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Start of a “strong new chapter”

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Start of a “strong new chapter”: The turfcare industry reunited for the first time in over 18 months at the Warwickshire Event Centre as the inaugural Festival of Turf took place beneath clear blue skies.

With live music playing on a grand stage and ample opportunities for networking, the exhibition brought a celebratory festival feel, aided by clear sunshine and warm weather.

Start of a “strong new chapter”

Start of a “strong new chapter”

COVID protocols helped to ensure the health and safety of those in attendance and the festival provided a platform for more than 40 exhibitors from across the turfcare industry to showcase their latest innovations and products.

Among the highlights of the event was John Ledwidge, head of sports turf and grounds at Leicester City FC taking to the grand stage for a Q&A session hosted by Martin Smart of Turf Business, who were official media partners for the event.

Also taking place was the presentation of the BIGGA Excellence in Communication Award sponsored by Campey Turf Care Systems, which saw James Bledge, course manager at Royal Cinque Ports, awarded the top prize for a thought-provoking feature he produced on the use of bunker rakes.

Across the two-day event delegates from across various sports and amenity disciplines came through the doors of the Warwickshire Event Centre, bringing a buzz and energy back to the industry that had sadly been missing due to the coronavirus pandemic.

BIGGA CEO Jim Croxton said: “We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to all the exhibitors who signed up to support BIGGA and its members at what we hope is the beginning of a strong new chapter for the golf and wider sports turf industry.

Start of a “strong new chapter”

Start of a “strong new chapter”

“There was a tremendous atmosphere as visitors and suppliers came together face-to-face for the first time in 18 months and the overriding feeling was one of optimism. While visitor numbers were not as high as hoped for, those who did attend engaged meaningfully with the exhibitors and reconnected with friends and peers. It was scorching hot, which potentially kept some people away, but the combination of exhibition, live music, refreshments and fantastic weather brought a brilliant sense of occasion to the event. Our thanks go to everyone who came along and rekindled old friendships, struck new deals and enjoyed being together after so long apart.

“Our attention now turns to BTME, taking place this coming January, when the exhibition will return to the Harrogate Convention Centre for the first time since 2020. We have a massive education programme planned and we are incredibly excited about the return of our flagship event. We hope to see you there.”

BTME will take place at the Harrogate Convention Centre on Tuesday 25 to Thursday 27 January 2022. Visitor registration is due to open this autumn. There will also be the return of in-person learning as BIGGA’s world leading Continue to Learn education programme returns to the venue on Sunday 23 to Wednesday 26 January 2022.

You can watch and embed a video from Festival of Turf here: https://vimeo.com/577988216

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Course manager receives industry award

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Course manager receives industry award: Royal Cinque Ports course manager James Bledge continued a fantastic month for links venues in Kent after being awarded top prize at the BIGGA Excellence in Communications Awards sponsored by BIGGA Partners Campey Turf Care Systems.

James was presented with a £750 cash prize and an all-expenses paid trip to Florida, when restrictions allow, on the Campey Turf Care Systems stand at Festival of Turf, which took place on 21 and 22 July 2021 at the Warwickshire Event Centre.

Course manager receives industry award

Course manager receives industry award

Located just a few short miles along the coast from this year’s Open Championship venue, Royal St George’s, the team at Royal Cinque Ports has developed a culture of education and strong communication, led by course manager James, 41.

BIGGA is the members’ association for golf greenkeepers in the United Kingdom and the BIGGA Excellence in Communications Awards recognise those BIGGA members who have undertaken outstanding work to further the cause of greenkeepers by promoting their activities through various channels, including the creation of thought-provoking articles for Greenkeeper International, the monthly journal of BIGGA.

James produced a feature that was selected for inclusion in the October 2020 edition of Greenkeeper International. The article touched upon the daily maintenance of the golf course and whether asking golfers to contribute to a course’s upkeep through activities such as raking bunkers detracts from the activities of the greenkeeping team.

Each month BIGGA encourages its members to submit articles for inclusion in Greenkeeper International, with a monthly prize of a £100 education voucher up for grabs, to be redeemed at BIGGA’s annual education programme Continue to Learn, held each January in Harrogate. James was kind enough to donate his voucher to another BIGGA member who would otherwise have been unable to attend.

From the 12 features that were selected for inclusion in the magazine throughout 2020, James’ piece, entitled “The Sands of Time: Should we dump the bunker rakes for good?” attracted praise from the competition judges for discussing a topic that stands in contrast to traditional thinking and sparked debate among readers.

The feature is available to read online here: https://www.bigga.org.uk/news-listing/should-we-dump-the-bunker-rakes-for-good.html

James said: “I was really shocked because I’ve never won anything like this before. I read every new entry that comes in, but I never thought my article was in the same calibre as those. How the article came about was I had a Sunday off, I got up and had a coffee and had a feeling that I wanted to write something. I turned the laptop on and wrote a few words and before I knew it I had enough words to submit for the magazine. It was never intended to enter a competition, it was just something I wanted to get off my mind. There are other guys and girls out there who have a lot to say and I would really encourage them to give it a shot.

“The prize is pretty exceptional and so my thanks go to Campey. We’re lucky in our industry that there are so many manufacturers and sponsors who put a lot of money into things like this. It’s phenomenal that we have all this support and we couldn’t do it without them.”

The BIGGA Excellence in Communications Awards continue throughout 2021 with BIGGA members encouraged to submit articles for inclusion in upcoming editions of Greenkeeper International. Head to the BIGGA website for more information.

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Technology pays off for Gleneagles

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Technology pays off for Gleneagles: As Gleneagles enters the fifth year of its partnership agreement with John Deere, its adoption of the latest precision spraying and mowing technology is paying off across the estate’s world-famous championship courses, The King’s, Queen’s and PGA Centenary, plus the 9-hole Wee Course.

The award-winning luxury destination in Perthshire holds a unique position in golf as the first European venue to have hosted both The Ryder Cup (in 2014) and Solheim Cup (in 2019). John Deere was the official golf course and turf maintenance equipment supplier to Gleneagles for the latter event, with tournament support provided by local supplying dealer Double A at Cupar.

Technology pays off for Gleneagles

Technology pays off for Gleneagles

The next professional tournament scheduled at Gleneagles takes place in July 2022, when The King’s Course will host The Senior Open Presented by Rolex for the first time. This will be Europe’s only Senior Major Championship next year.

Gleneagles Director of Agronomy and Estates Scott Fenwick says: “We’re anticipating a great tournament next summer, particularly as The King’s Course also hosted what was then the Bells Scottish Open from 1987 to 1994. Hopefully a lot of the big-name golfers from that era will be able to play the course again, and we look forward to welcoming them back to Gleneagles.”

Scott Fenwick recently took delivery of the latest additions to Gleneagles’ extensive John Deere course maintenance equipment fleet, including the ProGator-based GPS PrecisionSprayer, WAM 1600T and 9009A TerrainCut rotary rough and finishing mowers, plus nine TS & TX Series Gator utility vehicles.

“We were the first UK golf course to receive a prototype of the GPS PrecisionSprayer for assessment, from the start of the John Deere contract,” says Scott.  “We were able to do a lot of testing with it over three seasons, to help John Deere evaluate the machine in true commercial conditions.

“Accuracy is key for everything we do at Gleneagles. We were also one of the first golf venues in the UK to achieve GEO Certified status, and the environmental credentials of our business are very important to us. To be able to spray only target areas is obviously much better from an environmental point of view. We are now able to apply around 12 to 14 per cent less chemical at lower total volumes of water, which also means lower costs, so it’s a big win all round.

“Although autonomous technology is well established in agriculture, it’s new to our side of the industry. Once you get used to not having to steer the machine and allowing it to do everything automatically, it’s very operator friendly. Testing the sprayer over an extended period meant we could be sure that it did what it was supposed to do and have full confidence in the results.”

Precision is a feature of the A model mowers that Gleneagles uses, with the machines set up using the TechControl system so that they mow and turn at exact speeds. This helps give a consistent finish across all courses.

“This is particularly important on a big site like ours, with a 50-plus strong greenkeeping and gardens team and a lot of equipment,” Scott adds. “Every operator has a slightly different approach and feel, but with so many mowers being used by different people every day, we need to achieve consistency.

“Since joining Gleneagles three years ago our Golf Courses Manager, Craig Haldane, has been instrumental in bringing the golf and gardens staff together to operate as one team across all the courses and grounds. This has meant we can manage and direct operations and the equipment fleet much more efficiently, and it has also improved communications and the use of resources.

“Overall the new John Deere fleet is now in a really good place. It’s also been great for morale that even though the hotel had to close during lockdown, the business has continued to invest in the new machinery we need to maintain the courses to the highest standards.”

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Putting service first with Makita

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Putting service first with Makita: In a move that reaffirms its commitment to delivering outstanding customer service, leading power tool manufacturer, Makita UK is delighted to unveil its new Factory Service Centre (FSC) in Blakelands, Milton Keynes.

Makita UK has relocated its Milton Keynes Factory Service Centre site (located at the company’s headquarters), to a new, larger location to house regional servicing activity. The new 20,000-sqft premises in Blakelands, which is scheduled to officially open on April 6th, will enable Makita to bolster its customer repair and service support commitments and completes a portfolio of three dedicated centres in London, Glasgow and Milton Keynes.

Putting service first with Makita

Putting service first with Makita

Makita’s Factory Service Centres deliver an exceptional service and repair offering for end-users. Products covered under the company’s warranty agreement can be posted (by arranging a collection) or dropped off (with prior booking), at each FSC for Makita’s technical experts and engineers to perform product servicing, detailed diagnostics and high standards of repair work when needed.

With a focus on improving levels of technical knowledge across the construction sector, the new larger premises in Blakelands will also be used to host Makita UK accredited service training, as well as Authorised Service Agents (ASA) workshops and seminars. Furthermore, Makita will use the new site to host apprenticeship training sessions focusing on the electrical and mechanical service requirements of Makita tools.

Speaking on the FSC opening, Tony Coleman, Technical Manager at Makita UK commented: “Opening this new, larger site is testament to the growing popularity of our tools, as well as our long-lasting commitment to delivering exceptional customer support. We’re now in a better position than ever to deal with service and repair demands, as well as to promote high-quality industry training. The spacious new centre also provides us with ample opportunity to continue growing our operations as we look to develop into new sectors and industries.”

All three of Makita’s FSC sites are currently following COVID-19 guidelines and customers are advised to follow the most up-to date guidance on arranging servicing or repairs, published on the company’s website.

For more information about Makita’s FSC sites, services and procedures please visit: www.makitauk.com/factory-service-centres

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GKB bring the Sandspreader 400 to Coventry

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GKB bring the Sandspreader 400 to Coventry: GKB Machines are known for their robust and reliable groundskeeping machines, and at the heart of their wide range of products fits the GKB Sandspreaders.

Thought of as the premier choice in the top dresser market, the SP series distributes different materials evenly over a field with precision and efficiency, and are available in a variety of sizes to suit the needs of sports grounds and courses.

GKB bring the Sandspreader 400 to Coventry

GKB bring the Sandspreader 400 to Coventry

The latest delivery saw the arrival of the SP400 – the largest Top Dresser in the GKB arsenal – to Lakeside Ground Maintenance in Coventry. Director of the Coventry firm, Gareth Fowler-Simons commented: “I was after a bigger spreader that was also suitable to travel on the road between sites. I’ve only heard good things about GKB, and with up to 95 per cent of the work we do being top dressing and renovations related, this really was the obvious choice for us.”

Being only the second SP400 to reach the UK – the first arrived in Scotland some months ago – it has naturally drawn a lot of attention among ground staff already. As effective sanding is crucial for the long-term preservation of sports fields, GKB expect these to be the first of many SP400s delivered to UK grounds and courses.

Tom Shinkins, GKB Machines UK Operations Director admitted: “The Sandspreader offers more than a traditional top dresser, giving workers the ability to control how much material gets spread and where, evenly with no fuss. We are delighted have an SP400 now in operation in England, and are sure that Lakeside Ground Maintenance will have many fantastic years using it.”

GKB bring the Sandspreader 400 to Coventry

GKB bring the Sandspreader 400 to Coventry

GKB Sandspreader main features:

  • Sturdy wheelbase for perfect stability and weight dispersion
  • Adjustable conveyor belt speed
  • Double hydraulically driven, precisely adjustable spreading discs
  • Road legal
  • Uniquely shaped bunker for good visibility and efficient sand discharge

The SP400 is available to order from your local GKB Machines dealer, find them online local via the GKB website now.

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