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Farol use new Foley Company Grinders

November 25, 2019/in News, Press Release/by CharmianRobson

Farol use new Foley Company Grinders: Farol Golf and Turf Machinery Limited has purchased a Foley Company Accu-Pro 633 with Accu-Touch 3 Control and an Accu-Pro 661AT bedknife grinder to bolster their essential grinding operation.

Grinding is an integral part of the company’s business and is fundamental to what they offer to the golf and leisure industries. Their current relief grinder, an Accu-Master 650, has proved popular with technicians and was one of the reasons they decided to go with Foley again and continue working with ProSport UK Ltd. www.prosportukltd.com

When it came time to decide on new grinders, after-sales manager for golf and turf, Oliver Longden, consulted with the technicians and appraised the Foley machines against others on the market.

“We had a look around at what else was available, but there was nothing comparable for what we need to do,” Oliver explained. “Our guys are already familiar with the Foley machines, and we’ve had a good history with our Accu-Master. We’ll continue using it alongside the Accu-Pro 633 during the peak grinding season because it still does exactly what we need it to.

“The most significant benefit with the 633 against other manufacturers is being able to relief grind correctly. We can relief grind any units without having to make massive changes to the machine, whereas with other manufacturers you must take a part off or swap something over and it all takes time. With the Accu-Pro you can switch from 7 to 11 to whatever number of blades, easily and quickly.

“Once it’s set up everything is automated so the guys can get on with stripping down the next unit while it’s working, because you don’t have to keep coming back to it to make adjustments.

“The training function was another big plus for us. We sometimes get new technicians who haven’t used the machine before. It’s a very good feature because it shows them a step by step set-up and how to work it, so anyone can jump on it straight away and get going.”

The Accu-Pro 633 uses Accu-Touch 3 Control to fully automate spin and relief grinding. It features the automatic reel selector and cylinder height stop which automatically locates the reel for a fast and easy spin and relief grind in one quick set-up. Pre-set relief angles are easily identified on the relief angle adjuster, allowing technicians to effortlessly grind the correct angles and achieve proper clearances for each reel type.

The simplicity of operating the Accu-Pro 633 is mirrored in the Accu-Pro 661 AT bedknife grinder and was another important consideration for Oliver.

He said: “The selling point for us is that it’s a very simple and easy machine to use. We needed a machine that all the technicians with varying skill levels could use. Someone who has little experience of grinding can work just as well as someone with 20-years’ experience, and that ensures consistent quality. And again, once it’s set up and going, you can leave it to do the job and get on with other work, and that’s really the beauty of it.”

Farol recognises that when it comes to cutting, it is ultimately the blade’s that do the job. To achieve the best cut possible, they need to be sharp and restored to how they function best, which is by relief grinding them back to the original manufacturer’s own specification.

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Efficiency A Priority For Foley Grinders

January 18, 2019/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by CharmianRobson

Efficiency A Priority For Foley Grinders: A vital question for a workshop manager is how to maximise efficiency and minimise labour and maintenance equipment costs. One area to achieve excellent savings is to look at how you maintain the sharpness of your cutting units.

As an illustration of this, Foley and UK distributor ProSport UK Ltd are delighted to acknowledge St Andrews Links Trust for choosing Foley Grinders as part of its maintenance programme for its complete range of professional TORO cylinder mowers.

Foley United’s grinders are designed to be ergonomic and deliver on performance and reliability every time. St Andrews Links Trust like so many other clubs large and small are always looking for the latest techniques and will implement new ideas to deliver best practise, but it’s all about having the information to make that judgement. Which is why Foley United is so consistent in getting over the message about the benefits of relief grinding back to OEM specifications; it is a vital tool in achieving best practise in professional mower grinding.

Ian Robson ProSport UK Ltd the UK & Ireland Importer/Distributor for Foley United explains why relief grinding maximises the performance of reels by giving a factory finish every time.

Firstly, why is having sharp cylinders (reels) that are the correct shape so important anyway? The answer is obvious – unhealthy turf brings a whole host of other issues which are costly to correct. Therefore, prevention is a far more economic approach than a cure.

A huge amount of research and development has gone into designing a cutting unit to produce the cleanest cut possible with the least amount of fraying and tissue damage to the plant. The result is that all manufacturers of grass cutting equipment supply new units with relief ground edges.

Why relief grind?

Tests carried out by leading manufacturers have established that relief ground cylinders stay on cut up to 3 times longer than spun ground ones and require less horse power to drive the unit, resulting in greater fuel efficiency and less stress on the hydraulic power systems. In addition, a relief ground cylinder will withstand the abrasive effects of top dressing far better than one spun ground because the relief edge on both the bed-knife and the cylinder allows the top dressing to clear the cutting blades easily, helping to prevent the dulling effect seen on spun only units.

Continual relief grinding also decreases the squeezing and tearing of the grass as the units get dull, and most importantly it allows the cylinder to be returned to a factory specification perfect cylinder as quickly as possible.

The overall cleaner cut achieved by relief grinding gives a better after-cut appearance, increased recovery rate due to the clean cut of the grass and reduces the stress on components because less horsepower is needed to drive the cylinder.

Horse Power Study

As a reel wears flat and loses shape (becomes coned), more stress and strain is put on the cutting systems.

Using the figures from the above study a 5-gang cutting unit with relief can require up to 4.5 HP (5 x 0.88HP = 4.5HP) to drive the cutting units therefore a 35HP engine has 30.5HP remaining to drive the rest of the traction system. A 5-gang unit which has been spun ground only, can require up to 13Hp (5 x 2.59HP = 13HP) leaving only 22HP to drive the rest of the traction system.

So, it has been established that relief grinding your cutting units saves you money not only by reducing workshop maintenance time with far fewer grinds but also through a reduction in fuel costs and replacement parts.

It is also important to acknowledge what relief grinding does for a reel. By removing metal from the trailing edge of the blade it forms a relief angle, which reduces the contact area of the cutting edges, resulting in less friction, longer wear life.

Typically, when a new mower is delivered the reels will be a perfect cylindrical shape. Over time the blade naturally loses shape, and the sharp edge it arrives with becomes flat and dull, often meaning the reel is no longer a perfect cylinder from end to end. This is referred to as ‘coning’ and a natural point for grinding to take place. The decision then sits between touch-up and spin grinding, or relief grinding. If there is sufficient relief still on the reel then a quick touch-up is fine but once more than 50% of the relief has gone my advice would be to relief grind again and remove any coning. Failure to remove the coning will eventually be seen in an uneven cut appearance of your turf.

But, the main question mentioned at the beginning comes back; how to get the most out of your workshop resources by choosing the most effective method to sharpen your cutting units. The answer is to trust the manufacturers judgement and return the reels as close to the original factory standard as possible, and for that, relief grinding is the best option. The bonus is this method also maximises performance and gives the best cut. www.prosportukltd.com

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Foley United To Exhibit At BTME

December 7, 2018/in Events, News, Press Release/by CharmianRobson

Foley United To Exhibit At BTME: Foley United, represented by UK distributor ProSport UK Ltd, will be in Harrogate for BTME 2019, and will be demonstrating the ideal grinding combination for a fully automated workshop in Red Hall, Stand 248B, with the AccuPro 633 with AccuTouch 3 Control and 673 bedknife grinders.

This professional grinding duo provides top quality cylinder and bedknife grinding, featuring built-in grinding programmes for a quick and accurate OEM grind. The fully automatic grinding process on both machines allows users to do other tasks while the Foley grinders are activated, saving time, money and man-hours.

The latest company to utilise this combination is GGM Groundscare. The Lancashire based company needed to add grinders to their operation to match a growing franchise and Managing Director, Chris Gibson, looked to the automation and accuracy of Foley United as the solution.

“We are Baroness dealers and our sales area has recently been extended to cover North and West Yorkshire,” Chris explains. “In line with the growth of this franchise we wanted to invest in the right grinders to make sure we had the best support available for customers and that’s why we got the Foley AccuPro 633 cylinder and 673 bedknife grinders.

“The automation was an important factor because we want to provide our customers with consistent and reliable results. We can do that with the pre-set programmes and give them a very accurate idea of how long grinding will take, and that’s something that benefits us from a planning perspective as much as the customer.”

The two grinders used by GGM are only two of the Foley range of Relief, Spin and Bedknife machines that have been specifically designed to meet any budget.

For more information please contact Ian Robson: 07779 270501 or go to the ProSport UK website: www.prosportukltd.com

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Dennis & SISIS Acquire Foley Grinder

September 12, 2018/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by CharmianRobson

Dennis & SISIS Acquire Foley Grinder: Dennis & SISIS have bolstered their production line with the addition of a Foley Accu-Pro 673 to ensure perfect OEM specification grinding.

The renowned mower manufacturer had very specific requirements when it came to choosing the machine that would grind all of the bedknives for their mowers, citing reliability, flexibility and accuracy as the top three priorities.

As part of the production line, the Accu-Pro 673 fully automatic Bedknife grinder is in constant use and will grind thousands of bedknives a year, with the machine having already delivered between 500 to 600 blades in its first three months.

These blades are manufactured in-house through Dennis Sisis’ sister company, Crocodile Precision Ltd, and Ian Howard, managing director of Dennis Sisis, explains the importance of having a high-quality reliable grinder as the company moves through their busiest year to date.

“Our specification for a grinder differs slightly from a golf course or football club because of the amount of time our grinders are working,” Ian began. “We’re having our busiest year to date, our order books are full, sales are booming, and demand is increasing all the time, so this increases our need for reliability and quality in the production line.

“Every bedknife we produce has to be individually ground to the correct OEM specification on the bedknife carrier, prior to mower assembly. We need a grinder that makes efficient use of workshop time by being quick and easy to set-up particularly as we are constantly swapping between different length blades.

“Our customers expect accurately ground relief angles on the blade, and the Accu-Pro 673 consistently delivers top-quality performance.”

The robust construction and features of the Foley machine made it a more attractive grinder for Ian and the Dennis Sisis team. The innovative mounting system uses powerful electromagnets to hold the bed bar in place and Positive Gauge Stops to make set-up simple and fast.

Fast angle set-up provides repeatability without recalibration. Set the Angle Stops once and the 673 will grind the same angle over and over. Changing from grinding the front face to the top face is as simple as pushing a button and watching as the powered Tool Bar rotates into the position.

Automation is at the core of the 673’s success, with the pre-set programmes automatically starting the grinder, traversing the grinding head, in-feeding the grinding head and stopping the grinding process.

One man who experiences the full benefit of these features is Dennis & SISIS senior grinding technician, Tony Snaith. “I’ve been delighted with the performance and speed the blades can be set-up and ground,” he said.

“The Accu-Pro 673 has performed consistently, efficiently and accurately and has coped with the constant demands of the production line. It has really proven itself to be the perfect machine for what we need.”

Foley grinders claim to deliver the best grinding solution available on the market. Be it for high output in a production line, contractor, local authority or the more measured approach of affordable in-house grinding for golf courses and football clubs.

For more information, visit: www.foleyunited.com

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Foley United Become FEGGA Patron

August 3, 2018/in News, Press Release/by CharmianRobson

Foley United Become FEGGA Patron: Foley United is proud to join the Federation of European Golf Greenkeepers Associations (FEGGA) as a new Patron Member.

FEGGA and Foley United place a high value on achieving the highest standards of performance within the greenkeeping industry and it is a privilege to be able to operate within the FEGGA framework and work towards upping the game with grinding best practice.

As a technology leader in grinding, Foley takes a responsibility for demonstrating the difference maintaining mowing equipment to optimal OEM specifications can make, and aim to communicate this through seminars, articles, e-newsletters and practical demonstrations.

Outlining the various grinding options to suit any budget is also an important aspect of the FEGGA partnership. Educating greenkeepers on their grinding options enables them to choose what is best for their needs, be it relief grinding or spin grinding or a combination of both, Foley United can offer a tailored cost-effective grinding solution.

FEGGA Executive Officer Dean Cleaver said: “FEGGA are delighted to have Foley United join as one of our Patron Members. Foley is a long-established and well-respected company that offers a premium choice of products tailoring the needs of all golf clubs. They are committed to serving the needs of greenkeepers through product support and education, something that is very much part of the mission of FEGGA. We very much look forward to working together in sharing valuable knowledge through education and serving the needs of our Member Associations throughout Europe.”

The CEO of Foley Grinders, said: “As an acknowledged technology leader in grinding best practices designed to maintain mowing equipment to optimal OEM specification, Foley United is excited to become a FEGGA Patron Member and share global best practices to improve results for FEGGA members. We strongly believe education and keeping abreast of the latest developments, whether safety, performance or productivity tips, will raise knowledge levels while reducing costs for course operators.”

Making in-house grinding a financially sound investment for FEGGA members is achievable through Foley United’s range of products that can be upgraded over time while always delivering a top-quality grinding experience.

The European Sales Manager for Foley United in Europe, Middle East and Russia is Arjen Spek. Please contact by email arjenspek@foleyunited.com or mobile number +31627383013.