Tag Archive for: Worcester

Redexim pairing supports Worcester Warriors

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Redexim pairing supports Worcester Warriors: There’s an overwhelming ‘onwards and upwards’ spirit overarching operations at Sixways Stadium, home of the Worcester Warriors.

The positivity of the club spirit has been matched by investment in the facilities, with a pair of machines from Redexim’s award-winning artificial portfolio joining the armoury of Head Groundsman Jeff Green.

Redexim pairing supports Worcester Warriors

Redexim pairing supports Worcester Warriors

The club has endured a challenging few years but continues to offer a Sports Stadia for all. Sixways Stadium is home to various RFU events as well as local and community sports, including being home to two local football clubs utilising the pitches and training facilities at Sixways for fixtures. Across the two sites are two grass pitches, one full-size 3G pitch, one smaller 3G pitch at the indoor training centre and a further 3G pitch at the main stadium, uniquely installed with GEO X-TRE 60 infill from Limonta Sport. The conversion of the surfaces from rugby to football, along with the new infill material which includes sustainable coconut fibres, sparked the recent purchase of a Speed-Clean 1700 and Base-Rake from Redexim.

“I’ve known Redexim for a good few years, and offered to host one of their recent synthetic training events in conjunction with our local dealer Tallis Amos Group (TAG)” Jeff explains. “I couldn’t believe how effective all of the range was on our stadium pitch, but in particular how the Speed-Clean loosened up the infill and removed a staggering amount of debris from the depths of the pile. The club saw straight away what a difference investing in this pairing would make in our efforts to elevate the stadium pitch to the next level.”

The Redexim Speed-Clean is a land-driven sweeper that effectively lifts and separates infill from contaminants in a single pass. At 1.7m wide, it is wider than the club’s previous sweeper, presenting a significant time saving in enhancing surface cleanliness and safety. “Another factor that impressed us was the sympathetic way in which the Speed-Clean operated. Our pitch is eight years old so we need to balance its maintenance requirements with not being too aggressive.”

Jeff is utilising the Speed-Clean on a weekly basis and has seen a dramatic decrease in both compaction and the amount of contaminants being collected. When conditions allow, the weekly work with the Speed-Clean will be complemented with a pass of the Redexim Base-Rake after every 10 hours of play.

“As the only pitch in the country using the Geo infill for top flight Rugby, it acts differently and needs different treatment” Jeff adds, “It’s been brilliant working together with Redexim’s Paul Thomas and Colin McIntyre from TAG as we all look ahead positively – whether that’s, for us, the return of Worcester Warriors or Redexim who are clearly working hard to deliver maintenance solutions that are fit for the synthetic surfaces of the future.”

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MM grass seed is a winner for Worcester

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MM grass seed is a winner for Worcester: Worcester College, one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, is benefiting from using a range of MM grass seed.

Founded in 1714, Worcester College is steeped in history and continues to educate and house around 600 students. The College’s 26 acres of stunning grounds feature plenty of lawns alongside a lake, an orchard, and sports fields. Students at Worcester are the only ones in the University to benefit from on-site sports pitches and excel at football, cricket, and hockey.

MM grass seed is a winner for Worcester

MM grass seed is a winner for Worcester

Simon Bagnall, Head of Gardens and Grounds, has been working at the College for 19 years, and has been using the MM brand of grass seed throughout his whole tenure.

“I have been using it for as long as I can remember because of the quality of the seed – it is reliable, it performs and it has never let us down,” he said.

MM is one of the most respected brands in the UK amenity industry, with over 40 years of experience and knowledge. The extensive product portfolio is second to none with performance proven mixtures that are used at many leading venues in the UK and Europe.

There are two mixtures within the MM portfolio that Simon and his team rely on, as he explains.

“We use MM50 and MM21 across all our sports fields and utility lawns. We normally oversow with the mixtures during our renovation period and then will apply them through the year if we need to do any repairs.

“Another benefit of using these MM seed mixtures is the speed with which they germinate. We have quite a short window between renovations and when the students come back so to be able to get some grass growing quickly is a huge bonus for us.”

MM50 is one of the UK’s biggest selling grass mixtures. The hard-wearing ryegrass mix is very fine leaved, has high shoot density, is tolerant to close mowing down to 4-5mm and produces a great colour all year round. It also has quick recovery from damage and play.

MM21 produces a dense, fine and attractive sward and is a great mix for lawns and landscaping with low ryegrass.

Josh Hall, Deputy Head of Gardens and Grounds, further explained how the team uses the MM mixtures.

“We use MM21 on the main lawn because it is shaded by mature trees and there is a lack of light. The rye and fescue in the mixture work well together to give us good coverage in what could otherwise be a problematic area. The MM21 is normally applied in March or April so that it is growing nicely over the spring and summer.

“The MM50 is basically used everywhere else, especially on our sports pitches, and it is our go-to product. Our pitches take a real hammering with the number of games we have and to have some grass at the end of a season is important to us. We get that with MM50 – it is very hard-wearing. In fact, you don’t expect something to be so fine to do such a hardwearing job, but it does. It also produces a fantastic colour.”

With Worcester being an Oxford University college, it has a certain reputation to uphold. The demand is high and that in turn can put pressure on Simon and his team. With this in mind, Simon sees the value in working with key suppliers like MM.

“We get a brilliant service and Matt Gresty (MM Sales and Marketing Manager) is always available to speak to if I need advice. He sees us regularly, helps us out a lot and I can’t speak highly enough of him.

“I will always recommend the MM range of grass seed and I would encourage people to come and have a look at our lawns and pitches so they can see the results for themselves.”

For further information, please contact MM Sports Seed on 01386 791102 or visit the company’s website www.mm-seeds.co.uk.

You can also follow the company on Twitter: @MM_Seed.

To find out more about Worcester College visit their website: www.worc.ox.ac.uk

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Worcester GC sticks with Toro

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Worcester GC sticks with Toro: Worcester Golf and Country Club, which is only a few minutes from Worcester city centre, has stuck with Toro in a bid to resolve some noise issues the club was experiencing cutting certain greens.

When course manager Karl Williams joined in at the beginning of April this year to oversee the nine-strong greenkeeping team, he knew from previous experience working with the brand that Toro was the right fit for the job and had the right range of machines to make a difference.

Worcester GC sticks with Toro

Worcester GC sticks with Toro

The new deal includes two Greensmaster eTriFlex 3360 hybrid riding greens mowers and four Greensmaster 1021 fixed-head greens mowers – keeping it an all-Toro club when it comes to frontline mowing equipment – as well as a GreensPro 1260 riding greens roller.

These machines were carefully selected to help solve some issues the club was experiencing by being in an urban location. The eTriFlex 3360 hybrid greensmowers were particularly important to appease noise complaints the club had received over the years when cutting certain greens at certain times. This model utilises all-electric components so it’s so much quieter and more efficient than its petrol predecessor. And with no hydraulic fluid, leaks are minimised, making it a greener option for any turfcare maintenance business.

Karl explains: “These hybrid models sound like a golf buggy when in stealth-mode travel. This keeps our residential neighbours happy and means the team can now start work earlier on the course and get the job done ahead of golfers, all the while being the environmentally-friendly option.

“It’s so efficient too; not only can the lads get out earlier, but they are done quicker. We’re a very busy club – we have around 700 golf members and 300 tennis members – so we need to stay productive and efficient, and these machines allow us to do just that.”

In addition, the GreensPro 1260 roller is the first roller the club has had the pleasure of using and leaves a smooth and precise finish for the ultimate playing surface. Karl explains: “I can cut the greens at a higher height of cut, which is heathier for the grass plant and also still achieves the greens’ speed the golfers require”.

With the new fleet getting the seal of approval from the greenkeeping team, the course neighbours and the golfers, Karl has a few more plans in store that involve future purchases of Toro machinery: alongside some general course improvements is a three-to-four-year plan for a full bunker renovation and a seven-to-10-year plan of tree layout redesign.

He says: “I think the clubs that invest, like Worcester Golf and Country Club with the course improvements and new kit, are the ones that are going to thrive,” he says. “Members just want to see value for their money and I think the phrase ‘you must spend money to make money’ is true – clubs that can afford to invest will be the ones that profit.”

Choosing Toro was, for Karl, the natural option: “I’ve always favoured Toro, for me it is an all-round package. The quality is there so it was something that we wanted to continue with. Longevity was also a factor; I’ve had mowers still mowing in their 20th year. Toro machines hold their value when it comes to trade ins. We don’t have much trouble with them, we mainly only require spare parts from general wear and tear. So, Toro is still very much the market leader for me.

“During my time in the industry, it’s been my preferred manufacturing brand and yes, the club will be staying that way going forward, with a fleet refresh over the next four to five years.”

Karl also credits the positive relationship with Reesink and area service centre Redtech Machinery Ltd. for the seamless purchasing process and ongoing support.

“At previous clubs where I was course manager, we had good relationships with Reesink (way back when it was Lely) and also with the Toro service centre Redtech,” Karl explains. “I’ve dealt with them for the past 20 years I‘ve been greenkeeping and I can’t speak highly enough of them. Their service is second to none and I think that’s 50 percent of what’s important when you buy a machine – you need to know that backup and support are there, reliable and ready to serve your needs.”

To talk to someone about Toro technology and how the Toro range would suit your course, call 01480 226800.

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