these Open Championship Clubs choose to relief grind - Pitchcare

The 3G in use under lights
for groundcare is tightly controlled. Paul
says, however, that his department is very
lucky and, if a case can be made for new
equipment, he gets a very fair hearing with
first the maintenance manager then
business manager and accountant, the final
decision resting with the estates director.
In the past there had been a tendency to
hang on to old equipment as long as they
did a reasonable job.
“When I first came to the university, we
had a triple that must have been at least
fifteen years old. It was hanging on by a
thread,” said Paul. “We’re trying to get
away from that these days, making sure we
keep our machines up-to-date, and our
business manager is now looking at lease
purchase as the way forward. We have no
affiliation with any particular manufacturer
and always try to be entirely pragmatic
about every single acquisition.”
“The only area where we import help is
what I call weed and worm spraying of the
sportsfields. We get a contractor in twice a
year, in April and October, to handle this
for us. With only six hectares it is not worth
investing in specialist kit.”
Summer schools on the campus ensure
that grounds work at Canterbury is very
much around the calendar. An added
pressure this summer will be the presence
of the Nepalese Olympic and Paralympic
squads, though Paul is uncertain yet what
their pitch demands will be.
“University life is just great,” says Paul. It
certainly seems so
because, if time allows, he
intends to embark soon
on a part-time degree in
animal conservation.
MAJOR Roller Mowers
Schools & Colleges
The view across to Canterbury Cathedral from the campus
“We have no
affiliation with
any particular
manufacturer
and always try to
be entirely
pragmatic about
every single
acquisition”
Major
Machinery
Major Equipment Ltd, Heysham, Lancs, LA3 3JJ Tel: 01524 850501
W W W . M A J O R - E Q U I P M E N T . C O M
FEBRUARY/MARCH 2012 PC 95