Tag Archive for: Ideal

BODPAVE Provides the Ideal Stabilising Solution

BODPAVE Provides the Ideal Stabilising Solution: Barratt Homes Northeast acquired a parcel of derelict land opposite the North Shore Academy on the outskirts of Stockton-on-Tees. The land is of particular historical interest, being the site of the wagon works for the world’s first ever passenger railway line, from Stockton to Darlington. The works were later used during World War 2 for the manufacture of de Havilland Mosquito bombers.

The development comprised 300 new homes, with a combined direct and indirect investment of £160 million. As with most housing developments nowadays, care was taken to include sufficient green space area for residents to enjoy. Along with play areas, part of this included a large swale at the front of the development bordering North Road, to help cope with excess water runoff or flooding during heavy rain events.

BODPAVE Provides the Ideal Stabilising Solution

BODPAVE Provides the Ideal Stabilising Solution

Green-tech’s involvement:

Several areas around the main swale and service areas, although grassed, needed additional ground stabilisation to avoid the surface becoming rutted or worn. Green-tech has been working with Northeast builders’ merchants, James Burrell Ltd for 17 years, and they came to Green-tech to order 300 square metres of BODPAVE 85, to stabilise the grass top surface.

BODPAVE is an interlocking, porous, cellular plastic paving grid system used as an effective ground reinforcement solution, that can be backfilled with either gravel, hardcore or a soil/grass mix. The design of the units resists lateral movement yet allows for expansion and contraction.

It is an ideal base for sown grass, as the units both stabilise the ground and protect the roots, allowing the grass to grow through the cells and rendering the units practically invisible over time, especially if the green colourway is used. It is ideally suited for:

  • Car/Coach parking
  • Overspill grass car parks
  • Emergency Service (Fire access routes)
  • Walkways and access routes
  • Golf buggy paths
  • Driveways or on-grass parking
  • Grass aircraft taxiways and helipads

BODPAVE is made here in the UK from UV stabilised. 100% recycled waste plastic. Completely non-toxic, once backfilled the units can stand up to 400 tonnes/m2, transferring the load laterally across the surrounding units. With each paver having 18 ground spikes, BODPAVE can be used on slopes up to 12%/7°.

As well as BODPAVE 85, we also offer the slightly shallower, new improved BODPAVE 40, available in green or black, but with a load bearing capacity of 250 tonnes/m2. This provides a stable base car parks and it can be supplied with white markers for parking spaces.

The swale area was finished off with tree planting to soften the boundaries around the perimeter, and for which Green-tech supplied the necessary stakes and rubber ties and blocks.

Alasdair Innes – Green-tech Specification Advisor comments, “Although a fairly straightforward project, it is always nice to see the landscaping around new developments settling in. As time goes on, the BODPAVE will become less noticeable as the grass grows and covers the units.

For any further product information or to request a CPD in person or remotely on any of our urban or rural modules please contact Alasdair Innes at alasdairi@green-tech.co.uk  or telephone 01423 332177.

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Sturdy Stoneburier proves the ideal investment

Sturdy Stoneburier proves the ideal investment: After years of hiring various makes and models of stoneburier with varying levels of success, ATV Contract Services Limited decided the time was right to purchase their own machine and went for the most robust model they could find – the Stoneburier from GKB Machines.

Managing Director Paul Hensman noticed the superior build quality Stoneburier at a dealer open day, and in the few months since its delivery it has more than lived up to expectations – taking commercial groundwork projects, on tough terrain, in its stride.

Sturdy Stoneburier proves the ideal investment

Sturdy Stoneburier proves the ideal investment

Based in the East Midlands but assisting with major infrastructure projects around the country, ATV Contract Services have an extensive fleet of equipment for cultivation and soil preparation – with the GKB Stoneburier SB180 the latest addition to that, delivered in Spring 2022. “These machines, with the nature of the work at hand, take a real hammering and what you don’t want is to invest in something that is going to spend more time in the workshop than out in the field!” says Paul.

“We saw the GKB machine at an open day hosted by Fentons of Bourne and the first thing that struck me was how sturdy and robust it was and, following a good chat with the GKB team, we placed an order. The proof has been in the pudding and in the first eight weeks from delivery, the Stoneburier did six weeks’ worth of work and everybody was incredibly impressed with it. It’s been on a lot of POS (public open space) work where you’ll very often find debris such as discarded kerbstones or lumps of tarmac in the ground and the SB180 hasn’t missed a beat.”

The Stoneburier utilises blades that rotate against the direction of travel to effectively screen stones and other debris from the top 7” of the surface, creating an optimal seedbed in a single pass. One particular feature that has impressed Paul and the team is the 45o angle on the GKB blades meaning that when they turn in the ground, no pan layer is created. He explains, “Other stoneburiers we’ve used with blades at 90o to the rotor can actually compact the ground in such a way that restricts drainage and negatively impacts seed germination. That simple design feature on the GKB Stoneburier makes a huge difference to not only the quality of finish, but how often the machine will jam or clog up.”

“The GKB Stoneburier made great commercial sense and has proven to be a fantastic investment. We are already benefitting from having it on our fleet, available whenever and wherever we need it” Paul concludes.

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Sherriff the ‘ideal tonic’ for Tiverton GC

Sherriff the ‘ideal tonic’ for Tiverton GC: George Stephens, course manager at Tiverton Golf Club in Devon, claims that Sherriff Amenity has provided him with the ideal tonic to help the greens combat stress and aid root development.

With panoramic views of the Devon countryside, Tiverton Golf Club offers a stunning 18 hole course which was first established in 1932. It was originally designed by famous course architect James Braid whose other designs include Gleneagles, Carnoustie and St Enodoc.

Sherriff the ‘ideal tonic’ for Tiverton GC

George has been the course manager at Tiverton for four years now and he revealed that the board laid out their expectations from the very start.

“When I first came in for my interview it was clear that they wanted change,” he said. “Improvement was vital and they wanted the club to be the Augusta of the West.”

Instead of feeling the pressure, George was determined to set out and make his mark and he began with an overhaul of the existing maintenance programme and products.

“I set out to trial a number of different products to try and identify which products would be the best for this site within our budget. I started with fertiliser trials on the fairways and there was one product which really stood out and that was Sherriff Amenity’s Evolution Controlled 18.0.32.”

Evolution Controlled is a fertiliser range consisting of nutrients packaged in a coated granule that are released over an extended period of time. It is a controlled release autumn and winter fertiliser specially formulated with high potassium for turf hardness which ensures a rapid growth response, even at low temperatures – something which particularly impressed George.

“It gave us exactly what we looking for,” he said. “The first time I applied Evolution Controlled was at the end of the summer to try and get the recovery. I put it down at 35g/m² and in the first two weeks it was like wildfire which is what we wanted. We then applied a growth regulator and from then on it was nice and gradual right the way through until the end of December / start of January.

“I was surprised because there are not many other products that I’ve seen grow in this period – in fact my third fairway was still growing at Christmas. The other products we trialled Evolution Controlled against just seemed to slow up at the end of October.”

George also turned to Evolution Controlled to solve a frequent problem which was occurring at the bottom of the third hole much to the annoyance of the golfers.

“We wanted to create a bit of rough to stop wayward balls bouncing out of control and rolling all the way down to the fence – which was quite an inconvenience for the players. We applied Evolution Controlled, again at 35g/m², to really give it the boost we needed and it really thickened the sward. It’s great because we just wanted to put a product down and not worry about it. This has lasted me a whole year so the longevity is fantastic.”

Sherriff the ‘ideal tonic’ for Tiverton GC

As George continued to implement improvements around the golf course, his attentions soon turned to the greens. He persisted in trial work to find an ideal tonic to help the greens combat stress and aid root development and was adamant that seaweed was the solution.

“I’m quite particular when it comes to seaweed products and although it may sound strange, I can always identify a good seaweed by the smell of it. There are so many types of seaweed and just a basic sniff can tell you so much.

“Sherriff Amenity’s Seavolution liquid really does smell of authentic seaweed. It is cold processed, not heat treated, which means you are getting all of the goodness straight away. I actually saw a video of it being made and the product is basically coming straight off the rock and into the tin.”

As George says, Seavolution is collected from the sheltered bays and unpolluted waters of the Atlantic Ocean, around the North West coast of Ireland. Due to the unique cold extraction process Seavolution is high in micronutrients, plant hormones and alginates, all of which are found naturally in Ascophyllum nodosum. George uses it as part of a tank-mix which also contains elements of nitrogen, iron and potassium and he has reported fantastic results.

“I apply this every two weeks and I feel the Seavolution makes a big difference. What sold me on it was that at one point, the greens were slightly stressed and there were patches of disease. I applied Seavolution at 20 l/ha on nine greens and they recovered in just three or four days. I did the nine other greens with a different seaweed product and didn’t see any improvements until at least ten days. That was what really made my mind up.

“Overall the customer service from Sherriff Amenity has been first-class and the products have made some huge improvements here.”

For further information, please contact Sherriff Amenity on 01638 721 888 or visit www.sherriffamenity.com

For more news and insightful views, you can follow Sherriff Amenity on Twitter @SherriffAmenity.

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GKB Ideal For Artificial Maintenance

GKB Ideal For Artificial Maintenance: Launching his dedicated artificial sports turf maintenance business this month, Sports and Courts Maintenance Ltd, Jon Lawson was looking for something that would decompact and assist in the deep cleaning and rejuvenating of artificial sports turf and was impressed with the robustness of GKB’s Renovator and the size of the double heads of the Rotobrush.

Owner and Managing Director at Sports and Courts Line Marking Ltd, Jon Lawson explains, “GKB is known for reliability and from Tom’s demo, I was so impressed with the rotary brush. I needed something that was going to do the job and that was robust and reliable.”

GKB Ideal For Artificial Maintenance

“We have a lot of tennis clubs complain that they’ve got very compacted baselines and the Renovator and Rotobrush tick all the boxes. For us it was the answer to going forwards with the new business, offering this additional service on top of the deep cleans and everything else we already do” Jon adds.

The GKB Rotobrush enables you to brush deeper and more effectively as the rotating brush disc is provided with extra rigid bristles which are pressed into the synthetic turf. Where the functioning of normal brushing and cleaning stops, the Rotobrush will continue.

The GKB Renovator’s five rotating brushes form the foundation of the machine and because the brushes interlock into each other, you will not miss a single inch when you are operating on your pitch.

For more on GKB Machines and their reliable and robust range of machinery for natural, hybrid and synthetic turf, please visit www.gkbmachines.com or contact Tom Shinkins on 07495 883617.

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Verti-Clean Ideal For Synthetics

Verti-Clean Ideal For Synthetics: When it comes to cleaning an artificial surface, many turf managers have found the little and often approach to be the most effective. Most material that will end up on the surface is natural debris and detritus, which if left will invariably get trodden on and broken down into the surface. Removing this as and when it occurs is the most effective way to prevent this material reaching the bottom of the carpet, which can ultimately cause issues with compaction and drainage.

The Verti-Clean from Charterhouse Turf Machinery will pick up surface debris with a rotating brush, powered by ground wheels, and throw it onto a vibrating sieve. The sieve filters any infill material back on to the playing surface, whilst retaining the debris and collecting it in a lightweight hopper, that can easily be removed for emptying.  The finish is a revitalised surface with clean infill.

Verti-Clean Ideal For Synthetics

A Verti-Clean 1500 has been used as part of the synthetic maintenance programme at Scotstoun Stadium since September 2017. The hard work of Head Groundsman Paddy Ferrie was recently rewarded as he was crowned the winner of the ‘Best Maintained Artificial Surface’ category at the IOG Awards. “On the synthetic surface, I conduct regular brushing to stand the fibres up, redistribute the crumb and improve the appearance of the pitch prior to matches” explains Paddy, who has been at Scotstoun for two years.

“Because of the pitch’s surroundings, at certain times of year we get a lot of leaf-fall and debris on the surface, for which I needed something that would conduct a more thorough clean. With this machine I can work at a nice steady pace, collecting any leaves or debris before they become embedded into the pile.”

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