Measuring depth of trench
was to ascertain where the undersoil pipes were located in the ground so that drainage trenches could be dug. Easier said than done! Half a day was spent excavating inspection holes at various locations to find the pipes and the direction in which they followed. The pipes were, originally, supposed to have been inserted at 300mm centres but had moved in the lower profile over the years and were variable across the pitch. The upshot of this was that the trencher managed to chew through seven heating pipes as twenty-eight, thirty metre long trenches were dug. As a pipe was broken the trench filled quickly with water. The cut ends had to be sealed using clamps to stop the flow of water before the trench could be drained and the pipe repaired. Each end of the pipe had to be cleaned and cut square before a new length of 25mm pipe could be inserted and connected to repair the damage. These 500mm deep trenches were
excavated along to an existing main drain, increasing our drainage on the west side
Topdressing Molineux
of the pitch to pipes at minimum 5 metre centres. The broken heating pipes were repaired and the 80mm perforated pipes laid in shingle to a 1:100 fall back to the main drain. The shingle was brought up to within 150mm from the surface and capped with a grit layer of 50mm before 70/30 rootzone was consolidated in the trench to the surface. The ends of the drainage pipes were connected into the main 110mm drain with pipe connectors before the holes were backfilled with shingle and rootzone to the top. With all the pipes installed, and the surface levels reinstated, the pitch vegetation was Koroed off to a depth of 15mm. 200 tons of 80:20 rootzone was spread evenly to bring the levels back up, as well as 20 cubic metres of concentrated fibresand through the middle of the pitch area.
300kgs of controlled release fertiliser and 250kgs of 8:12:8 pre-seed fertiliser was spread over the rootzone prior to the whole area being power harrowed to a
depth of 100mm. The power harrowing does a much better, and more even, job of mixing the materials than traditional rotovators which tend to cause problems at the start and finish of each run. Two passes were made using this machinery before levels were addressed and the surface rolled to consolidate the aerated ground. Twenty tons of specified drainage sand was used through a Blec sand-slitting machine along a designated area of 1500 square metres. This area along the west wing of the pitch was slit over the top of, and at 90 degrees to, the newly laid drainage pipes. Sand slits were installed to a depth of 150mm deep, so they were installed to connect completely with the drain lines. With the May bank holiday weekend upon us, the weather was now not helping and we needed to get the finished levels right prior to seeding. However, the heavens really opened up on the Sunday and it was impossible to finish the work. On the Monday we continued rolling,
A day with Sheriff Amenity Laurence Gale MSc talks to Mark Pyrah, Amenity Sales Director
It is always good to get behind the scenes and find out more about the companies who are striving to take our industry forward. One who have, in my opinion, played a major part in moving and shaking our industry is Sherriff Amenity. They have an impressive reputation for the way they sell their products, backed by high end technical support. Sherriff Amenity were
formed in 1994 as part of the Crop Care group. When Crop Care merged with Profarma to form Agrovista UK Ltd in January 2001, Sherriff Amenity became the dedicated amenity division within the company. The business is part of Agrovista BV, a leading organisation in its field, itself part of the international Marubeni Corporation. I met up with Mark Pyrah, who joined the company in 1998 as Amenity Sales Director. In his view the key to their success has been the relationship and back up they provide. It is not just a case of selling product for the sake of it. It is all about building long term relationships with the
customers. The company has a rolling
five year strategy, spelling out where it wants to be and how it is going to get there. For obvious commercial reasons, Mark was not going to go into detail about what exactly the strategy is. For Mark, training is a key issue, ensuring all the staff are properly qualified and accredited, as are any companies who are contracted to deliver their products and services. The company has a growing BASIS qualified UK sales team, currently standing at fifteen people. All have a strong affinity with the industry; some have come from a greenkeeping or grounds background whilst others have come from various sectors of the amenity industry.
It is apparent that the ethos of the company is driven by technical knowledge and innovation. The company have had their busiest spring period ever, utilising the delivery vehicles from the sixteen depot network of Agrovista, their parent company. Amenity products are stored in every
depot, ensuring a supply network is in place serving their customers quickly and efficiently. Another key factor to
Sherriff Amenity’s success has been their strong working partnerships with several key industry companies. This enables them to offer a wide range of products, including some of their own tailor made ones, to suit customer needs and expectations. As with any good business the company cannot afford to rest on its laurels, they are continually searching for new products. Mark told me about a new spreader range which has been ordered from America (a forty foot container was on its way across the Atlantic as we spoke), and a new turf growth cover is also being imported from their sister company in the USA, Helena Chemicals. The company invest heavily
industry organisations and associations, such as the STRI, testing and trialling products to ensure they are suitable and worthy of a place in the Sherriff Amenity portfolio. The company use a specialist storage company to house and control their products. I was able to visit the warehouse facility during my visit; it was immense, it has a capacity of 11 million litres of stock, with 17,000 pallet spaces. Not surprisingly, the area is tightly controlled and continuously supervised.
in R&D; a team has been set up to evaluate, and develop, new products and services. They work with a number of
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