Co Westmeath, and Damien Coleman was happy to negotiate a new package with the same dealer.

“We’ve been dealing with Ger Conway of Mid West Mowers for a long time, so we’re very familiar with John Deere equipment and the service we can expect in this area,” says Damien. “Ronan Killeen quickly accepted that the existing fleet was getting too old, and so didn’t need much convincing that it needed replacing.

“At around the same time we were impressed by a John Deere regional presentation on financing new golf course equipment purchases so the idea gained some traction, and we eventually settled on a Bank of Ireland financed package deal in spring of this year, basically replacing like with like in the fleet. All the main machines needed upgrading to take advantage of the latest technology and warranty benefits, plus we had a preference for the selected machines over what else was available on the market.”

The new package included two John Deere 7500A PrecisionCut fairway mowers, a 2653B PrecisionCut tees & surrounds mower, three TX Turf Gator utility vehicles, a 2030A Pro Gator and a 3045R compact tractor equipped with an H165 front loader.

“We’ve always had John Deere tractors, as they’re very reliable and long lasting, and they’ve certainly stood the test of time on this course – we have a 5415 utility tractor and a 3720 compact from the original deal, and they’re still going strong. Earlier this year I also attended a machinery demonstration at Dromoland Castle Golf Club in Co Clare, where I saw the new A Model mowers working for the first time, and on the back of that we decided to include the 7500A fairway mowers in the deal,” adds Damien.

“I was particularly impressed with what this mower’s smart technology can do, using the programmable TechControl display. We always set it to suit the conditions, especially in the summertime when the grass is quite heavy and we like the operators to slow down a little, to give a consistent finish.

“Our equipment manager Jonathan Stace also keeps all the kit in very good order. We maintain a small stock of parts at the course, but if we need anything, we know we can order it today and have it delivered tomorrow – the John Deere and Mid West Mowers parts service is excellent in that respect.”

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

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Wendron United Receive Grant

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Wendron United Receive Grant: Football and cricket clubs at Wendron United have been awarded a £10,000 grant from the Premier League and FA Facilities Fund to provide new ground maintenance equipment.

With funds also raised by the youth section, money totalling £30,000 has enabled the club to buy a new tractor and grass cutting attachment, as well as other associated pitch maintenance equipment.

Wendron United chairman Peter Thorne, who this year won the Cornwall FA Groundsman of the Year award, said: “This funding together with those made available by the Pennon Environmental Fund (£13,866), local business Membly Hall Hotel and internal club funds, especially from our vibrant youth football section, has allowed the club to significantly enhance our ground maintenance equipment.

“This gives our small band of dedicated volunteers the ability to keep the grass pitches in good order and thereby allow more football to be played throughout the season and on better surfaces, so players can improve their skill levels.”

The Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund aims to improve the experience for regular players as well as attracting new players to the game.

It is delivered by the Football Foundation, the country’s largest sports charity. Founded in 2000, it is the largest sports charity in the UK funded by the Premier League, The FA and Government, via Sport England.

It develops new and refurbished grassroots sports facilities in order to improve the quality and experience of playing sport at the grassroots level.

Since it was launched in 2000, the Foundation has awarded around 15,000 grants worth more than £580m towards improving grassroots sport, which it has used to attract additional partnership funding of over £800m – £1.4bn of investment into the grassroots game.

Paul Thorogood, Chief Executive of the Football Foundation, said: “Congratulations should go to Wendron United FC for working with the Cornwall FA to secure this Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund grant.”

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Sherriff Amenity At BTME

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Sherriff Amenity At BTME: Sherriff Amenity will be launching the unique InterMix Tank on stand B34 at BTME in January. Visitors will also be able to see a wide range of market leading products designed to help greenkeepers and course managers maintain their courses to the highest possible standard.

InterMix Tank enables the user to mix a variety of products in order to meet a wide range of nutrient requirements. This unique 1200 litre capacity tank is fitted with a high quality Honda GX engine and centrifugal high output pump which ensures rapid and thorough mixing.

Sherriff Amenity At BTME

The spray solution can then be transferred into the application sprayer using the 5 metre transfer hose which is fitted with a petrol pump type dispensing valve – enabling a much reduced spraying time when spraying large areas through a reduction in the refilling of the spray tank. To support the launch at BTME an extensive range of InterMix product options will be available.

The exhibition is also an ideal opportunity to find out exactly why Sherriff’s renowned Marathon fertiliser range should be incorporated into any maintenance plan. This impressive portfolio features a wide range of organic based controlled release fertilisers suitable for a number of amenity requirements.

With five existing products in the Marathon Sport range – Autumn, Pre-Seed, Spring, Summer and Lawn Mini Pack, and four products in the Marathon Golf range – TCR, Spring, Summer, and Autumn – there is a solution for every requirement.

Other fertilisers featuring on the stand are; Marathon Horti K – a patented blend of mineral and organic fertilisers for shrubs, hanging baskets, bedding and potted plants; VitalBase – a granular, organic soil improver that stimulates microbial activity and reduces thatch; Ferromel 20 – a water soluble formulation of iron sulphate that improves greens performance by managing water availability; and Marathon Allround – a versatile long release fertiliser for use on all outfield areas that provides a reliable growth response with good colour for up to 3 months.

The Sherriff Amenity team will also be joined by Terra Firma (Agrovista’s latest Scottish acquisition) and Irish based Oilean Glas Teo – manufacturers of the SeaVolution range, Rapid Root and Amino Turf, all of which are distributed in the UK by Sherriff.

SeaVolution is a range of liquids and granules manufactured from unique, cold process seaweed extract from fresh, hand-picked Ascophyllum nodosum which is collected from the sheltered bays and unpolluted waters of the Atlantic Ocean. An efficient anti-stress bio-stimulant, Amino Turf contains the maximum concentration of free amino acids and is enhanced with nitrogen for faster and more efficient recovery of grass after abiotic stress.

For those looking to reduce environmental stresses and relieve high-wear areas then Rapid Root may well be the solution. This soil conditioner and root enhancer contains natural humic substances and amino acids and acts directly to stimulate soil microbial activity around roots and promotes improvement in water and nutrient uptake.

For further information, please contact Sherriff Amenity on 01638 721 888 or visit www.sherriffamenity.com

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Bobcat and Doosan at EHS

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Bobcat and Doosan at EHS: Visitors to the Executive Hire Show in Coventry on the 7-8 February 2018 will be able to see the latest products for the plant and tool hire industry from Bobcat and Doosan Portable Power on stand B115. These products include the Bobcat 1.7 tonne E17z Zero Tail Swing (ZTS) canopy excavator and, being shown at the exhibition for the very first time, the new G20IIIA generator and 7/31+ compressor generator incorporating a new 8.5 kVA on-board generator from Doosan Portable Power. 

The E17z canopy model completes Bobcat’s 1-2 tonne range of compact excavators.  It provides an unmatched combination of features for a machine of this size, from ZTS and the roomy and comfortable operator area to the ease of transport thanks to a shipping weight close to 1.6 tonne; its impressive digging forces and working range; the smoothness of the workgroup functions; the fast hydraulic performance in terms of low cycle times and its reliability, durability and easy service access.

Bobcat and Doosan at EHS

In the E17z, the ZTS functionality is taken a level further using Bobcat’s Zero House Swing design, in which the front upper structure is also fully protected by ensuring the front corners are kept within the swing circle when the tracks are in the fully expanded position.

The uncompromised operator environment on the E17z in combination with excellent visibility, provides unmatched operator comfort and safety.  The E17z has a standard operating weight of 1749 kg and a maximum digging depth of 2249 mm.  Many of the well accepted features in the current Bobcat 1-2 tonne range such as the retractable undercarriage, upper-structure tie-down points and advanced diagnostics are available as standard on the E17z.

As well as the E17z, Bobcat offers a complete range of micro- and mini-excavators, compact loaders, telehandlers and attachments for the plant and tool hire industry.

New G20IIIA Generator

The new G20IIIA generator from Doosan Portable Power provides a prime power output of 19 kVA and is driven by a Yanmar 4TNV88 19 kW diesel engine, meeting EU Stage IIIA engine emission regulations for generators.  Sharing a similar design to the G40-IIIA to G200-IIIA platforms launched previously, the new G20IIIA generator offers robustness and reliability, high performance and a wide choice of features to meet the needs of temporary power applications.

Of particular interest for the rental market, the fuel tank configuration on the new G20IIIA generator will ensure autonomy of at least 47 hours at 75% of the load.  Safe and easy access to operation and maintenance areas has been a priority throughout the design of the new generator.

A user-friendly feature is the electrical control and power compartment which has been designed to meet the highest safety, reliability and flexibility requirements.  All control functions are grouped together on the 4510 Deep Sea Electronics simple-to-use operator control panel, displaying critical operating parameters at a glance

From the construction site, to the concert stage, to the front lines of disaster relief efforts, the new G20IIIA generator offers hire companies, contractors, event organizers, emergency services, general industry and many other customers the highest quality, backed by dedicated technical and service support worldwide.

New Compressor Generator

Another development from Doosan Portable Power on the EHS stand is a new generator option for the company’s portable compressor range aimed at the utilities industry and rental companies serving this sector.  The new 8.5 kVA generator option meets a specific requirement in utility work to meet the demands of the latest fusion welding equipment, providing electrical power that can also be used for lights and tools together with compressed air for powering breakers and other pneumatic equipment.

The new generator option is available on two machines – the 7/31+ model, which is being shown at EHS, providing a free air delivery of 3.0 m3/min at an output pressure of 7 bar.  The 8.5 kVA generator option is also available on the larger 7/41+ portable compressor, supplying 4.0 m3/min of compressed air at 7 bar output pressure.

Like all Doosan compressors, the modular design of the 7/31+ and 7/41+ ensures that a wide range of optional equipment can be added easily.  As well as the ‘Tough Top’ polymer canopy, they can include LED lights, a Heavy Duty light grill, a number plate clip, wheel nut indicators and a ‘bunded base’.

Doosan Portable Power offers a comprehensive range of portable compressors, generators and lighting products for the plant and tool hire industry.  Completing the line-up are construction tools such as air-powered chipping hammers, pickhammers, jackhammers and paving breakers for work in demolition, utilities, quarrying and industrial markets.

For more information about Bobcat and Bobcat products, visit www.bobcat.com

For more information about Doosan Portable Power products, visit the website: www.doosanportablepower.eu

Golf Club Ends 2017 In Style

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Golf Club Ends 2017 In Style: Modry Las Golf Club has ended the year in style after picking up a top award at a gala evening which celebrated the very best of international golf tourism. The West Pomerania Gary Player-designed course was named Poland’s best golf course at the World Golf Awards in Spain after a series of exciting developments at the resort and a bumper year on the course.

It is the latest in a line of awards secured by Modry Las since it was officially opened by Player in 2009. Earlier this year Modry Las received one of Poland’s top honours for its nine-hole championship course in miniature; Orli Las. This latest accolade from the World Golf Awards points towards ongoing improvements that have been supported by an internationally recognised design.

Golf Club Ends 2017 In Style

“Over the last eight years, Modry Las has been on a journey which has been underpinned by Gary Player’s fabulous design,” said Arthur Gromadzki, chairman of Modry Las. “That has been the foundation on which we have grown the resort. We have used the momentum created by Mr Player’s fantastic layout to develop the resort through on-site accommodation options, property opportunities and our wonderful nine-hole course. Modry Las has grown into an internationally recognised resort, but it all began with his vision.”

As Chris Frost, managing director of the World Golf Awards, noted, this latest honour confirms worldwide recognition for the resort. “Well-deserved congratulations to Modry Las on its success at the 2017 World Golf Awards,” he said. “Poland’s Best Golf Course is a prestigious international award that places Modry Las firmly at the top of the golf tourism industry.”
As well as picking up awards, Modry Las has also seen substantial increases in the number of rounds played, especially by visiting golfers. For instance, the number of green fees sold grew by a healthy 22% in 2017 while the number of rounds played as part of a stay-and-play package soared by 73%.

The impetus generated by the 18-hole signature course at Modry Las shows no sign of slowing down, especially during 2018 which is set to be another decisive year for the Polish resort. “The progress made at Modry Las has been significant and has resulted in us welcoming more golfers to play our courses,” continued Gromadzki. “Nonetheless, I am particularly looking forward to 2018 and the opening of our clubhouse. This is the next stage in the evolution of Modry Las and a pivotal point in its development.”

The clubhouse is due to open during the summer of 2018 and will act as a focal point for members, visitors and corporate clients with spacious reception areas and panoramic views. A sports bar, lounge areas, extensive changing facilities and a specialist golf boutique will elevate service levels once again, while 11 luxurious guest suites will provide additional accommodation just yards from the first tee and last green.

The contemporary country lodge will include an indoor golf practice studio, private-dining room as well as a 70-cover restaurant and terrace featuring international cuisine served with the best of Polish hospitality.

“This exciting project has been in the pipeline for a number of years,” said Gromadzki. “We wanted to get the feel of the place just right so that members and guests would feel at home, but also indulged. Our temporary clubhouse has been a great asset, but the new clubhouse will take the experience at Modry Las to another level.”

A number of smaller, but no-less important projects have preceded the clubhouse development, including the installation of a dedicated Tesla charging station at the West Pomeranian resort, which is now part of the Tesla Destination Programme. Elsewhere, the resort’s facilities have been photographed by award-winning photographer Mark Alexander who has not only captured the beauty of the championship course but has also taken the first images of the highly-anticipated clubhouse.

“It is always a great privilege to photograph Modry Las,” said Alexander. “The course has matured well and is looking terrific. The new clubhouse provides a fantastic backdrop to the closing hole, which was part of this year’s brief.”

Gromadzki agreed. “The photography taken by Mark has been viewed around the world, and I think his new set of images will generate even greater interest in Modry Las. In particular, he has used the light to capture views of the course that have never been seen before and reveal for the first time the new clubhouse.”

For more information, visit: www.modrylas.pl

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