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NEWS ARTICLES

First GKB Sandfiller in Ireland

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Brian Martyn has a long-established association with GKB Machines, having sold them in the USA, and Martyn’s Turf Machinery are handling GKB as dealers for southern Ireland. They have recently delivered the first of the new generation of GKB Sandfillers to be sold in Ireland, the customer being Harris Turf Improvements of Dublin. The company specialises in golf course maintenance and services customers in a radius of around a hundred kilometres in the Leinster province.

The GKB Sandfiller is built to tackle the problems of surface drainage and aeration, especially on golf course greens. In areas on the golf course where standing water and moss formation are a problem, the Sandfiller offers a fast solution for drainage and intensive aeration. Aeration of the top layer is economically and environmentally friendly, say GKB, while being cost-effective through the all-in-one combination of aeration and sand filling.

“There has been a great deal of interest in the Sandfiller”, says Mark Harris, “and we have already done several demonstrations. It’s a different approach from what has been used before and this is much quicker, cleaner and far less labour intensive. Everyone is very impressed with the machine and the first green treated has shown improvement within only a few days.”

Using the Sandfiller for intensive aeration of the grass leads to quicker recovery, greater green longevity and faster drainage of surface water, without the need for complete renovation. Because the Sandfiller simultaneously aerates and fills the root zone with sand, it creates the right conditions for excellent root growth. To allow the machine to properly follow the contours of the ground, three adjustable depth rollers are used while a slitting rotor, situated between conveyor rollers, operates the aerating and slitting actions. Material removed from the top layer by verticutting is immediately collected in a sideways tipping container, making the overall operation very quick and clean.

Apprentice wins national award

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An apprentice has received an award for golf greenkeeping.

David Stewart, who trains at Pershore College, won young greenkeeper of the year at The British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) third annual BIGGA Awards.

Mr Stewart, 23, is deputy head greenkeeper at Walmley Golf Club in Sutton Coldfield.

BIGGA chief executive officer Jim Croxton said: “2016 was an incredible year for David as he took on no less than four different roles at his club.

“He took it all in his stride and alongside that he managed to get out, volunteering at tournaments and providing excellent support for the Young Greenkeepers’ Committee.

“David also worked extremely hard to provide participation opportunities for our younger members within the Central England region.”

Each year, the awards recognise outstanding greenkeeping performances, with entries being received from courses all over the country.

Mr Stewart, who is now on a level 3 apprenticeship, said: “Going up on stage was so nerve wracking.

“I feel over the moon as there are so many up and coming good young greenkeepers.

“Just to be nominated was unbelievable and to actually win is incredible.

“To have this kind of recognition from your colleagues makes this a career defining moment.”

BIGGA Chairman Les Howkins, course manager at The Richmond in London, said: “Congratulations to all the worthy winners of this year’s BIGGA Awards.

“These talented greenkeepers have demonstrated outstanding commitment and ability, not just this year but throughout their careers, and so it is great that we have been able to honour them with these awards.

“All the finalists were fantastic and show how, at every level and across the country, there are passionate greenkeepers who are a credit to the association, the greenkeeping industry and to themselves.”

To read the original article, click here

Five year guarantee on Terra Rake tines

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With immediate effect, all spring tines for new Wiedenmann Terra Rake purchases come with a five year breakage guarantee. One of Wiedenmann’s top selling machines, the Terra Rake recently introduced a folding frame which led to the development of the ‘double size’ 3.4 m and 4.6 m versions making a total of five in the range.

At speeds of up to 15 km/ hr these long foraging steel tines rip out thatch and bring clippings or embedded debris like leaves and twigs to the surface. Ideal for golf courses and large estate grounds the Terra Rake is often used in tandem with the Wiedenmann Super 500 and 600 3-in-1 mower collectors to provide an optimum rough management system

The tine guarantee is on the 1.7m, 2.3m, 3.4m and 4.6m models as well as the 1.7 m electric trailed version.

For more information visit www.wiedenmann.co.uk

John Deere expands Gator factory to meet demand

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The first major expansion in 30 years at the John Deere Horicon Works factory in Horicon, Wisconsin, USA has resulted in a new 388,000ft2 facility for manufacturing the company’s popular Gator utility vehicles. The expansion has added about 80 new jobs – around 70 in the assembly area and 10 new salary positions – bringing the total workforce to 1100 employees during the peak season.

“The expansion is a huge boon for the community, employees and the factory,” said Horicon Works factory manager Steve Johnson. “Now we’ll put each utility vehicle on our assembly line and it will not come off until it is built exactly the way the dealer wants it, ready for shipment worldwide – it places everything under our control. We’ll be able to serve our dealers and customers better, improve the overall quality of the vehicles, and make our operations more efficient.”

Previously there were two different factory operations working on Gator utility vehicles. The expansion now brings both the assembly and shipping operations to Horicon Works. Production began at the new facility in December and the move is scheduled for completion by March 2017.

“This investment shows our employees that all their work and effort to make this a great business from a safety, quality, and delivery standpoint is great for them as well. They’ve really helped us earn this opportunity to grow the business,” Steve Johnson said.

Horicon Works dates back to 1911 when Deere bought the factory from Van Brunt Manufacturing, a maker of horse-drawn grain drills and other farm machinery. Original buildings at the site, located in downtown Horicon, were built in 1865. Over the past century, Horicon Works has manufactured a broad range of farm and recreational equipment, including bicycles and snowmobiles – the tagline ‘Nothing runs like a Deere’ originated with the snowmobile line in the early 1970s.

In 1963 Horicon built the first 110 lawn & garden tractor, signalling the company’s first move into the turf market worldwide, and eventually settled into the current mix of products. Today, in addition to the extensive Gator utility vehicle range, Horicon makes premium lawn tractors including the X300, X500 Select and X700 Ultimate Series, and a wide range of attachments such as snow blowers, rotary mower decks and blades.

Ten Toros for Royal Cromer

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Having seen vast improvements in efficiency since the installation of a Toro Lynx control system four years ago, Royal Cromer Golf Club has now invested in ten Toro machines.

Royal Cromer was one of the first courses in the UK to fully upgrade to a state-of-the-art Toro Lynx control system and course manager Mark Heveran’s experience of it has been such a positive one he turned to Toro machinery when the need arose for some new equipment.

However, Mark says it was Toro’s impressive technological features that really clinched the deal. He says: “The advancement of technology in Toro’s on-board computer systems allows for greater variation in mowing. The speed of our Reelmaster 5510s’ reels can be adjusted according to moisture levels within the grass. This protects the cylinders, makes the mower more adaptable in drought conditions and results in a consistent finish.”

The club’s dedicated MultiPro 5800-D sprayer boasts an on-board computer, which Mark says is “undoubtedly the best piece of Toro equipment” he’s bought. With the on-board computer the operator has more control over the application rate and, from the moment you programme the machine, the same spray rate is maintained. This isn’t even altered by speeding up or slowing down the machine, providing you stay within the parameters of the nozzles.

“Our sprayer also has the optional shrouded boom, a cover that surrounds the spraying nozzles to deflect and protect the flow of spray from the wind which, being a windswept cliff top course on the North Norfolk coast, is a major design advantage for us. This addition gives us 75 percent more opportunities to spray, which is a tremendous improvement and makes our annual chemical and nutrient programme far more achievable.”

The club’s two Workman GTX utility vehicles have become firm favourites for Mark, thanks to their quiet operation and long battery life. “The GTX’s are great,” he says. “They’re really quiet so when the greenkeeping team are out and about in them, players aren’t disturbed by noise. And the longevity of the batteries in a day is superb; you rarely have to recharge them, but when you do it is a quick job as you don’t have to refill them individually, they automatically fill up in one go.”

The Toro equipment has been in use for a full season at Royal Cromer and Mark reports positive feedback: “The sidewinder Reelmaster 3100 comes out on top for its after-cut finish quality on the semi-rough, it really is top-end and the machine’s maneuverability around hazards is what we’re looking for. The lads in my team love the machines as they all have good suspension and provide a very comfortable operator experience. The reliability is superb and, as we’ve had no real problems with them, we will consider investing in Toro again in the future.”

Established in 1888, Royal Cromer boasts sweeping sea views and is in the top 100 courses in the country, with ambitions to rank higher. Mark concludes: “Royal Cromer is an old traditional club with a forward thinking attitude, and we are always striving to drive the course forward to be one of the best. We chose Toro because it is high-tech equipment, by using it we believe we can enhance member and visitor experience and gain a firm foothold in the top 100 courses in the UK, raising the club to be among the elite in the country.”