Agripower – Good Grounding Since 1964: For expert advice on natural or synthetic sports pitch construction, drainage, irrigation, lake and reservoir construction please visit our stand F187 at SALTEX 2018, Birmingham NEC.
For upcoming projects speak to our team and book a no obligation site visit to you club, school, college or university.
We look forward to seeing you there!
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World Cup Prep Underway: Somerset County Cricket Club is just one of ten UK venues selected for 12th ICC Cricket World Cup next year, and the club are relying on Toro to ensure its outfield is ready for the eyes of the cricketing world upon it.
The club, based in Taunton, is in good company as a World Cup host with Lord’s and The Oval, but as one of the smallest and newest in the line-up, the benchmark is high, says head groundsman Simon Lee.
“Our trajectory of growth over the last five years has been huge. As part of our categorisation in to group B we received some funding so for the first time in 100 years we could improve our drainage system. This completely changed the way the outfield grew. What had previously been more like a recreational surface was suddenly more like a sports surface, with thicker, denser grass.
“This has meant a lot more work in terms of cutting and maintaining the area. We’d been using a 20-year old Toro Reelmaster 2300-D, and while that machine has been a fantastic workhorse and we’d never had a problem with it, the time had come to upgrade to a newer model to help cope with the change in the turf’s characteristics.”
A demo, organised by Devon Garden Machinery, saw Simon and the team trial a seven-year old Toro Reelmaster 3100-D, which, says Simon, “set the bar high for everything else that followed.”
He continues: “Whatever machine followed the RM2300-D had its work cut out. We think so highly of it that if its successor is even half as good as it’s been, that will be enough”. And it’s so far so good with the new Toro RM3100-D the club ultimately opted for. Only time will tell if its longevity matches up to the formidable RM2300-D, but in terms of performance, Simon is impressed.
“Mechanically its all the same – an engine and bottom blade – but my goodness the way it chews effortlessly through the grass is really impressive. It takes two and a half hours to cut five acres. Plus, by opting for Toro again, we have the added benefit of the reassurance of having a quality product, one that will last for years, giving us excellent value for money.
With three international matches between New Zealand and Afghanistan, Australia and Pakistan and West Indies and Bangladesh to look forward to it in June 2019, it really has been an eventful five years for the club, with the future everything to play for.
Simon concludes: “Being chosen as a World Cup venue puts us on a level playing field with some of the best sporting venues in the country, and it’s incredibly important we present at our best. We feel confident we can do that, especially with Toro looking after the grounds.”
For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk
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Innovation Success For EGO: A new cordless line trimmer from EGO has claimed two awards for innovation at top European trade exhibitions.
The technology was awarded with GaLaBau’s Innovation Medal in Nuremberg, and a Technology Innovation Award at Bologne’s EIMA exhibition.
The cordless outdoor power equipment specialist received the coveted accolades for its ST1510E – Power+ Line Trimmer featuring POWERLOAD™ technology; the industry’s first line trimmer tool with a fully automatic line re-loading system.
Entering the European market in 2019, POWERLOAD™ removes the need for the fiddly and frustrating process of loading new line – a problem that anyone who has used a garden line trimmer is all too familiar with.
To load the ST1510E – Power+ Line Trimmer featuring POWERLOAD™ technology, users simply insert the trimmer line through the head of the tool. After a push on its green activation button, the automatic re-loading system then perfectly winds the line onto the spool in less than five seconds… and it’s ready to go!
After beating 105 unique entries for the Innovation Medal award, The Federal Association of Garden, Landscape and Sports Facilities presented EGO with the Innovation Medal at GaLaBau – Europe’s leading exhibition for the design, construction and maintenance of urban, green and open spaces.
Similarly, the line trimmer technology will be recognised in November at EIMA as winner of its Technology Innovation Contest. The competition acknowledges genuinely innovative machines, accessories or components capable of improving productive procedures and the quality of the work of operators in the sector.
Like all EGO products, the ST1510E – Power+ Line Trimmer featuring POWERLOAD™ technology uses a 56 volt Arc Lithium battery, engineered to match or surpass the performance of petrol powered outdoor power tools.
The unique battery technology has an innovative design to maximise battery cooling and in turn provide users with the industry’s highest energy capacity in a hand held battery. This allows users to complete jobs with less noise, less fuss and no harmful fumes.
Vince Brauns, European Product Manager at EGO, said: “Since the line trimmer was invented in the 1970s, gardeners, landscapers and consumers have all been continuously plagued by the difficult task of re-loading new line.
“Our POWERLOADTM technology truly is a first of its kind and will finally put an end to these frustrations. We are delighted to have won the GaLaBau Innovation Medal and EIMA Technology Innovation contest and will continue to develop our cordless outdoor power products and make the lives of our customers easier and easier.”
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Intelligent Marking At SALTEX 2018: Danish company, Intelligent Marking, is ready to introduce the world’s most advanced robotic line marker and it’s PROSTRIPE line of field paint to the sports turf industry at Saltex 2018 on stand CO10 and at the Live Demonstration area.
The Intelligent One (IO) has led the field in accuracy, reliability and ease of use since being released in 2016 and was awarded the Saltex Innovation Award in 2017 when it was first presented to the UK market. Since then it has seen further advancements to its GPS system and software to maintain its industry leading specification.
The PROSTRIPE field paint has been carefully formulated to match the requirements of every type of customer, including Premier League venues. It is currently being used to great effect by our American customers, including grass-root clubs, professional sports teams and universities. It comes as a ready-to-spray (RTS) paint in three variations: permanent grass paint, semi-permanent for artificial grass and easily removeable chalk-based paint. Each variant comes in white, blue, yellow and red as standard, with other bespoke colours on request.
The robots unrivalled accuracy comes from the base station. Intelligent Marking is the only company to provide an optional base station which allows the machine to be operated without a costly annual subscription and without cellular or real time kinematic (RTK) connectivity and coverage. Using the closed system means the machine can be used anywhere with unprecedented reliability whilst matching the marking speed of every robotic line marker on the market.
The accuracy of markings is millimetric and makes overmarking lines quick and easy with no external signal factors able to impact the performance. The Intelligent One comes with several pre-loaded templates including UEFA regulation football pitches, NFL pitches, track and field marking, rugby union and league, lacrosse and many more. Customers can also request custom templates from Intelligent Marking which can be made within a short timeframe ready for use.
Massive savings in paint cost and manpower are being seen by current users of the IO, including Paul Floyd, Facilities and Operations Manager for the City of Decatur, Alabama, Parks and Recreation Department.
Before using the robot, Paul would use 60 litres of 50/50 mix (28 litres paint) to mark two full-size soccer fields with a three-man crew, taking 30-45 minutes per pitch and one hour starting from scratch.
With the IO these figures reduced dramatically. Up to 34 minutes were saved marking per pitch and 26 litres less paint was needed, figures that Paul thought would be unattainable before using the robot for himself.
He said: “Obviously, everyone paints fields with different paint rates, various numbers of crew and time – but there is clearly a huge cost saving. I know these numbers may seem unbelievable and I was sceptical myself, but we have been using this machine since March 2018 and these are our numbers. We are estimating a savings of £15,500 in just paint cost – not including manpower time savings and less time correcting mistakes. The paint is lasting after multiple mowing sessions and longer than the paint we used previously. We like it so much, we plan to buy a second machine this fall.”
Visitors to Saltex can see the Intelligent One in action at the Live Demonstration area located outside the main building and have any questions answered about the robot and paint at the Intelligent Marking stand.
For further information please visit the website: www.intelligentmarking.com
Or contact:
Intelligent Marking
Ian Robson, Sales Manager, England
ian.robson@imr.eu
07779 270501
For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news
MM60 A Success At George Heriots: Limagrain’s MM60 grass seed mix has been delivering excellent results at George Heriots School in Edinburgh, reports head groundsman Simon Theurer.
Originally founded in the early 17th century to provide an education to ‘fatherless bairns’ in the city of Edinburgh, George Heriots School now flourishes as an independent co-educational day school for children aged between 3 and 18.
The school provides an exceptional academic education for all pupils, as well as superb extra-curricular activities – which is where Simon comes in.
Simon, who has been at George Heriots for an incredible 23 years, is the man tasked with maintaining the school’s grounds which includes 3 full size rugby pitches, 3 junior rugby pitches, 5 grass hockey pitches, 2 cricket squares as well as facilities for athletics and tennis. The school has a long history of successful sporting activity and currently boasts some of the strongest sporting sides in Scotland’s education system.
“We have top quality sports teams hence the reason we only use top quality products such as Limagrain’s,” says Simon. “Whenever I have been looking for grass seed Limagrain has always been highly recommended. Therefore, I chose MM60 for the rugby pitches and I’ve had a lot of success from using it towards the end of July.”
Limagrain’s MM60 grass seed is renowned for producing excellent playing surfaces and is ideal for winter sports pitches. It is a 100% Ryegrass formula which is perfect for renovation and divot repair, has a high disease resistance, fantastic aesthetic qualities and offers extremely fast germination – which is boosted by the inclusion of Headstart® GOLD. Developed using the latest scientific findings and field experience, it is a natural revolutionary grass seed treatment that ensures rapid germination and is perfect for enhancing performance on grass seed coatings for sports fields, golf courses, lawns and amenity turf
“I’ve noticed that MM60 germinates very quickly at that time of year and I get good growth and good coverage,” says Simon. “It fills in the areas that were not really taken in the spring, so for quickness of cover I think it is very good. I can’t get an awful lot of water to the pitches but I would say that MM60 is one of the better, more drought resistant species for that time of year.”
Simon applies MM60 at anywhere between 30g – 35g per square metre and says that it gives him full confidence in his rugby pitches over the winter period.
“We have such a high footfall here and we need tough grasses that are proven – Limagrain’s MM60 has certainly passed the test.
“Over the winter it keeps its colour very well and is very disease resistant. At the back end of the summer it’s good to have that peace of mind that you know you have a grass seed that is going to grow fast and well.
“I would certainly recommend it.”
For further information, please contact Limagrain UK on 01472 371471 or visit the company’s website www.lgseeds.co.uk/mm
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