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Centre Court Steam Cleaned

July 3, 2019/in Industry News, News, Press Release/by External Source

Centre Court Steam Cleaned: The famous Centre Court at Wimbledon has been steam cleaned to kill off any nasty pests lurking beneath the surface, head groundsman Neil Stubley said. The All England Club first trialled steam sterilising in 2017 and is now rolling it out around the courts. The technique involves covering the grass with […]

Machinery Dealer UK’s Youngest

July 2, 2019/in News, People, Press Release/by Sarah Bryan

Machinery Dealer UK’s Youngest: Luke Mortimer, the owner of Ace Machines Limited in Milton Keynes, is the youngest member of the Cub Cadet dealer network in the UK. Aged just 21, Luke has bought the dealership, formerly known as RGC Engineers. He is no newcomer to the world of garden machinery and started his journey, […]

Centre Court Steam Cleaned

July 3, 2019/in Industry News, News, Press Release/by External Source

Machinery Dealer UK’s Youngest

July 2, 2019/in News, People, Press Release/by Sarah Bryan

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

Centre Court Steam Cleaned

July 3, 2019/in Industry News, News, Press Release/by External Source

Centre Court Steam Cleaned: The famous Centre Court at Wimbledon has been steam cleaned to kill off any nasty pests lurking beneath the surface, head groundsman Neil Stubley said.

The All England Club first trialled steam sterilising in 2017 and is now rolling it out around the courts.

The technique involves covering the grass with polytunnels, drilling holes into the soil and blasting in steam, as the club adapts its practices in response to climate change and environmental concerns.

“We’re very conscious about pesticide usage now,” said Stubley.

“We’ve started looking at alternatives to managing weeds, pests and diseases. We’re looking at steam sterilising as part of our annual maintenance of the courts.

“As soon as you take that steam away, it’s just cold water. There’s no residual effect.”

The technique has been used for around a century, particularly in the Dutch glasshouse growing industry.

“We put loads of holes in the court beforehand and then we start pumping the steam in. As soon as we hit 70 degrees Celsius, we know that it’s killed anything like spores or pests that may live in the soil.

“It gives us a complete clean surface. Then we shave the top off and then we reseed it and grow it back in for the following year.”

He said each court might need the treatment every five to 20 years.

Besides Centre Court, the Courts 12 and 18 show courts have also been done, with Court One, the second-biggest, in line to be done after this year’s tournament.

Managing the 18 competition courts and 20 practice courts is a year-round operation.

Each court is reseeded with a brand new surface after each championships.

The grass was changed in the early 2000s from a creeping grass to a more tufted perennial rye grass, meaning the courts are harder.

The firmness of each court is measured 25 times a day which informs how much water is sprayed on during the night. The drier the court, the more it is irrigated.

More than 20,000 measurements are done across the two-week Championships.

“Each year is a challenge because you’ve got a living surface. As much as you try and manage it, it will be invariably dictated by the environment.

“This year, it’s a fairly nice, even temperature. It’s low 20s, a bit of fair-weather cloud, nice blue skies, a slight breeze. It’s perfect for the player, the spectator and the grass.

“If you get a wet, damp day, the moisture in the air will naturally find its way into the plant and that becomes a little bit greasy. The beauty of grass is that you have to adapt to the environment.”

Stubley said there were 70 or 80 different plants around the grounds and some people come to see the horticulture as much as the tennis.

The flowers are rarely stolen but sometimes spectators sit on them.

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Machinery Dealer UK’s Youngest

July 2, 2019/in News, People, Press Release/by Sarah Bryan

Machinery Dealer UK’s Youngest: Luke Mortimer, the owner of Ace Machines Limited in Milton Keynes, is the youngest member of the Cub Cadet dealer network in the UK.

Aged just 21, Luke has bought the dealership, formerly known as RGC Engineers.

He is no newcomer to the world of garden machinery and started his journey, aged 17, when he established his own business, ‘Mort’s Garden Machinery’. The company ran successfully for two years until Luke became aware of a long-established business owner looking to retire.

Luke approached the owner of RGC Engineers and agreed terms. The deal went through in December of last year and now Luke owns the company, with four members of staff by his side. The dealership, now renamed Ace Machines, is part of Cub Cadet’s 200-plus UK dealer network.

“When I became self-employed at 17, I could take the gamble and jump into the unknown as I still lived at home. An increasing number of young people are now starting their own businesses instead of heading towards standard employment – it’s more aspirational,” said Luke. “As I’m so young, people immediately judge me on my age and think my knowledge isn’t what it should be, yet once they get talking to me, they soon realise how wrong first impressions are. I don’t think of it as an insult, it’s just that the industry is dominated by older people, it’s a barrier I’m having to break through.”

In the three short months Luke has owned his dealership, he has hired two members of staff to run his office and a further two to assist him in the workshop.

“Having a major brand like Cub Cadet is a significant benefit to the business,” he said. “They have been really good to me in my short time here. They haven’t been fazed by my age and have taken me and my business at face value, which is so encouraging. A trusting brand like them is what dealerships need, especially if they are just getting into the industry. I would say they have really helped with the success of my firm.”

Speaking on where he sees the gardening machinery industry heading, Luke added: “Over the next few years, I see the industry shifting towards robotics as millennials take more of an interest in gardening, opening up a new market. Cub Cadet’s recent robotics training day has been invaluable. It was so in-depth and informative, and I now feel well equipped to sell this new technology to customers.”

Phil Noble, sales and technical manager for Cub Cadet, said: “It’s great to hear Luke’s story and to see how well he is getting on. It just goes to show that this industry has limitless opportunities available to all. Working with our dealers is one of the core principles for Cub Cadet, it’s a two-way partnership. If both parties work together effectively the benefits can be seen for each side. I look forward to continue working with Luke and his team.”

For more information please visit www.cubcadet.co.uk

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

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Half Sized Blog Element (Single Author Style)

Half Sized Blog Element (Multi Author Style)

Centre Court Steam Cleaned

Machinery Dealer UK’s Youngest

Centre Court Steam Cleaned

Machinery Dealer UK’s Youngest

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

Centre Court Steam Cleaned

Centre Court Steam Cleaned: The famous Centre Court at Wimbledon has been steam cleaned to kill off any nasty pests lurking beneath the surface, head groundsman Neil Stubley said.

Machinery Dealer UK’s Youngest

Machinery Dealer UK’s Youngest: Luke Mortimer, the owner of Ace Machines Limited in Milton Keynes, is the youngest member of the Cub Cadet dealer network in the UK.

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