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Christmas present was a Ventrac

September 30, 2024/in News, Press Release/by Admin

Christmas present was a Ventrac: Sittingbourne & Milton Regis Golf Club surprised their Head greenkeeper Paul Best in December last year, when he was called down to the maintenance facility on a fictious errand, only to find that he was the recipient of a brand new Ventrac all-terrain compact tractor and several attachments. Although the […]

Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L media update

September 30, 2024/in News, Press Release/by Admin

Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L media update: What happens when Italian flair meets renowned Japanese efficiency? Members of the groundcare press were recently given the opportunity to find out, as Kubota opened the doors to Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L. facility in Reggiolo, Italy. Following the acquisition of the brand in the summer of 2022, the two-day […]

Christmas present was a Ventrac

September 30, 2024/in News, Press Release/by Admin

Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L media update

September 30, 2024/in News, Press Release/by Admin

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

Christmas present was a Ventrac

September 30, 2024/in News, Press Release/by Admin

Christmas present was a Ventrac: Sittingbourne & Milton Regis Golf Club surprised their Head greenkeeper Paul Best in December last year, when he was called down to the maintenance facility on a fictious errand, only to find that he was the recipient of a brand new Ventrac all-terrain compact tractor and several attachments.

Although the Ventrac was on his wish-list, machinery procurement at the club normally takes place in the summer, so it was huge surprise when he saw the machine complete with Contour deck, Tough Cut deck and Turbine blower.

Christmas present was a Ventrac

The surprise was organised by Steve Bootes, the club’s General Manager, who has a great relationship with Paul and the greenkeeping team.

“We’d already sat down together”, said Steve, “and drawn up the spec and rational for the purchase. We knew we wanted a machine that provided versatility and could work in wet weather. The Ventrac was the obvious choice. The board here were happy to provide the finance to pull the purchase forward from our usual summer machinery upgrading programme, so I went ahead with the order and ‘forgot’ to tell Paul or any of his team. The look on his face when he saw the machine was priceless, the expletives he uttered on video, not so!”

Steve and Paul have worked together in their current roles for almost seven years and have a close working relationship. Paul joined the club as a 17-year-old apprentice and has risen through the ranks over the intervening 25 years. He was assistant head greenkeeper in his early 20s and then shadowed former head greenkeeper David Horn for six months prior to his retirement. However, the step up to head greenkeeper was not a forgone conclusion and he beat 19 other applicants for the top job.

Commenting on the Ventrac, Paul said,

“To say I was gobsmacked when I saw the Ventrac is an understatement; it was a massive surprise; a brilliant Christmas present, not just for me, but the whole team!

“It was a really wet season, but we managed to persuade the board that this was the piece of kit we needed going into the winter to enhance the playing surfaces and visual appearance. Usually we’d leave the fairways, as they were too wet to cut, but we striped them up all through the winter. We just missed what we call the ‘leaf season’, but this year with the leaf blower it’s going to pay dividends. Our current blower is towed behind a utility vehicle, which means that we’re using double the amount of fuel; one to power the blower and the other in the tow vehicle. The Ventrac is a single unit, so we’re saving fuel and it can go out without marking the fairways.

“The Tough Cut is brilliant in the deep rough and woodland margins; it takes down brambles and saplings with ease, knocks them down and mulches them. During the main season we use the Contour deck on our tee banks, but during the winter it’s also used on tees, fairways and even approaches.”

General Manager Steve Bootes was previously a senior electrical technician, who spent over 25 years working in the local paper mill, with an added responsibility for training a large group of apprentices. When the paper mill closed, he spent 10 years with a local engineering company, providing electrical drives for the water industry.

A keen golfer, he was a committee member for 15 years and club captain in 2005-6. Following the departure of two General Managers in quick succession, he took on the role for an initial 6-month trial period, and has successfully been in the role since 2017.

He concluded by saying,

“There’s a very good atmosphere at this club, across all departments. There’s a lot of respect for Paul and his team and that’s because of the training they’ve had, the leadership they’ve got and the equipment that enables them to do their job.

“The Ventrac is an integral part of our course maintenance plan and I’m now being pressured by Paul for a second machine. It’s not a forgone conclusion that he’ll get one, but we’ll make a good business case going forward and see what the board says.

“From my perspective, it’s not just putting faith in a machine; we must have support to ensure that it performs to its maximum and that’s where Price Turfcare, the Ventrac distributor, have been exemplary. As long as Paul puts in a parts order before 12 noon, he gets the item the next day. That’s the type of partner we want at this club.”

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Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L media update

September 30, 2024/in News, Press Release/by Admin

Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L media update: What happens when Italian flair meets renowned Japanese efficiency? Members of the groundcare press were recently given the opportunity to find out, as Kubota opened the doors to Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L. facility in Reggiolo, Italy. Following the acquisition of the brand in the summer of 2022, the two-day event delivered an update on the past, present and future of developments across the centre-collect front mower range.

Gianni Ferrari boasts a rich heritage of engineering prowess, with the namesake and founder pioneering patented irrigation machinery and the ‘Ferrari Joint’ in the early 1950’s. This developed into the design of their first walk-behind tractor in 1957. Fast forward to 1989, Gianni founded Gianni Ferrari S.R.L. alongside Franco Maletti and son Claudio Ferrari where, from their Reggiolo factory, they began the construction of professional lawn mowers.

Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L media update

Various models were introduced over the next 30 years, including the popular Turbo V50 and PG XPRO which gained much respect and popularity throughout Europe. With such a strong portfolio of centre-collecting front mowers for the professional user, Kubota recognised the complimentary fit of the range within their existing suite of ride-on mowers and proudly completed the acquisition in July 2022.

With the experience and support of Kubota globally, Kubota Gianni Ferrari have been working hard over the last two years to embrace the very best of the Japanese Kaizen approach to processes and manufacturing – which was evident in the slick and streamlined approach to production visible during the factory tour.

The media were also able to learn more about the current and ongoing developments within the product range such as the ‘conversion’ of the PG XPRO into the Kubota FC3-261, and the FC4-501 which has become one of the most powerful, comfortable and operationally equipped mowers on the market.

While the unprecedented rainfall from Storm Boris put pay to seeing the range in action, spirits were not dampened as all enjoyed gaining an insight into the approach – both now and that of the future – and the company ethos by speakers including Kosuke Ota, Vice President of Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L. Further presentations were also delivered by Henry Bredin, general manager and Matt Wilson, groundcare product manager, of Kubota (UK).

“It’s been fantastic to witness first-hand the enthusiasm and passion among the Kubota Gianni Ferrari team and to be able to share this with the media from the UK and Ireland was a real pleasure” adds Matt. “All of us at Kubota are incredibly excited about the bright future we have with the FC range, not just in traditional groundcare applications, but also in other guises where it can also support the maintenance of artificial sports surfaces. We’d like to extend a massive thank you to the team in Italy for being such fantastic hosts, and to all of those who attended.”

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

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Follow us on Twitter and Instagram for fun, fresh and engaging content.

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Half Sized Blog Element (Single Author Style)

Half Sized Blog Element (Multi Author Style)

Christmas present was a Ventrac

Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L media update

Christmas present was a Ventrac

Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L media update

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

Christmas present was a Ventrac

Kubota Gianni Ferrari S.R.L media update

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