GKB Sandspreader SP300 doubles productivity

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GKB Sandspreader SP300 doubles productivity: Productivity and efficiency from topdressing operations has more than doubled for the team at Cutting Edge Grounds Maintenance following their purchase of a SP300 Sandspreader from GKB Machines.

Director Josh Blackburn cites that the exceptional build quality of the high-capacity disc dresser allows them to spread up to 240 tonnes of material each day on a variety of sports pitch and amenity surface renovations.

GKB Sandspreader SP300 doubles productivity

GKB Sandspreader SP300 doubles productivity

Having worked in the groundcare industry for close to 15 years, Josh established Cutting Edge two and a half years ago and leads a team of eight operatives on contracts in and around Teesside, North Yorkshire & County Durham. “We’d been using a second-hand spreader for some time so, with the number of pitch renovation jobs increasing, we were due an upgrade” he explains.

“We had demonstrations of a couple of different brands, but the GKB Sandspreader was head and shoulders above the competition – not just from the user-friendly set-up and accuracy of distribution but the impeccable build quality.” Delivered by local dealers Lloyds of Bishop Auckland in the summer of 2022, Josh goes on to emphasise, “You too frequently find that with the machines at the bigger end of the ranges, you lose build quality, but with GKB that is not the case. You can be assured that everything that comes out of their factory is going to last, and work to a high standard.”

The GKB SP300 is the ultimate tool for sports facilities and contractors, looking for a versatile solution to large area topdressing. The 3m3 capacity and ability to quickly and simply adjust the spreading discs makes the Sandspreader suitable for use on a wide variety of applications, from football pitches and cricket outfields to school grounds and golf fairways. “Being hydraulically-driven rather than PTO, it’s really simple to adjust belt speed, disc speed, angle, and thickness. You can tell GKB have designed the machine with the way the operator will use it in mind.”

“The Sandspreader is primarily used seasonally, but we have had it out working as late as October which it can do thanks to the four large balloon tyres which effectively spread the weight making it highly adaptable.” He continues, “It’s not only the quality of machine but the support you have with GKB which we really like. The one issue we had was resolved with a phone call in a matter of minutes. It’s the whole package.”

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GroundsFest’s festival plans announced

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GroundsFest’s festival plans announced: Organisers of GroundsFest have revealed more details about the festival which is taking place at the event.

The festival, which starts at 5pm on the first day of the event (20 September), will feature live music and street food stalls and will allow exhibitors and visitors to unwind, have fun and continue to network.

GroundsFest’s festival plans announced

GroundsFest’s festival plans announced

The live music line-up is being headlined by Supersonic Queen – the UK’s most authentic Queen tribute band. Performing regularly in UK and International theatres and festivals, Supersonic Queen have been touring for over a decade and are known for their uniquely dynamic recreation of Queen’s iconic live performances.

DJ Mikey B is a first choice DJ for many high-profile events throughout Birmingham, Bristol and London and has entertained at various professional football clubs.

Dem, a solo singer/guitarist, will also be taking to the stage as well as some other well-known local bands and artists including Jazzcat, Kitty Bella and Toby Marriott.

There will be a fabulous array of street food stalls with various options such as wood fired pizza, Greek gyros, hog roast, a noodle bar, tacos, curry, crepes, ice cream, donuts, and many more. A range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks will be available.

The festival finishes at 10pm and FREE shuttle buses will be running regularly throughout the evening to take attendees back to their accommodation in the nearby towns of Coventry, Warwick, and Leamington Spa. The shuttle buses will also be available the morning after on 21 September for attendees to return to GroundsFest.

Commenting on the festival at GroundsFest, Marketing Director Chris Bennett, said:

“At GroundsFest we want to keep exhibitors and visitors together for a longer period of time. Attendees will be coming to the event to do business, to network, and to learn, and that is why the festival will start once GroundsFest finishes. The festival will be held in a separate area to all the exhibitor stands meaning that no machinery or equipment will be accessible while the festival is on.

“The whole reason we decided to include the festival within GroundsFest was because of the research we conducted. An overwhelming number of people within the industry felt that a trade show would benefit from something which would allow more networking opportunities.

With some great live music and a selection of good food, we’re hoping that the festival will bring the industry together for a memorable evening.”

Event Director Christopher Bassett answers more festival questions here.

For more information, please visit www.groundsfest.com

You can also follow GroundsFest on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @GroundsFest for much more news, reviews and insightful views.  

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Agrimetal blows Peebles away

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Agrimetal blows Peebles away: For Peebles Golf Club, a Harry Colt design course in the Scottish borders, maintaining a clean appearance is the utmost priority, but it’s not always an easy task being a parkland course. That is, until the AgriMetal leaf blower arrived on the scene.

Steven Borthwick, head greenkeeper at Peebles Golf Club for the past ten years, says: “Course presentation is a big thing for us, as a parkland course we get strong growth and have a lot of trees, more so than a links course. We bought the blower to disperse grass clippings when cutting semi-rough areas and get rid of the leaves come Autumn.”

Agrimetal blows Peebles away

Agrimetal blows Peebles away

Previously relying on manual backpack blowers, clearing the course of debris was tying up two greenstaff for an entire day. With the Agrimetal B50 Blower from distributor Reesink Scotland, Steven’s team can do the same job in just a fraction of the time.

Steven says: “We have a 50hp tractor and adding the B50 blower means we can go round and blow areas we’re cutting, even if we’re cutting in damp weather. It’s got a great wind speed and has sped up the process so much, we can then go out and get on with other tasks that need doing. It’s made the job so much more efficient.”

It’s the large diameter aluminium impeller on the B50 that gives it the high wind velocity that is able to maximise performance, and the large roller on which it rides allows it to complete work in even the toughest of conditions ­- all without leaving a mark.

But the speed at which the blower can clear debris isn’t the only thing that has impressed Steven. “It’s a low decibel machine as well. A lot of blowers can be really noisy which isn’t ideal on a golf course, but this one is not nearly as loud as other makes we’ve used,” he says.

Quick and easy is the resounding takeaway from the club’s new machine, something that starts with Reesink according to Steven. “It only took a couple of weeks from when we ordered the machine for it to be delivered. We have mostly Toro equipment at the club so we’ve used Reesink before and know Neil MacKenzie well. They provide good backup and Reesink is an all-round good company to deal with.”

Steven finishes by saying: “It’s important that we keep on top of maintenance to ensure the best course appearance and that process is made that much easier with AgriMetal in our artillery. We’re getting a lot of compliments about the condition of the course.”

To learn more about how an Agrimetal machine can keep your course looking pristine, visit the website reesinkturfcare.co.uk, call 01480 226800 or email info@reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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Ariens & AS-Motor commercial mowers on show at GroundsFest

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Ariens & AS-Motor commercial mowers on show at GroundsFest: Ariens and AS-Motor are joining forces under the AriensCo umbrella at the inaugural Groundsfest 2023 at Stonleigh Park in Warwickshire.

From 20-21 September, visitors will have the opportunity to see the battery version of the Ariens Arrow – the Arrow E and other highlights from the AS-Motor and Ariens product portfolio live.

Ariens & AS-Motor commercial mowers on show at GroundsFest

Ariens & AS-Motor commercial mowers on show at GroundsFest

 

“An outdoor fair with demonstrations and the possibility to test machines, an interesting indoor area with lectures and the whole thing combined with a real festival character, live music and good food. This concept of the GroundsFest has convinced us. We are therefore very pleased to be part of it and to be able to present our innovations and products to the visitors,” said Brad Stiles, Vice President Sales AriensCo EMEAA, full of anticipation for the event.

On show for the first time at a UK show will be the battery version of the Ariens Arrow E stand-on mower. The new Arrow E combines the advantages of a stand-on mower with those of the latest battery technology. Professional users benefit from lower operating costs, improved profitability and the ability to service future jobs in noise and emission-sensitive zones.

As a special highlight, visitors can view the AS 940 Sherpa 4WD RC, which is considered the most powerful high grass mower in its class. It is also the world’s first ride-on mower that can be operated both manually and remotely. The team also has the AS 1000 Ovis RC remote-controlled tracked flail mower on show.  True to the motto “Simply steep mowing”, the extremely slope-compatible mower convinces with highest mowing performance and easy handling and maintenance.

Visit us at stands OSA 811 and OSA 890 to find out about our products and try them for yourself.

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ET Lander cruises through the streets of London

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ET Lander cruises through the streets of London: According to Jo Desborough, Head Gardener for The Bedford Estates, the Etesia ET Lander is a luxury electric utility vehicle which can be driven from site to site through the busy streets of London without worrying about the battery life.

The Bedford Estates has owned, developed and cared for much of Bloomsbury, London since 1669. The Estate comprises some 200 properties containing over 825,000 square feet of office and educational accommodation, some 100,000 square feet of retail space, over 1,000 hotel bedrooms and more than 550 flats.

ET Lander cruises through the streets of London

ET Lander cruises through the streets of London

It also includes two public garden squares, Russell Square and Bloomsbury Square and several private garden areas. These include Bedford Square, the only intact Georgian garden square in London.

The location of these gardens was a reason for choosing the ET Lander according to Jo.

“We chose the Etesia ET Lander because it’s a vehicle that’s easier to drive on the roads.

We have to go between our gardens and in order to do that, there are busy London roads in between, so having a cab that’s fully enclosed helps us with the traffic. It’s more comfortable to ride in and the features that it offers are perfect for what we need.”

100% electric, spacious, well-equipped and user-friendly, the ET Lander is built on a robust chassis and has an array of options including a three-way tipper bed with dual control from the fully fitted two-seater cab or by remote control when outside the vehicle. With a length of just 3.72 meters, the ET Lander is very compact. Thanks to the power steering, the short turning radius of 4.40 meters and 360 ° visibility, it goes anywhere. The autonomy of the vehicle lasts for a full working day – without noise pollution, can transport loads of up to 940kgs and can also tow up to 750kgs.

The latest models are fully N1 homologation compliant meaning that the ET Landers are fully road legal along with being able to be used off road. They also feature lithium-ion batteries which ensures that the range of the ET Lander extends to 100km and have a charger system compatible with a standard type 2EV car charger.

The battery-life on the ET Lander certainly doesn’t concern Jo and she also revealed that the team wouldn’t be without it.

“We’ve had the ET Lander since January, so we’ve been running it around our gardens for the last six months or so. The battery life has been really good, and we hardly ever have to charge it, so that’s very impressive. We use it to do lots of short journeys and you might expect that the batteries would run out maybe slightly quicker, but in fact, we find that they last several weeks for us.

“We often use the ET Lander for collecting our tonne bags to pick up and bring back to our main head office where we have our green waste storage, and also for taking all our equipment over to the gardens.

“Using the ET Lander has made life a lot easier going between the gardens and driving on the roads. It’s very comfortable in the cab, very manoeuvrable and easy to drive. It also has windscreen wipers and having a radio is the icing on the cake.

“It has a very luxury feel to it and it feels more like driving a car rather than garden equipment.”

Bloombury Estates purchased the ET Lander through Etesia dealer RT Machinery and Jo was quick to praise the service she has received to date.

“RT Machinery were very helpful throughout the whole process. Scott Reynolds (Area Sales Manager) came and delivered the ET Lander and ran through all of the directions and showed us how to use it, which was clear and comprehensive.

“They also come and do our servicing, which they do on a regular basis. They get the equipment back to us as soon as they can and generally provide a really good service and are always available when we need them.”

You can view a video of the ET Lander with The Bedford Estates by visiting https://youtu.be/cbxnh6nF9p8

For further information, please contact Etesia UK on 01295 680120 or visit the dedicated Etesia ET Lander website www.etlander.co.uk

For more news, reviews and insightful views, you can follow Etesia UK on Twitter @EtesiaUK and like the company’s Facebook page – www.facebook.com/EtesiaUK. You can also view the latest Etesia videos by visiting www.youtube.com/EtesiaUK.

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