Tag Archive for: King

His Majesty The King gets glimpse of the future

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His Majesty The King gets glimpse of the future: His Majesty The King was today given a glimpse into the future of JCB hydrogen power as he toured  the company’s World Headquarters as part of its 80th birthday celebrations.

As JCB prepares to mark the historic milestone, the company is developing an internal combustion engine which is powered by hydrogen, a zero-carbon fuel of the future.

His Majesty The King gets glimpse of the future

His Majesty The King gets glimpse of the future

Today His Majesty was given an insight into JCB’s hydrogen technology by Chairman Anthony Bamford during a tour of the company’s Innovation Centre at Rocester, where he was shown one of the first JCB diggers to be powered by hydrogen – and how the machine can be refuelled simply and efficiently in a matter of minutes.

The visit also helped to mark another milestone for JCB – the production of the one millionth JCB backhoe loader digger, an invention which replaced men with shovels, pickaxes and hods and mechanised the labour-intensive process of digging holes and earthmoving around the world.

Lord Bamford said: “It is a real honour for us all that that The King has visited JCB to help us celebrate 80 years in business. It was also a great pleasure to show The King the progress we are making with hydrogen powered machines. Today was an occasion that will live long in the memories of everyone who was present.”

The King was welcomed on arrival by Lord and Lady Bamford, George Bamford and JCB CEO Graeme Macdonald before going on a tour of the backhoe loader production line where he helped fit a wheel to a JCB digger.

On a tour of the production line, His Majesty met apprentices Matthew Walker-Stack, 19, of Rugeley, Freddie McCool, 19, of Lichfield, and Eleanor Pitt, of Derby, who is only the second ever female welding apprentice to join the company.

The King spoke to Richard Williams, of Stramshall, near Uttoxeter, General Manager of the Backhoe Loader Business Unit, who has worked at JCB for 38 years. He followed in his father Brian’s footsteps, who completed 33 years’ service as a JCB Production Foreman. Also introduced to The King were Richard’s wife Sarah, who has worked for JCB for almost 35 years and his son Josh, a paint plant operative and his daughter Kaitlan, who works in Production Support.

The visit concluded in the main reception of JCB’s World HQ where The King was shown the one millionth JCB backhoe loader digger which recently rolled off the company’s Rocester production line.

His Majesty was greeted by warm applause from more than 60 guests in the reception, who included members of two families who have a combined service to JCB approaching 1,000 years. Bill Boot first clocked on at JCB in 1949 and 27 members of his family have gone on to work at the company and nine current Boot family employees, including Bill’s great-grandson Leigh, were there to welcome The King today. Ken Harrison, now aged 100, one of the last surviving members of the 1953 team which produced the first JCB backhoe loaders was also in attendance with family members. Ken and his relatives have amassed more than 350 years’ service to JCB.

Also among the guests in the main reception were long-serving and retired employees and former JCB Academy students, including Rhys Bradbury, 29, of Derby. As a 15-year-old student Rhys had reported on the official opening of the Academy by the then Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall for the school’s newsletter.

Rhys, who is now JCB’s Regional Sales  Manager for Central Europe, Austria and Switzerland, said: “It was fantastic to be involved in today’s visit and a great start to JCB’s 80th anniversary year.”

Also there was JCB-sponsored athlete Adam Burgess sporting his Olympic silver medal, which he secured in Paris last year in the slalom canoe event.

His Majesty unveiled a plaque to mark his visit and as he stepped outside to leave, he was met by the cheers of thousands of flag-waving World HQ JCB employees who lined the route of his departure.

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His Majesty The King announced as Patron of the RHS

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His Majesty The King announced as Patron of the RHS: The RHS is honoured and delighted that His Majesty The King will be the next Patron of the Royal Horticultural Society – the UK’s gardening charity dedicated to helping everyone to garden for health, happiness and the environment.

Keith Weed CBE, President of the RHS, said: “As an advocate for the planet and champion for environmental issues, we are thrilled and honoured that His Majesty The King is our Royal Patron.

His Majesty The King announced as Patron of the RHS

His Majesty The King announced as Patron of the RHS

“We look forward to furthering our work to reach more people of all ages, backgrounds and gardening abilities with the joy of growing plants and gardening to create wonderful gardens, combat the effects of climate change and build a better future for generations to come.”

Their Majesties The King and Queen will be visiting the RHS’s world-famous gardening event, The RHS Chelsea Flower Show on Monday 20 May to meet the growers, designers and horticulturists that help make both UK gardens and its nation of gardeners some of the best in the world.

During their visit to RHS Chelsea on Monday Their Majesties will visit The RHS No Adults Allowed Garden, the first garden in the history of the Show to be designed by children to highlight to children everywhere how to become gardeners to help the planet, whilst having some fun.  Along with co-designer Harry Holding, the children have included in their design a woodland, meadows and a wetland with heightened colour and oversized bog plants. There is also a natural den set within a pool of water.

Other gardens that will be visited include the Moroto no IE Garden, designed by Kazuyuki Ishihara, which is a garden where vibrant acers and a tumbling waterfall blend the beauty of the natural world with the practicalities of family life and The Addleshaw Goddard Junglette Garden designed by Mike McMahon and Jewlsy Matthews where the hardy tropical planting of the balcony mirrors the structural layers of the jungle.

Clare Matterson CBE, RHS Director General, said: “It means the world to the RHS and our wider horticultural family of growers, nurseries, gardeners, designers and plantspeople that Their Majesties The King and Queen, accompanied by The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester are visiting RHS Chelsea again this year.

“We are all hugely looking forward to welcoming them to the world famous event to enjoy the spectacular displays that everyone has worked tirelessly to create, to meet the many wonderful charities involved with the event, and hopefully, as us gardeners love to do, sharing some top gardening tips and getting lots of inspiration along the way.”

Their Majesties visited the RHS Chelsea Flower Show just weeks after the Coronation last year.  During the 2009 Show Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II presented The King, as Prince of Wales with the RHS Victoria Medal of Honour (VMH) – the Charity’s most prestigious award – as a tribute to his deep interest and expertise in horticulture.

Having spent a lifetime championing the environment, The King has transformed his own garden at Highgrove into one of the most inspiring and innovative in the United Kingdom. It is a garden over 35 years in the making, created with passion, vision and dedication by The King and is an exemplar of his organic principles.

In 2013 The King, as Prince of Wales launched the Coronation Meadows Project to create 60 meadows, in honour of the 60th year of The late Queen’s accession to the throne. They have since thrived with over 100 fields of flowers created over the last ten years.

The Late Queen Elizabeth II was previously Patron of the RHS. The Queen became Patron of the RHS in 1952. She was Patron for 70 years, visiting RHS Chelsea Flower Show nearly every year of her Reign.

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Dennis ES-860 is the King of King’s

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Dennis ES-860 is the King of King’s: Roger Neale, Head of Grounds and Gardens at King’s Hall School in Somerset, has claimed that his new Dennis ES-860 battery-powered mower has been “unbelievable.”

Roger was a greenkeeper for 22 years before landing the position of Head of Grounds and Gardens at Kings Hall School – an independent school for boys and girls aged from 2 to 13.

Dennis ES-860 is the King of King’s

Dennis ES-860 is the King of King’s

He is currently working towards a ten-year replacement machinery plan, and explained how a new mower for the cricket square was of the utmost importance.

“The previous mower we were using was old, so the time had come to replace it. We had conversations with the Operations Manager as the school are very keen on enhancing its green credentials. We are doing all we can to be environmentally friendly, so we decided to explore the possibility of battery-powered mowers.

“There were a few different brands we looked at; some were good while others had issues but the Dennis ES-860 stood out. Dennis is a British company with lots of great history and quite frankly their mowers are everywhere.”

The Dennis ES-860 is a 34” battery powered turf management system which delivers maximum versatility and has a range of 13 interchangeable cassette options to provide a solution for many day-to-day maintenance tasks such as cutting, scarifying, brushing and verticutting.

The aim with the Dennis E-Series is to help professionals meet sustainability and environmental initiatives, reduce carbon footprint emissions, running costs and noise without any range anxiety.

After working with petrol machinery throughout his entire career, Roger was somewhat sceptical about the performance of a battery-powered mower but admitted that the Dennis ES-860 quickly changed his opinion.

“It is unbelievable,” said Roger. “I need not have worried about the battery running out too quickly. In fact, we can double cut our squares and the percentage of the battery afterwards will be 98%. Plus, with it being a smart charger, you can top the battery up in no time at all if we ever need to.

“Another huge benefit of the mower is just how quiet it is. I can hear the birds singing while I’m mowing now. We no longer must be mindful of disrupting classes, exams, or assemblies and no one comes to ask us to stop what we are doing. For a small team this is great because we are no longer limited to specific mowing times.”

The Dennis ES-860 was designed following the concept of the Dennis G860 petrol-based cylinder mower and many customers like the fact that traditional G860 cassettes will fit the ES-860. Roger is no exception.

“We have very close links with King’s College, Taunton, which is on a separate site about three miles away, and the grounds team there have a Dennis G860,” he said.  “This is really helpful because we often borrow cassettes from them. I’ve used the brush and the verticutter. In the case of verticutting, I like how you can increase the cassette speed but slow the walking speed down which helps to take out more material.

“I’ve not got one bad word to say about the Dennis ES-860.”

For further information or a no obligation demonstration, please contact Dennis 01332 824 777 or visit www.dennisuk.com

For more news, reviews and insightful views, you can follow Dennis on Twitter and Instagram @DennisMowers and like the company’s Facebook page – www.facebook.com/DennisMowersUK. You can also view the latest Dennis videos by visiting www.youtube.com/DennisMowers

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Attraxor® is King of the Castle

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Attraxor® is King of the Castle: After Poa annua was disrupting play on the greens at Bothwell Castle Golf Club, the Head Greenkeeper found a solution in BASF’s Attraxor®, which was recommended and supplied by Agrovista Amenity.

Alan Boyd is the Head Greenkeeper at Bothwell Castle Golf Club in Lanarkshire – a flat 18-hole parkland course located in the woodland area surrounding the 13th century Bothwell Castle.

Attraxor® is King of the Castle

Attraxor® is King of the Castle

Alan explained how he first started using Attraxor®.

“Our greens are predominantly a Poa – bent mix. When the Poa is coming into bloom it starts causing issues with the ball swaying and the greens don’t run true. Ramsay MacGregor (Amenity Specialist for Agrovista Amenity) told me that Attraxor® reduces seedhead production in Poa and I was keen to give it a try.”

Attraxor® is a plant growth regulator containing the active substance, prohexadione calcium and can be used to regulate growth of all managed amenity turf. This active substance inhibits the gibberellic acid pathway, which results in a reduction of turf height and turf biomass. Root growth is promoted whilst turf colour and quality are maintained.

Furthermore, using an innovative formulation for fast leaf absorption, the product provides almost instant results, as it is activated once diluted in water. Contrary to other plant growth regulators that need to be activated by the plant enzymes, Attraxor® can be used earlier or later in the season during cooler weather.

Alan initially applied Attraxor® at a rate of 375 g/ha before increasing it to 800 g/ha and hasn’t looked back.

“You can build it up to that application rate or bring it back down – whatever you think is needed,” he said. “The results speak for themselves. Finer grasses have started coming through because the Poa is not overtaking. It is easy to use, easy to measure out and the granules easily disperse in the water. As a greenkeeper, our priority is to keep golfers happy and since using Attraxor®, the feedback on the surfaces over the past three seasons has been exceptional. They now have a consistent ball speed, and the ball isn’t swerving all over the Poa.”

Attraxor® is King of the Castle

Attraxor® is King of the Castle

In addition to supressing the Poa annua seed heads, Alan has reported some other positive findings.

“We spoke to some people from BASF and they shared with us the results from a golf club in another part of Europe with similar weather to us. They sprayed Attraxor® consistently throughout the year and noticed a reduction of disease. I was really interested in this because we do get hit with disease, but it has been getting better since we have been applying Attraxor®. BASF explained that as the regular use of Attraxor causes the thickening of plant cell walls and epidermis, it can lead to a reduced susceptibility to diseases such as Microdochium patch by mechanical means rather than by directly affecting the pathogen itself.

“If I carry on seeing a reduction in disease it will be a game changer because we are then not having to put down fungicides,” continued Alan. “We know the bad press fungicides are getting and you are saving money by not using them, so the money you are saving on the fungicide can be put into something else.

“In my opinion the future is bright.”

For more information about Agrovista UK, visit www.agrovista.co.uk/amenity

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Dennis G860 – King of the Kassam

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Dennis G860 – King of the Kassam: The Dennis G860 has ‘everything you need’ in a cylinder mower according to Kieron Jennings – Head Groundsman at Oxford United FC.

Kieron, who is employed by Grasstek and oversees the maintenance of the pitches at Oxford United FC’s Bangkok Glass Training Centre and the Kassam Stadium, felt the time was right to purchase a new cylinder mower. Somewhat of a turf perfectionist and a huge fan of the beautiful game, he revealed exactly why.

Dennis G860 - King of the Kassam

Dennis G860 – King of the Kassam

“Ultimately we wanted a better quality of cut,” he said. “We needed a mower which was going to give us a lot more definition. The first team like to play real football; fast one-touch football, and therefore the objective was to get that leaf down and as tight to the plant as we possibly could. We felt we could achieve this best with the Dennis G860.”

Kieron came to this conclusion after various cylinder mowers were demonstrated at the Kassam Stadium. As someone who highly values the team around him, Kieron was also keen to gauge feedback during the demonstrations.

“We’ve got a trainee that has never used a cylinder mower, but with supervision he jumped straight on the G860’s with no problem at all – he enjoyed every minute of using it.”

Lightweight at just 166kg the Dennis G860 is indeed incredibly easy to manoeuvre and comfortable to operate. Furthermore, the handlebar console houses the controls for the throttle, parking brake, roller drive and cutting cylinder drive.

As one of the most renowned cylinder mowers in the grounds management industry, the Dennis G860 features a large diameter front roller with an adjustable scraper which has been designed for a precise height of cut control, giving an excellent finish on every occasion.

“The quality of cut is second to none and it gives us a precise cut each and every time,” added Kieron. “We didn’t quite get that with our last mowers so I’m glad we switched.

“The manager has never once complained about the pitch – in fact he is always complimenting it.”

Dennis G860 - King of the Kassam

Dennis G860 – King of the Kassam

Aside from providing a perfect finish, the G860 also features an interchangeable cassette system to assist with a wide range of tasks such as scarifying, verticutting, brushing, spiking, and slitting. Kieron revealed how some of the cassettes play a part in his maintenance programme.

“As you’d expect, we use the cutting cylinders a lot – perhaps once or twice a day throughout the week. The brush is used to clean the top surface out and we’ll use the verticutter cassette to cut into our laterals, to thin the grass out and to take any Poa out.

In the winter we’ll rely on this cassette maybe two or three times a month because it helps with how the ball moves across the pitch in terms of the speed and the bounce.”

Kieron purchased two Dennis G860’s and he would have no hesitation in recommending them.

“They are very good machines; they are built well, and the durability is fantastic,” he said. “The G860’s have helped us get to where we want to be, and they are above anything else on the market.

“I can confidently say that if you are thinking of changing your cylinder mower, then get a G860 because it has got absolutely everything you need.”

For further information or a no obligation demonstration, please contact Dennis 01332 824 777 or visit www.dennisuk.com

For more news, reviews and insightful views, you can follow Dennis on Twitter and Instagram @DennisMowers and like the company’s Facebook page – www.facebook.com/DennisMowersUK. You can also view the latest Dennis videos by visiting www.youtube.com/DennisMowers

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

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