Tag Archive for: New

Manchester Rugby Club Welcomes New Signings

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Manchester Rugby Club Welcomes New Signings: The team at STIGA is discovering just how remarkable their robot mowers are when it comes to maintaining sports grounds — and rugby pitches are no exception. When the latest recruits, Mow Marler and Cutney Lawns, joined the ranks at Manchester Rugby Club, it was a clean-cut conversion straight between the posts.

Tim Holmes of Manchester Rugby Club shared:

“Mow Marler and Cutney Lawns joined the Manchester Rugby Club Grounds team back in October 2024, having signed from STIGA. As part of the partnership, STIGA provided full training on how to get the most from the mowers — and they made an immediate impact. Their work ethic has been incredible! They operate day and night, seven days a week, and we saw an instant improvement in the quality of the pitches.”

Manchester Rugby Club Welcomes New Signings

Manchester Rugby Club Welcomes New Signings

As a volunteer-run organisation, Manchester Rugby Club relies on a dedicated team of individuals who give their time freely. With four full-size rugby pitches and additional training areas to maintain — serving over 400 members every week — pitch upkeep is a huge task.

“The arrival of Mow Marler and Cutney Lawns has been a game-changer,” added Holmes. “They now manage two of our pitches, including the main stadium and a floodlit training pitch. This has significantly lightened the load on our volunteers while massively improving the quality of the turf. The grass never gets too long, there’s no unsightly clippings, and the lines they mow are incredibly sharp — the pitches look and play better than ever.”

The improvements haven’t gone unnoticed. A recent visit from the local Grounds Management Association advisor brought high praise:
“They told us our stadium pitch is one of the best in the North West — and the condition of the grass is excellent,” said Holmes.

The club couldn’t be happier with the STIGA partnership.
“We can’t thank STIGA enough. Their mowers are outstanding, and the STIGA app is so easy to use — we can always see what the boys are up to. Mow Marler and Cutney Lawns are now firmly part of the Manchester Rugby Club family — and long may that continue.”

In true rugby fashion, Mow Marler and Cutney Lawns even celebrated their arrival at the club with matching tattoos. The STIGA team was delighted — and agreed they’ve never looked more handsome.

You can read more about STIGA’s autonomous robot mowers and other STIGA products here: www.stiga.com/uk/

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BOSS ORV appoints new AODES dealer

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BOSS ORV appoints new AODES dealer: BOSS Off-Road-Vehicles has appointed Devon tractor and machinery dealer Blakewell Services as the latest AODES dealer. AODES is the multinational All-Terrain Vehicle and UTV brand of the Shandong ODES industry company, established over thirty years ago in Shandong, China.

Blakewell Services is a family-run business founded by Richard Tanton, who has been in the agricultural trade since 1971. He built the business from selling and servicing tractors at home, expanding to a workshop until he outgrew the premises, and moving to Mill Road Trading Estate in Barnstable, where he continues to grow the family business. Blakewell Services has diversified over the years into horticultural, groundscare and garden machinery through purchasing other businesses and consolidating the company’s sites.

BOSS ORV appoints new AODES dealer

BOSS ORV appoints new AODES dealer

BOSS ORV National Sales Manager, Neil Everett, says, “The AODES range of petrol ATVs has filled the gap between the diesel and electric ATVs and UTVs we distribute, and we’re very pleased to welcome Richard and his family as our AODES dealer for Devon. We know they run a great business with friendly faces and reliable service and machinery. AODES is a really high quality and price competitive product. Blakewell Services is perfectly placed to sell to prospective customers in the area.”

Blakewell has also opened a farm and country stores to supply the local community with their needs for rural living. They say the AODES ATVs make the ideal complement to their diverse range of machinery and services.

For more information about BOSS ORV distributed machinery, you can call 01785 561046

E-mail: sales@bossorv.co.uk Web: www.bossorv.co.uk

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New home builders overlooking the value of quality lawns

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New home builders overlooking the value of quality lawns: For many years, home builders haven’t appreciated the value of good quality lawns, not only for the benefits that a lawn brings to the environment & personal well-being, but also the impact that a nice lawn has on the kerb appeal and saleability of a new home.

Most new homes are sold with a newly turfed lawn, but as the demand for affordable housing increases, and development land is at an all-time premium, lawns are shrinking! Analysis in 2023 estimated the average English garden space to be 255m2. New build homes are required to provide a minimum of 30m2 of amenity space, and thankfully, most garden areas are bigger, but the Turfgrass Growers Association estimates that the average size of a new-build lawn is just 55m2.

New home builders overlooking the value of quality lawns

New home builders overlooking the value of quality lawns

In addition to the shrinking size of new lawns, homebuilders are squeezing budgets so much, that landscapers are forced to do minimal preparation on, what are often small, enclosed garden plots, with poor drainage and reduced light from high fences. The low landscaping budget forces landscapers to use the cheapest turf available, often a “contractors’ grade”, rather than a good quality premium turf, from a reputable, accredited supplier.

Using a lower grade of turf, combined with poor ground conditions, and minimal preparation is inevitably going to result in a substandard lawn, and this common practice is putting people off natural grass, and all its benefits!

Regretfully, it is common for Landscape Architects to unwittingly, specify turf containing plastic net and for some landscapers to consciously chose it as a way of cheapening cost. The Turf Grass
Growers Association which represents most of the turf grown in the UK, has actively moved to ban plastic net by October 2026, and in the meantime, any turf containing plastic net will not meet the TGA specification. The industry should remain vigilant against the prospect of gardens being contaminated with unnecessary plastic. Natural turf has good ‘green’ credentials that should be promoted when considering the use of alternatives such as hard landscaping and in particular artificial grass.

Artificial turf is quickly going out of favour as the public become more environmentally aware. However, there are lots of other lawn alternatives being used because homeowners are frustrated with poor quality lawns. If a lawn is created with good quality turf, grown to the TGA standards, laid on a well-prepared bed of free draining topsoil, there are huge benefits to a natural lawn, including carbon sequestration, oxygen production, flood reduction and air cooling as well as the positive impacts on mental health and well-being for homeowners and their pets.

Increasing the lawn budget by £100-£150 for the typical 55m2 lawn could ensure that premium turf can be used, and that landscapers have the budget to complete the ground preparation to a good standard. The average price of a new home in the UK is reportedly £422,000, and even if that figure is skewered by some high-end homes, and premium locations, there should be enough in a developer’s margin to cover the additional cost. Even if the developer won’t pay, at least offer the new homeowner the option of a premium quality job at a fair additional cost.

Developers should also be ensuring groundworkers save the very best soil on site, to be reintroduced into gardens, and that soil is not contaminated with subsoil when excavated. There should be no excuse for bricks, tiles and other building materials to contaminate gardens. What’s the point in thorough site contamination investigations if tradesman contaminate the soil during the building process.

Of course, there will be many new home builders, landscape architects, groundworkers and tradesman that take all the right steps to ensure the best possible lawns, but it’s about time that the value of a good quality lawn was appreciated throughout the industry.

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New efficiencies on the GreenMech stand at The Arb Show

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New efficiencies on the GreenMech stand at The Arb Show: No trip to The Arb Show is complete without a stop by the stand of the UK’s most innovative woodchipper manufacturer, GreenMech.

Always demonstrating the very latest in technology and product development, 2025 will be no different, with stand C13/C14 showcasing a new remote system to further enhance the versatility and efficiency of their flagship EVO series of machines.

New efficiencies on the GreenMech stand at The Arb Show

New efficiencies on the GreenMech stand at The Arb Show

The new ‘SMART FEED Remote’ system allows the operator to control a number of the working functions of the chipper without having to be stood next to the machine. Using the rugged, rubber encased handheld remote, the user can stop/start the feed rollers, reverse their direction and adjust the machine engine speed as they do today with the buttons on the infeed chute. Compatible with all EVO models, this is particularly advantageous for those who opt for mechanical loading.

Together with enhanced control and improved visibility, the ‘plug and play’ remote option optimises safety and streamlines workflow – reducing the time and energy required to move between the loader and chipper.

Alongside a range of towed and tracked machines from the EVO range, a number of other machines will be on display including the gravity-fed CS100 and Arborist 150D MAX. In addition, GreenMech’s new higher horsepower petrol offerings will also be showcased for the first time. Announced earlier in the year, the EVO 165P Sub-750 and Arborist 150P both now feature a Briggs and Stratton Vanguard EFI 40hp engine to take proven power, productivity and efficiency to new heights.

Full details of all the new additions to the GreenMech range can be found by speaking with the GreenMech technical team who will be on hand at Westonbirt Arboretum when The Arb show returns on the 16th and 17th May 2025.

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Makita’s new tabless XGT delivers improved performance

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Makita’s new tabless XGT delivers improved performance: Makita has launched an innovative new battery for its 40VMax XGT range of high-performance tools.

The 4.0Ah BL4040F battery is the first Makita battery to include cutting-edge tabless technology, which allows more efficient power delivery, better runtimes, and cooler running. As the latest Makita F-Type battery, it is engineered for performance on the very highest demand applications.

Makita's new tabless XGT delivers improved performance

Makita’s new tabless XGT delivers improved performance

The tabless lithium-ion cells in the new BL4040F eliminates the bottleneck caused by current concentration by connecting the entire end of the electrode to the end of the cell, instead of connecting to tabs at each end.

With a larger connection area inside the cell, heat generation is minimised. This means that even under high load, the cell temperature is reduced compared to standard designs, which has a positive effect on the overall service life of the battery. A further benefit is that the battery can be charged immediately after intense use, with no need for a cooling phase, meaning shorter overall charging times. The tabless 4.0Ah BL4040F battery delivers up to 36% longer runtimes and operates 32% cooler compared to the standard 4.0Ah BL4040.

Like all Makita F-Type batteries, the BL4040F is a high-output battery designed for enhanced performance and better runtimes on higher drain tools such as chainsaws, breakers and demolition hammers. The new 4.0Ah BL4040F delivers the same 2.1kw maximum output as the 5.0Ah BL4050F. This means customers now have the choice of the larger, higher capacity 5.0Ah battery or the smaller, lighter 4.0Ah battery to achieve the high output that demanding tasks require. In fact, the BL4040F is 34% more compact and 28% lighter than the BL4050F.

As with all Makita’s XGT 40VMax batteries, the BL4040F is built for the toughest environments with an impact resistant and shock absorbing casing to protect the battery cells, as well as a triple layer structure to protect against water and dust ingress. XGT batteries also feature Makita’s digital communication system that connects the tool and battery to actively protect against overload, over-discharge and overheating.

The XGT range has over 125 40VMax and 80VMax (2x 40VMax) products including drills, impact drivers and wrenches, angle grinders, nailers, dust extractors, and circular, mitre and reciprocating saws. There is also a wide range of XGT garden and grounds maintenance machines including mowers, chain saws, blowers, brush cutters, hedge trimmers and earth augers.

Kevin Brannigan, Marketing Manager at Makita said: “The new tabless BL4040F is specifically designed for the most demanding applications and will deliver superior performance and runtimes as well as the long service life that customers expect from Makita products. The launch of this cutting edge, next generation battery is just the latest part of our ongoing drive to ensure professionals have the high-performance products they need.”

To find out more about our tabless batteries and the XGT range visit www.makitauk.com/tabless-technology

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