Tag Archive for: Working

Toro and Reesink working with the R&A

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Toro and Reesink working with the R&A: The idea behind the R&A’s Golf It! initiative was to create a space that introduces people to and promotes the game of golf while proactively giving back to the local community through an apprenticeship programme sponsored by The Toro Foundation.

“The R&A’s original idea was to provide a facility where people in inner city Glasgow could play golf,” says Andy Brown, senior manager of global business development and relationships at The Toro Company. “But we realised there was also the opportunity to introduce the concept of greenkeeping as a possible career choice via an apprenticeship scheme, too.”

Toro and Reesink working with the R&A

Toro and Reesink working with the R&A

Developed by the R&A in 2020 to make golf as welcoming and affordable as possible, the facility has grown into a multi-layered experience for all the family with pitch and putt, adventure golf, putting greens and a driving range, and a greenkeeping team was needed to upkeep the venue to the highest of standards.

Andy continues: “Toro was approached to become a founding partner which we agreed to in conjunction with Reesink UK. Toro provides the turfcare machinery and irrigation system required to maintain the playing surfaces at the facility and Reesink provides the support and training via its Livingston branch in Scotland.

“But taking our involvement one step further, we are now sponsoring two apprentices every year for five years. There are currently four apprentices in place and they’re doing very well in their education and getting lots of experience. They’ve had the opportunity to go to America and were on the tournament team for the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in Florida this March.”

Russell Smith, general manager of Golf It!, says: “Community is everything at Golf It! and we’re incredibly proud of our two first recruits Anton Sheilds and Lucy Millar. They see this as the life-changing career opportunity it is and have grabbed hold of it, embraced everything we are trying to achieve and surpassed every goal and expectation.

“It’s has been the same with Toro, they bought into the concept of Golf It! immediately and their support in delivering our goals has been invaluable. We’re thrilled they partnered with us on our apprenticeship scheme, actively funding two roles a year for five years.

“Toro machines keep our course and range pristine, and they are helping us create a bright future for young people in our immediate area. This is what partnerships SHOULD be about – teaming up to make the world a better place for those who may face limited opportunities otherwise.”

Bordering the Seven Loch Wetland Park, Scotland’s largest urban heritage and nature park, the initiative is keen to promote sustainability, making Toro a natural partner.

Andy says: “The R&A, like Toro, is extremely focused on sustainability, so part of our commitment was to get as many hybrid and electric machinery options onto the site to reduce its carbon footprint print and provide an irrigation system that would manage its water effectively.”

This is just the start for the Golf It! initiative, as those involved consider how it can be rolled out across the country to benefit more local communities.

To find out more about Golf It! and Reesink and Toro’s involvement visit https://www.golf-it.com/ or to discover more about how sustainable machinery options might benefit your club contact Reesink Turfcare on 01480 226800 or visit reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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Reesink and Toro working with 59club

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Reesink and Toro working with 59club: In their continuous drive to maintain and improve standards within the golf community, Toro and Reesink Turfcare are working with leading customer service management specialist and training provider; 59club.

The relationship with 59club focuses on the continuous efforts required to produce the best playing surfaces possible.

Reesink and Toro working with 59club

Reesink and Toro working with 59club

59club provides mystery shopping audits and satisfaction surveys at participating golf clubs to help measure standards. Their insights and expertise are utilised to upskill and train employees, all with a focus on improving customer satisfaction.

Jon Cole, business divisional manager for Turfcare at Reesink Turfcare, explains: “59club supports continuous improvement in the industry, placing the importance on the customer’s experience.

“A big part of the process is looking at the consistency of the tees, greens, fairways and bunkers. An unbiased look at course performance is always a good thing and the results provide valuable feedback on the processes, procedures, methods and equipment used to keep the course inline with expectations.”

While Reesink is one of the best placed suppliers to help with course maintenance and improvements, its involvement with 59club doesn’t stop there.

Will Hewitt, general manager 59club UK, explains: “Our latest brand alignment with Toro and Reesink Turfcare is really exciting, they’re a great match for our values and ethos to provide a measurement of quality across the industry. We’re delighted to announce that they will also sponsor the Greenkeeper of the Year at our annual awards.”

Jon continues: “We’re always looking to shine a light on those working across the UK to create the best fine turf they can. The future of the industry relies on those professionals, and we consider it an honour to create opportunities and be approached to support initiatives to recognise the skill it takes, promote progression and ensure the future of turf management is bright.”

59club have nine territorial divisions serving the UK, Ireland, Europe, USA, Canada, Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. They are endorsed and supported by governing bodies such as the PGA, The Asian Industry Golf Federation and the French Golf Federation, 59club are also a chosen partner of the CMAE, European Tour Destinations and PGA Branded Properties.

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Top-Brush trial becomes working wonder

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Top-Brush trial becomes working wonder: All but eliminating the issue of worm cast removal, the team at Worplesdon Golf Club have been delighted with the performance of their Redexim Top-Brush.

The effectiveness of the 6m wide brush came as no surprise though to Course Manager Paul Robinson, who had been involved with the development of the proto-type model – helping to create the perfect solution for course brushing, dew removal and presentation.

Top-Brush trial becomes working wonder

Top-Brush trial becomes working wonder

Worplesdon’s 18-hole course is located in the classic heathland belt of Surrey and is consistently ranked in Golf Monthly’s UK&I Top 100. The loamy, sandy fairways played a part in Paul’s interest in the development of the Top-Brush. “Having lost chemical treatments, mechanical means of removal are going to become pivotal in maintenance programmes moving forward” he explains. “We were delighted to be one of the first to trial the prototype and provided Redexim with in-field feedback to help shape the final model.”

Three years after its first arrival, a fully-developed Top-Brush has now completed its first year on course. “There’s no universal solution for every course, but we used the Top-Brush to incorporate sand during dry conditions and found that this then made any casts that did occur dusty and easy to disperse. It has given us a quick, effective answer to one of the major greenkeeper challenges.”

With a 6m working width and option to have the brushes contra-rotating to the direction of travel, the Top-Brush has found more than one use for Paul and his team of eight. “It’s not a one-trick pony. We’ve used it for removing dew which has played a big role in improving plant health, but also we’ve found it leaves a fantastic finish which has meant we can sometimes reduce the amount of fairway mowing that takes place – saving both fuel and man-hours.”

Paul adds, “With a lot of greenkeeping tasks time is really of the essence, so larger, more efficient machinery is the future for ensuring we can still achieve the perfect finish but in the most effective and sustainable ways. The whole Top-Brush project has been great to be involved with and the result is something which is truly fit-for-purpose.”

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Aspen fuels a cleaner way of working

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Aspen fuels a cleaner way of working: As one of the largest associations of its kind, Orwell Housing provides housing for more than 7,500 residents by managing over 4000 properties across East Anglia.

Powering the maintenance services, as well as helping to lower the associations carbon footprint, is 2 and 4-stroke petrol from Aspen Fuel – a switch made by Repairs and Estates Manager Simon Bennett three years ago, and one that’s delivering improvements on a daily basis to the workforce, the residents and the machinery alike.

Aspen fuels a cleaner way of working

Aspen fuels a cleaner way of working

Simon manages all elements of the direct labour operations (DLO) from co-ordinating the 75-strong workforce to sourcing and purchasing equipment across the repairs and estates division. “We renew our machinery every three years” explains Simon, who has been with Orwell Housing for ten years. “To help us with our objective or carbon neutrality, some of what we now invest in is battery powered but, with the diversity of items like mowers and woodchippers that we have on our fleet, for these we’re looking at better and cleaner ways of fuelling them and that’s where Aspen comes in.”

“I was familiar with Aspen Fuel but always just assumed it would be much more expensive for us than pump fuel. It wasn’t until I sat down and did a cost analysis, factoring in the downtime of the team going backwards and forwards to the forecourt, that I could demonstrate Aspen was a viable choice.” Being ethanol-free and virtually free from sulphur, benzene and other hazardous hydrocarbons, Aspen alkylate petrol burns cleaner than regular petrol making it safer and greener for operators, machinery and the environment.

“The operators like using it – they notice the reduction in noxious fumes and don’t go home smelling of petrol come the end of the day. This is also a major plus for those tasks where we’re in close proximity to the residents.” He continues, “Three years in, we’re also seeing a big reduction in the number of machinery breakdowns we’re experiencing with is a further cost saving.”

Overall, Simon feels the whole Aspen experience has been really positive for the group. “We order Aspen in bulk, with the cans being collected by the team as and when they need them. This way, we can easily monitor usage and, with the plastic containers being fully recyclable, we are also reducing our output to landfill. I’ve recently done another cost analysis, which has shown that purchasing Aspen has actually decreased our annual fuel bill by approximately 10-15%.”

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AMS Robotics working to improve turf health

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AMS Robotics working to improve turf health: Sports facilities, large gardens and businesses across the UK have seen improved turf health with AMS’s robot technology. Clients both old and new have recognised the significant differences and improvements it has made to their outfields and maintenance methods. With the mowing capacity increased to up to 75,000m2, the sky’s now the limit for robotic turf care.

The lightweight Belrobotics mower provides frequent grass cutting, rain or shine, which minimises the impact on the turf. The tiny quick-composting clippings provide a constant source of fertilisation and moisture, resulting in beautifully dense turf. For sports facilities in particular, this improves the pitch’s overall ability to withstand a busy match schedule and hours of use.

Pictured are two examples of areas in which you can see the comparison of the areas that the AMS robots manage and the areas which they don’t. Stirling university has one of the original large models, BigMow Connected, which has a mowing capacity of up to 24,000m2. These mowers work on a random cutting pattern and will mow the total area 3-5 times per week. This picture demonstrates the quality of the turf on the right managed by robots compared to the turf on the left which is not.

Another example of where the AMS robots have enhanced the quality of the grass is in this private client’s garden. The right hand side is managed by the AMS Robots and the left is not.

This area is managed by the smaller robot, ParcMow, which has a mowing capacity of up to 14,000m2 3-5 times per week on a random mowing pattern. However, this robot is kitted with the latest GPS RTK technology which allows the robot to work on pattern and stripe mode, therefore the mowing capacity is increased up to 40,000m2 5-7 times per week – making the process smarter and more efficient.

University Of Stirling

AMS Robotics working to improve turf health

AMS Robotics working to improve turf health

Private client

AMS Robotics working to improve turf health

AMS Robotics working to improve turf health

AMS Robotics are pleased to announce their latest partnership at Highfield Rangers FC. AMS are thrilled to be supporting such a brilliant project.

For all enquiries contact AMS on 01462 676 222 or sales@amsrobotics.co.uk

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

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