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NEWS ARTICLES

Fleet Finance Package Suits Dunstable Downs

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Founded in 1906, with the current 18-hole course designed by the great golf course architect James Braid in 1931, Dunstable Downs Golf Club is a classic natural chalk downland course that can offer golf almost 365 days a year, because of its excellent drainage. At 800ft above sea level on the Chiltern Hills, it is one of the highest inland courses in the UK, with fantastic views over the Downs and on into Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Oxfordshire and Northamptonshire.

The club’s new course maintenance equipment fleet, delivered by John Deere dealer P Tuckwell Ltd, was bought on a rolling five year programme using a John Deere Financial package including PowerGard maintenance. The deal included three John Deere 2500E hybrid electric greens triplex mowers, one of which is used for tees and approaches, and a 7700A PrecisionCut fairway mower.

“It was probably the biggest machinery deal this golf course has ever signed, and a substantial investment for a club of this size,” says general manager Duncan Mutton, who together with ex-greens chairman Mark Smith conducted a full maintenance and equipment review. “We wanted to enhance the quality and appearance of the golf course, and felt that the best way to do that was to put a fleet deal together, rather than simply change one or two individual machines each year.

“We had worked with Tuckwell for many years, and John Deere and its bespoke finance package proved to be the most appropriate for our requirements. The dealer team was very professional, and Neil Peachey in particular opened our eyes to a new way of budgeting for a full replacement programme that would meet our needs.

“The key for us was that it would give us the chance to adopt the latest new technology, such as John Deere’s E-Cut hybrid electric mowers, and greatly reduce the costs of maintenance and repair associated with running older equipment.

“Neil and his colleagues took us through every stage of a very careful and comprehensive process, looking at our future maintenance requirements, and made a number of recommendations. Our head greenkeeper Frank Scullion then requested a slightly different set-up, and they answered all his questions more than satisfactorily.

“At a series of successful demonstrations, the greens staff loved the new machines and their versatility as soon as they tried them, and straight away said the greens mowers gave a better cut. The whole deal was very good, including the trade-in value on our old machines, and there was really no downside to it at all.

“Not only do we get great back-up service from Tuckwell, John Deere Financial were also extremely helpful and gave us some sound advice when putting the package together – this was a very advantageous part of the whole deal. There were no surprises either, and in the current financial climate that’s exactly what we needed.”

Reesink Turfcare appoints new national accounts manager

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Alastair Rowell has been appointed national accounts manager for grounds at Reesink Turfcare, a position created due to the company’s growing prominence in the groundscare sector.

The appointment comes after a period of great growth for the company who, through working directly with manufacturer Toro, has helped develop a comprehensive turfcare machinery range ideal for the sometimes harsh conditions and environments across the UK.

With customer relationships central to his role, Alastair brings over 35 years experience in the industry including most recently eight years as sales manager at dealer Carrs Billington. Here he looked after grounds and horticultural machinery with over seven horticultural outlets.

Alastair says: “I started in the industry as an apprentice mechanic and then worked up to sales manager, I have been involved in selling the Toro brand now for over 20 years and from personal experience can recommend the quality of Toro’s build and reliability. I am really looking forward to working with the team at Reesink and Toro
to continue to provide service and support to customers.”

Toro’s research and development is market leading and, with Reesink’s input on the challenges facing groundscare professionals today, the range is comprised of innovative solutions to tackle reduced budgets and tough mowing conditions. The product line includes cylinder and rotary mowers to flails with optional cylinder attachments that give a tough cutting flail a fine cylinder finish when needed.

David Cole, Reesink’s managing director, says: “Alastair has experience in all the areas important for this role, he understands and has used Toro machines, he has a wealth of sales experience and has worked as a dealer selling direct to customers. With this kind of experience and breadth of knowledge regarding customers, dealers and distributors, he’s a valuable asset to our groundscare team.”

Alastair will be supporting and working closely with Reesink’s biggest clients across the country, and upholding the company’s reputation for providing award-winning aftermarket support to customers.

Filter Maintenance Made Easy With Toro Performance Kit

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Work-life is busy enough without unnecessarily adding to the to-do list. So best to keep things as simple and productive as possible – easily achievable when it comes to turfcare machinery maintenance by using Toro’s handy MVP (maintenance value performance) kits. A surefire time and money saver!

Toro distributor Reesink Turfcare is reminding customers that there is one easy way to save money and time this season. Toro’s MVP Filter kit is designed with specific maintenance issues in mind, allowing turf professionals to be as responsive and productive as possible while stretching that all-important budget further.

Toro’s MVP Filter packs conveniently provide all the oil and air filters needed for the first 400-500 hours of machine operation. Not only does this mean you don’t have to go through the hassle of finding what you need from the catalogue, placing the order, then waiting for delivery risking machine downtime, but you can also save 20 percent of the cost of the individual parts.

Described as a veritable ‘packet of peace of mind’, Toro’s MVP Filter packs are compiled for specific Toro models providing the right filters for each maintenance interval. Instructions are provided giving advice on when maintenance is due depending on the model and number of hours of use, helping to avoid that easy temptation to run your turf equipment harder and longer without proper maintenance.

Michael Hampton, Reesink Turfcare parts manager, comments: “The ultimate aim as a groundsman is to ensure your machines perform consistently to a high standard and constantly, without the risk of extended downtime and that best possible use of your budget is made. With Toro’s MVP kits comes the peace of mind that you can react as soon as there is a maintenance or repair issue. Plus it makes budgeting much easier, allowing you to forecast exactly what needs to be allocated on parts and servicing for the next several hundred hours of use.”

Toro MVP kits are a prudent investment, ordering is easy and handy presentation boxes mean storage isn’t a problem so you can stock up. For more information contact distributor Reesink Turfcare’s Toro parts department on 01480 226800, email info@reesinkturfcare.co.uk or visit reesinkturfcare.co.uk. 

Maintenance Made Easy With Toro Performance Kits

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Work-life is busy enough without unnecessarily adding to the to-do list. So best to keep things as simple and productive as possible – easily achievable when it comes to turfcare machinery maintenance by using Toro’s handy MVP (maintenance value performance) kits. A surefire time and money saver!

Toro distributor Reesink Turfcare is reminding customers that there is one easy way to save money and time this season. Toro’s MVP kits are designed with specific maintenance issues in mind, allowing turf professionals to be as responsive and productive as possible while stretching that all-important budget further.

Toro’s MVP kits conveniently package all the kit you need for over 100 maintenance issues like overhauling cutting units, replacing hydraulic hoses and rebuilding rollers to switching out filters or belts. Not only does this mean you don’t have to go through the hassle of finding all the individual parts you need from the catalogue, placing the order, then waiting for delivery risking machine downtime, but you can also save 20 percent of the cost of the individual parts.

MVP kits provide all the genuine Toro parts needed to quickly get your turfcare machinery working again. Instructions are provided giving advice on when maintenance is due depending on the model and number of hours of use, helping to avoid that easy temptation to run your turf equipment harder and longer without proper maintenance.

Michael Hampton, Reesink Turfcare parts manager, comments: “The ultimate aim as a greenkeeper is to ensure your machines perform consistently to a high standard and constantly, without the risk of extended downtime and that best possible use of your budget is made. With Toro’s MVP kits comes the peace of mind that you can react as soon as there is a maintenance or repair issue. Plus it makes budgeting much easier, allowing you to forecast exactly what needs to be allocated on parts and servicing for the next several hundred hours of use.”

Toro MVP kits are a prudent investment, ordering is easy and handy presentation boxes mean storage isn’t a problem so you can stock up. For more information contact distributor Reesink Turfcare’s Toro parts department on 01480 226800, email info@reesinkturfcare.co.uk or visit reesinkturfcare.co.uk.

Under Threat Golf Course Is Saved

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Professional golfer Neil Reeves is taking over the operation of Marsden Park Golf Course in Nelson….

Although the course will remain part of Pendle Leisure Trust’s portfolio, Neil, in partnership with Pendle Leisure Trust will take control of the management and up-keep of the course and the clubhouse with some exciting changes and additions planned.

The Nelson golf course was under threat last year due to the reduction in Government funding to Pendle Council and consequently to Pendle Leisure Trust. But it was saved at the 11th hour. It was under the same threat again this year, so Neil has stepped in and saved it from potential closure.

Neil is excited at the prospect of sustaining and developing the facilities for the people of Pendle. He will be taking charge of whole of the course, including the clubhouse bar and catering, as well as memberships.

He said: “It is a great honour and a privilege to be given the chance to work with Pendle Leisure Trust and keep the game of golf in the community.

“Marsden Park is a great course to play and is at a standard to match some of the top ranking courses in the county, with wonderful, breath-taking views.

“It is open to everyone and I want to bring some new life to it. I want to build up the social side and already have plans to host events and introduce new competitions, including a North of England PGA Pro-Am, as well as numerous open events for men, ladies, seniors and juniors.

“The clubhouse will be open when the course is open, midweek as well as weekends, in a bid to re-awaken the social side and offer visitors all the facilities they want, as well as for non-golfers and the local community to use for private functions.

Alison Goode, Chief Executive of Pendle Leisure Trust, added: “We are delighted to be going into this long term partnership with Neil, who is well-respected in the golfing world and hopefully will bring lots of new people to the course.

“This is a positive step to make sure the course – and the game of golf – is kept alive for the people of Pendle and we will support him in every way we can to make sure it is a success.”

Jason Whittaker, the Trust’s Finance Manager, added: “Neil joined Marsden Park Golf Course last year as Head Professional and in the short time he has been with us, he has developed lots of ideas, including setting up a Golf Academy to offer the very best tuition for all ages and abilities.

“He was also instrumental in the introduction of the course’s state-of-the-art Indoor Swing Studio, which features golf swing analysis equipment to offer the very best coaching experience all year round.”

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