Tiny by name, massive in impact: The purchase of a TinyLineMarker® Pro X is the latest in a long list of investments for Penwortham Priory Academy, as more of the grounds and estates management is taken in-house. Keith Bolton, Strategic Estates Development Manager, says that the TLM Pro X from Origin Amenity Solutions (OAS) will reduce expenditure, improve consistency, and encourage interest from more community clubs as the academy looks to increase engagement with the local area.

TinyLineMarker robots are marketed and distributed exclusively in the UK by Origin Amenity Solutions which brings together four leading industry names – Headland Amenity, Rigby Taylor, TurfKeeper.com and Symbio.

Tiny by name, massive in impact

Following years of maintenance by both the local authority and private contractors, Keith and the Estates Team made the call to get more hands-on with the ground’s maintenance – boosted by a successful application through the ‘Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund’. “With this grant we purchased a tractor, slitter, Quadraplay and mower meaning we’ve been largely self-sufficient for nearly a year now” he explains.

“In that time, we have welcomed three local community clubs and two neighbouring schools to our facilities which helps to generate much-needed revenue to drive further investment.” Keith continues, “With regards to line marking, we’d previously had people in to do that for us with varied levels of success and could see that having our own equipment would not only reduce cost and improve consistency, but it would also mean we could mark-out as often as we want and better accommodate the needs of those using our surfaces.”

Keith and the team compared two makes of robot marker, before deciding that the specification, price and more intuitive and user-friendly software made the TLM Pro X the perfect fit. The versatile Pro X is TinyMobileRobot’s most reliable and robust robot to date. A new hardware configuration and a wealth of new software features including custom logo and low paint alerts, makes the Pro X capable of delivering the most demanding field paint jobs with both accuracy and speed.

The TLM Pro X was delivered in early April 2023, with comprehensive training delivered by Origin Amenity’s Technical Sales Manager David Weir and Technical Area Manager Glen Howard. “I’ve worked with David increasingly over the years, providing us with fantastic guidance and advice and supplying consumables including seed and fertiliser from across the OAS portfolio. The training on the Pro X from Glen was comprehensive enough for us to start using it straight away. Weather and growth dependant, it will be used every two weeks throughout the year – redefining our winter sports pitches through the cooler season, then switching to creating a seven-lane 400m running track and other athletics facilities over the summer.”

“We’re already seeing the benefits. We’ve managed to reconfigure the site to mark an additional pitch which is another asset we can now offer to the community. We’ve also been able to save the settings on the software for even more efficiency next time and have begun exploring the possibility of using movable goals and adjusting the configuration to help us manage wear across the site during the more challenging months.”

Keith continues, “The labour that this machine will save us will be immense, freeing up all important staff-time to carry out other tasks.” He adds, “The possibilities that the TLM gives us to enhance our own site, or pop it in the back of a van and offer the service to other nearby schools, is endless helping to generate further income and investment and boost everybody’s enjoyment of the surfaces we are proud to offer.”

Free demonstrations are being offered across the UK.  To book or enquire visit https://tinymobilerobots.com/tinymobilerobots-uk/

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