Photo: Polytan
Photo: SEKISUI ALVEO
SECOND LIFE FOR ALVEOSPORT SHOCK PAD
THE FIRST CO2-NEUTRAL FOOTBALL TURF
An artificial turf soccer pitch built in 2009 was in need of refurbishment of the artificial grass in order to uphold its stateof-the-art performance. There was no problem in re-using the Alveosport shock pad made by Sekisui Alveo in the new turf system.
LigaTurf Cross football turf has become an absolute model of success since it was launched on the market. For FSB 2019 in Cologne, Polytan took the turf another logical step further, adding the component of sustainability. The fibres of new Liga Turf Cross GT consist of up to 80% bio-based PE plastic. That, along with additional in-process measures, have made it the first CO2-neutral synthetic football turf in the world. The biobased plastic used for the new LigaTurf Cross GT is called I’m greenTM polyethylene and is manufactured by the Brazilian world market leader, Braskem. It is extracted from sugar cane, a renewable raw material, far from the Amazon region. Another decisive environmental aspect for Polytan is that the sugar cane is cultivated first and foremost for the production of food: only the third pressing, which can no longer be used for table sugar, is used to manufacture the bioplastic.
The soccer pitch is located in Genemuiden (NL) and is used by SC Genemuiden, which plays in the Netherlands’ top amateur league. The artificial turf system was installed in 2009, and after a decade of heavy-duty use, the club wanted a new state-of-the-art pitch. Old shock pad still in good condition after ten years The first step in the project was to remove the old artificial turf carpet, including the infill. As expected, the Alveosport shock pad underneath appeared to be in good condition for subsequent use. This was confirmed in tests of the shock pad by the external laboratory KIWA. The measured values show that the ten-year-old Alveosport NUT 3001 - 12 mm shock pad and all performance characteristics had remained unchanged. This was no surprise, since Sekisui Alveo issues a 25year warranty on the product. Quality is the key The secret of the material’s longevity and stable performance properties is the quality of the installed material and its pa tented design. Alveosport is made of cross-linked closed-cell polyolefin foam. Throughout its service life, Alveosport does not release any harmful chemicals or gases known to pollute soil, water or air. The patented product is designed specifically for use as a shock pad in artificial turf systems. The new pitch finally is FIFA-certified. It will reliably serve SC Genemuiden as a first-rate soccer pitch with its natural performance for more than another ten years. SEKISUI ALVEO AG www.SekisuiAlveo.com sb 2/2020
Polytan currently produces the fibres for the LigaTurf Cross GT synthetic turf from I’m greenTM polyethylene – accounting for a share of up to 80%. That ensures the optimum environmental balance, because this bio-based raw material allows more than two metric tons of CO2 to be saved for every ton of material that is used for the fibre filaments. Over a complete football pitch, this adds up to about 56 tons of CO2. This is the basis for the CO2-neutrality of new LigaTurf Cross CT. It is ultimately achieved thanks to a whole raft of measures introduced by Polytan, including switching the entire production in Grefrath over to 100% green electricity and optimising the manufacture of the back coating of the synthetic turf. This CO2-neutral eco-balance of LigaTurf Cross GT enhances the attractiveness of the artificial turf for clubs and local authorities still further, because in addition to the high player comfort delivered by the smooth filaments and the extremely hard-wearing and easy-tomaintain properties of the textured filaments, it also meets high environmental standards. Polytan GmbH www.polytan.com 57