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Richmond add Ventrac for versatility and efficiency

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Richmond add Ventrac for versatility and efficiency: The Richmond Golf Club is a 104 acre oasis of calm, only 9 miles from Central London. It borders Richmond Park, one of London’s 8 Royal Parks, and shares much of the wildlife in the area. The course was originally designed by Tom Dunn and has since been extensively updated to a par 70, 6091 yard course. The opulent early-Georgian club house dates back to 1725.

Les Howkins has been Course Manager for just over 17 years. He has a team of 11 including a full time mechanic and was BIGGA chairman from 2015 to 2019.

Richmond add Ventrac for versatility and efficiency

Richmond add Ventrac for versatility and efficiency

Les had been introduced to Ventrac some years ago after Assistant Deputy Course Manager, Chris Browett, had seen it exhibited at BTME Harrogate and thought it might be a useful alternative to some of the machines in their fleet. More recently some of the fleet needed replacing and a Ventrac demo persuaded Les that it had a place at Richmond. “It’s replaced an old out front rider-rotary and a worn out tractor mounted rotorvator” commented Les. But it’s also allowed Les to add new attachments to complete tasks the team could not easily tackle before. “I purchased the brush which is going to be used for carpark and driveway cleaning” said Les. He added, “The long-term view is it’s going to fit into a different methodology going forward”.

Les’ s new methodology includes experimenting with robotic mowers to take care of the rough on two holes. If that works he says he will perhaps “expand the feet” but won’t need a wide area mower. That’s where the Ventrac will continue to fit in future. “We’ll buy the contour deck to deal with areas the robots can’t. I can have a fleet of robots and a Ventrac for less money than one wide area mower” said Les. He may also consider the MR Reel Mowers so one power unit can cover many needs but at less cost.

Additional attractions for Les are the low ground pressure and the wide variety of attachments including one, which Les has purchased, the DC Soil Cultivator which has 4 main components; cultivator tines pulverise the soil, separator tines sift and bury stones and debris, a distribution blade spreads sifted soil evenly and a perforated roller creates a pocketed surface to accept grass seed. “The day we saw that demonstrated it was pouring. The golf course was shut, which doesn’t happen very often. We drove the machine out and the wheels made less mess than my feet. It was unbelievable!” exclaims Les. The Soil Cultivator has been used to return woodchip tee-to-fairway pathways on the front nine back to irrigated grass. Les is delighted with the results as are his members. He will tackle the back nine in the winter. “Its quite a big project” said Les, “Having the right equipment is vital, really”

Les also commented on the HQ Tough Cut mower, another attachment he purchased. “It’s manoeuvrability is brilliant” he said. The Tough Cut mower is designed to tackle those areas that tend to get neglected and like all Ventrac attachments can be mounted on the tractor within minutes by one operator.

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Green-tech cast iron grilles add finishing touch

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Green-tech cast iron grilles add finishing touch: Scape are well known for providing exemplary student accommodation, with locations throughout the UK, Ireland and Australia. The new canal side accommodation at Mile End in London is situated on the Queen Mary University campus. Comprising 412 studio rooms and flats over two main blocks, it also offers communal and study areas, as well as a gym and spacious bike storage, an often-overlooked necessity in London.

HG Construction have worked on nine previous Scape buildings, with a tenth at Leeds under construction. The emphasis on aesthetics and quality runs through the outside areas too, with a cool palette of soft greys, white and dark bronze cladding offset by stylish columnar silver birch trees, providing a clean, inviting look.

Green-tech cast iron grilles add finishing touch

Green-tech cast iron grilles add finishing touch

Green-tech involvement:
Green-tech was asked to supply 14 heavy-duty tree grilles that would not only look good but stand the test of time. Our Coverdale cast iron grilles offer protection from both pedestrian and vehicular traffic and are made in the UK from 100% recycled material. Should the need arise, they are also 100% recyclable.

To ensure a long life, our Coverdale grilles are manufactured using Engineering grade 250 cast iron, with an expected lifespan in excess of 100 years, even with minimal maintenance or repainting. This impressive durability is down to the fact that 250 Grade cast iron does not rust in the traditional sense. Even if left unpainted, over 100 years, Green-tech cast iron grilles will only lose a few microns to oxidisation.

The standard finish is one coat metal primer followed by a Weathershield rust resistant paint system available in most RAL or BS colours. The grilles are all made to order in a variety of styles and can be supplied with irrigation or uplighter holes.
Alasdair Innes – Green-tech Specification Advisor comments, “This really is a fantastic looking project, and it was great to visit the site and see our grilles looking so good in their surroundings, with the trees establishing so well. If required, we also offer a range of steel tree guards to compliment the grilles and give protection to the trees from vehicular damage or vandalism.”

For any further product information or to request a CPD in person or remotely on any of our urban or rural modules please email Alasdair Innes at alasdairi@green-tech.co.uk or call on
01423 332 100.

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Rain Bird add Dryrun

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Rain Bird add Dryrun: Dryrun is the latest addition to Rain Bird’s IQ4 Central Irrigation Control Platform. It enables users to see in advance what performance to expect from an irrigation system. Dryrun’s visualisation capability takes away the need for painstaking manual recalculation of irrigation schedules and programs.

It especially offers major benefits for professionals involved with more complex systems, typically larger commercial applications or sports turf installations, where multiple programs and large numbers of sprinklers are involved. Users can see immediately the effect of making adjustments to irrigation times, watering delays and switching stations on or off.

Rain Bird add Dryrun

Rain Bird add Dryrun

Once the irrigation controller has been programmed and control valves have been set up, along with other features including Cycle + Soak and Flo-Manager, Dryrun can be employed. The predicted performance of the irrigation system can be examined over preset periods of one, three or seven days as well as over a customised timeframe from one to thirty one days.

Dryrun will show in detail how the installation will operate minute-by-minute in that period, including when individual sprinklers will start and stop, their sequence and water usage. It will display maximum flow rates in advance to check that the capacity of the system will not be exceeded any time. It will indicate when particular programs and stations will be functioning, what the flow rates will be for each one and the total water usage. The user will be able to determine in advance how long an entire cycle may take and make any necessary adjustments for water savings and optimum irrigation scheduling.

Dryrun gives the user different forecast display options. These include a simple lists of stations, projected and scheduled start and end times as well as detailed graphs with easy to view click and zoom details of programs, stations, times, flow rates and water usage totals.

With Dryrun, Rain Bird is adding a free of charge off-line tool for users of the versatile browser based IQ4 platform. With today’s focus on water savings and the environment, it will be most valuable to irrigation system designers, contractors and managers.

For more information, contact Peter Longman, Rain Bird Europe, plongman@rainbird.eu  www.rainbird.eu

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Add mowing to TYM Tractor to-do list

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Add mowing to TYM Tractor to-do list: With TYM’s subcompact T194 and TS25 customers can expand their tractors’ to-do list to include mowing.

Both models are truly versatile additions to maintaining and caring for the grounds of private estates and large gardens. They tackle all the small and mid-duty tasks around the garden, orchard, paddock, woods and fields with ease and, in the T194, deliver a quality cut to lawns too.

Add mowing to TYM Tractor to-do list

Add mowing to TYM Tractor to-do list

A dependable 19hp engine in the innovative T194 has generated acclaim in the market since its launch last year because it brings customers the functionality of a ride-on mower with the additional features of tractor.

Equipped with a 54-inch mid-mounted deck as standard, mowing height can be adjusted from the seat via the onboard height-of-cut lever which is easy to use and intuitive to set. Its tractor credentials excel on the category one three-point linkage and 540 rpm rear PTO which allows for many rear-mounted attachments to be fitted.

The TS25 meanwhile brings more power, upping the ante from 19hp to 25hp, and with a mid-mounted mowing deck will mow brilliantly too. With a hydraulic lift capacity of 600kg, it’s renowned for delivering superb value and outstanding performance. An optional front loader further increases its versatility opening it up to many more applications such as landscaping and light groundworks.

Both can just as easily handle the tasks of summer and autumn, as well as winter sweeping and clear-up, and spring aeration, it’s what gives both their reputation as all-season machines, says Steven Haynes, TYM’s sales manager at distributor Reesink Turfcare: “These machines really are neat little workhorses and particularly appeal to customers who want a powerful, multi-purpose option in a compact package all-year-round.”

Both tractors benefit from a powerful diesel engine, hydrostatic power-steering for effortless manoeuvrability, a tight turning circle ideal for barn work and paddock clearing, and a heavy-duty, four-wheel-drive front axle for greater traction where needed.

Steven continues: “TYM understand the requirements of its customers: one machine with a range of abilities and the benefit of being able to mow earns its place in any shed. It brings value and versatility to towing, moving and maintenance tasks. These smaller tractors are widely termed a multi-tasking wonder and with good reason – they provide customers an effective, but compact solution for most of their needs.”

Reesink Turfcare, the UK distributor of TYM, has long been known for offering more when it comes to its service, after-sales support, parts and warranties and new for 2020 these models are available with a three-year bumper to bumper warranty package to safeguard customers’ investment.

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