Tag Archive for: Duncan

INFINICUT Key For Duncan Toon

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INFINICUT Key For Duncan Toon: As part of an on-going investment programme, Warwick Independent Schools Foundation have purchased two Cub Cadet INFINICUT® mowers, as well as a selection of TMSystem™ cassettes.  In a very short time Grounds Manager Duncan Toon says the vast improvement in the condition of the natural grass surfaces is down to these newest additions to his machinery fleet.

Four schools occupy the 8 hectare site of natural turf and sports facilities – Warwick School, Warwick Junior School, King’s High School and Warwick Preparatory School. Duncan and his grounds team of 6 are required to deliver top-quality surfaces for all. “I joined the school in June 2018 whilst it was in the midst of a significant investment programme and started sourcing machinery to help improve the quality of the grounds. I’d had a demonstration of the INFINI’s in my previous role at Birmingham FC and they’d been on my
wish-list ever since. I knew these would be key to achieving the quality we were striving for.”

INFINICUT Key For Duncan Toon

Duncan took delivery of an INFINICUT® 34” Fixed Head and an INFINICUT® 26” Floating Head mower, in quick succession. “Alongside the superior quality of cut, and striping ability, another big selling point for us working in a school environment is health and safety. With the INFINI’s being battery powered, we no longer have to spend time and money sourcing and safely storing fuel – and the noise emitted is all but eliminated meaning we can mow anytime including through the exam season. They’re also incredibly comfortable to operate, which is much more enjoyable for my guys while mowing large areas such as rugby pitches. In fact, they’re fighting to use them!”

The 34” unit, equipped with a 7 blade SmartCut reel, is predominately for use on the rugby pitch and cricket square, while the 26” floating head model will become their wicket mower. Duncan is also impressed with the cassettes from the TMSystem™ range that came with the machines – the PowerBrush™ and UltraGroomer™. “We’ve put the UltraGroomer™ across our cricket surface to thin out the sward and remove any unwanted Poa ingress and lateral growth. Compared to other
verti-cutters, this cassette is head and shoulders above anything I’ve ever used. When you think you’ve taken everything out, you go over again and it’s amazing how much more you get.”

“These machines have already made a noticeable difference to the health, presentation and quality of the swards” explains a delighted Duncan, who is looking forward to adding further units to his fleet in the not-too-distant future.

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Duncan Ross At Longridge GC

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Duncan Ross At Longridge GC: Duncan Ross Sports Contractors has used its drainage expertise to successfully revitalise three fairways at Longridge Golf Club that had previously suffered heavily with water retention.

The 18-hole, 5,904-yard, course provides outstanding views over the Ribble Valley, Forest of Bowland and the Fylde coast, and, is maintained to an exceptional standard by Course Manager, Andrew Read, and his four staff.

Duncan Ross At Longridge GC

During his 18-years at the club, Andrew had to contend with moisture retention on the third and ninth fairways. Recently, this had caused the third fairway to become near unplayable and action was taken to bring it, and the ninth and eleventh fairways, back in line with the rest of the course.

Duncan Ross was picked to rectify the drainage issue based on Andrews requirement to find a contractor capable of delivering a high quality and tidy project.

He said: “It is the first time that Duncan has worked on our course. I know of the company’s reputation through word of mouth from other greenkeepers and going on Twitter and seeing the videos and work they have done recently, so it’s the overall reputation and recommendations which swayed it for me.

“The third fairway this time last year was horrible. It was black in places, you could hardly walk on it, so if you can’t walk on it you can’t really play golf on it.

“We had more problems when it came to cutting because it would make a mess. In the autumn it never dried up, so I had a meeting with our greens chairman and explained that we needed drainage work done, and they went to the council and funds were made available.

“We then got Duncan on site and he looked at the third, ninth and eleventh fairways and came back with a plan. I had drawn some plans up and Duncan looked at those and decided what the best way to achieve it was, and he’s got the experience, so we were happy to go with what he recommended.

“Going into September we’ve had over 160mm of rain and the drains have started working well. We’ve checked the outlets and there is loads of water coming out of them, so it’s been a sound long-term investment.

“The third fairway and the ninth, which is a short fairway, are now playable. I checked the outlets on the ninth recently and they were running well, and the fairway is dry.

“Golf is a 12-months a year sport now, in the past getting into September and October people started putting their clubs away but now they want to play all year round. The ninth used to get churned up because we’d need to have buggies on for people that couldn’t walk around the course, so we did the ninth because it was wet but also to make it more playable and get the buggies going on there.”

Whilst the main objective of the drainage installation was achieved on the third, ninth and eleventh fairway, Andrew and the club’s members were also impressed with the clean and diligent nature the Duncan Ross team carried out the project.

Because the course had to be allowed time to dry out from the wet winter, work began during May for two weeks when the course was in use. This meant work needed to be flexible and accommodate competitions the course was hosting, requiring the work to be done in a clean and tidy way, something the company is renowned for doing.

“The men worked around us, if we had a competition on then they would move onto another fairway, so the only disruption was the drainage lines that were left afterwards but they were nice and tidy, and the golfers were really impressed with the work and how tidy everything was,” Andrew explained.

“The golfers are happy and we’re happy because we didn’t have to spend time clearing up after the work, we were able to concentrate on looking after the rest of the course instead.

“The club members and the council will look at it and be happy to use them again because the site was always left in a tidy condition.”

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Duncan Ross At Hurlston Hall

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Duncan Ross At Hurlston Hall: The condition of a golf courses greens is what a head greenkeeper is often judged on, and Duncan Ross’ surgical precision has ensured they are the go to contractor for Hurlston Hall Golf Club.

The completion of the latest two greens are the latest in a project that has seen nine completed. For Chris Ball, former head greenkeeper at Hurlston Hall who recently took up the role as links manager at Hillside Golf Club, working with Duncan Ross on a long-term drainage project generated a refined understanding whilst solving the clubs’ problem greens.

Duncan Ross At Hurlston Hall

“For us they are a local company and when you factor in getting other companies in from the North West of England there’s not many specialising in drainage.” Chris said. “I think Duncan has refined his methods over the years and it’s almost like key hole surgery.

“We’d done seven greens previously with Duncan and we’ve been going around the course targeting the nine worst and the ones that have just been completed were the last two that were screaming out to be done.

“You can immediately see the difference in the greens, but you’ve still got to do your bit as a greenkeeper and maintain the organic matter.

“I can’t fault the work they do, and the fact now is that he knows what he’s doing, and we now know what he wants to do beforehand and that’s key. The first year everyone was still learning, we put holes in the greens for aeration but this would slow them down as when it came to taking the Turf up it would fall apart, and now we know not to do anything when Duncan is coming in because it makes it more efficient for them and prevents adding time onto the project.”

Having gone through the process of getting to know how one another works the other aspects of being able to use a local contractor have become more prominent. All of the materials used on the project are locally sourced, which keeps costs down with no compromise on quality.

And when it comes to drainage quality is paramount. Like everyone else, Chris was under pressure to have the course open, but because of the weather in the North East of England his focus was primarily on providing the best greens possible during the peak golf season.

“They all perform great in the summer which is key,” he said. “I’d say they’ve improved play in the winter if we have a normal winter, but what’s happening now is the greens are drier than the rest of the course and people still can’t play because the rest of the course is under water.

“We’ve definitely got better performing greens for longer but in the North West of England it’s seriously wet. But when it does stop raining they dry out a lot quicker and you know you can withstand the torrential down pours in the summer because the drains are going to take care of it.”

For more information, visit: www.duncanrossltd.co.uk

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Duncan Ross Expertise At BTME

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Duncan Ross Expertise At BTME: Quality of work, customer satisfaction and an expertise in golf course maintenance and construction are factors that have helped Duncan Ross establish their name in the industry, and that experience will be brought to stand A60 at BTME 2018.

A successful expansion of services has meant 2017 afforded Duncan Ross Ltd the opportunity to work on some exciting golf projects. A tee reconstruction at Hesketh Golf Club was one of a number of golf course maintenance and drainage contracts, including the installation of drainage on the 18th green at Lancaster Golf Course.

Duncan Ross Expertise At BTME

Now a regular exhibitor at BTME, Duncan Ross, managing director at Duncan Ross Ltd, knows the benefits of meeting customers face to face and talking through potential projects.

“We used to attend every other year, but this will be our third year in a row at BTME in Harrogate and we’re really looking forward to it,” he said.

“A lot of what we offer comes from customer service and making sure that they always get their specifications met. So, being able to speak to them face to face about anything they might want to improve on their course or any issues they’ve got is ideal for ourselves and them.

“We’ve had a very exciting year with the projects we’ve been working on across all aspects of golf course maintenance and construction, and we know we’ll be continuing that throughout 2018.”

Duncan Ross are committed quality and cost-effective services with highly experienced staff using some of the most advanced machinery and techniques in the industry.

For more information visit www.duncanrosslanddrainage.co.uk

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