ISSUE NO. 24
WWW.MEXTEDS.CO.NZ
Eden Park — HG Hero hybrid turf replacement
On a roll … Mexteds’ Paul Dockery on the turf layer and Thomas Chalk on the tractor After 17 years of history the hallowed turf of Eden Park’s Number One field has been replaced.
Mexteds has been involved in the initial survey, design work, and using our automated machine control on the project.
After the Christmas break, the team at Mexteds Sports Turf removed the old turf and prepared the surface ready for the rollout of the new HG Hero Eden Park Edition turf.
Throughout the process industry best practice was followed, which meant excavators removed the old surface to minimise the amount of waste material. Continued page 2
Eden Park —
continued Cameron Mexted says, “We needed to remove all the old Motz turf but also minimise removing clean sand beneath it – this was a big consideration throughout our planning and execution of the works.” Mexteds then 3D-levelled the subgrade to mimic the final design levels, before importing around 800 tonnes of new sand. The new sand was then 3Dlevelled, combined into the underlying sand and consolidated. At the beginning of February, the Mexteds crew returned to Auckland to assist Australian company HG Turf Group in laying the new surface. The product has been grown over the last 10 months at Eden Park’s Turf Farm at Karaka.
The old Motz turf was removed using excavators, minimising waste material and reducing vehicle traffic on the sand Wellington artificial turf specialists, Polytan, meanwhile, built a new synthetic ring road around the perimeter of the field. Cameron Mexted says, “Everyone has worked together very well to overcome a number of challenges that come with a project of this nature.” Eden Park’s Turf Manager, Blair Christiansen, says that bringing this project to life, including coordinating local and international contractors, has kept him on his toes. “Farewelling our previous turf and welcoming HG Hero Eden Park Edition has been a project years in the making. With many logistics, equipment and contractors required, it’s been a collaborative effort to ensure we deliver the best possible outcome for New Zealand’s national stadium.” HG Turf Group’s managing director, Hamish Sutherland, says the resurfacing of Eden Park was a great success and a credit to all involved. “Mexteds was a key member of the team, taking the lead in 2020 when COVID threatened to disrupt the project. Mexteds’ ability to investigate and design the works meant the project was welldefined and planned from the outset. “Under COVID restrictions we were limited to one harvest manager and one installation manager from Australia. Never before have we resurfaced a stadium with only two from HG. After completing managed isolation, we upskilled the local crews to operate our specialised equipment and then transferred our know-how via on-the-job training.”
Hutt City — cricket wicket irrigation install
Irrigation Manager, Rob Willis, directing operations Our irrigation expert, Rob Willis, has been upgrading the watering systems on 10 Hutt City wicket blocks this summer, installing automated irrigation at Bryan Heath, Fraser Park, Te Whiti, Delaney Park, Petone Rec and Hutt Rec. Using a vibrating plow, Mexteds installed the irrigation with no major ground disruption, so cricket could still be played the same week. Under our new maintenance contract with Hutt City, Mexteds prepares the wickets each week, so automation will benefit our
Eden Park —
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Hamish says before long everyone was in step and the quality of installation was second to none. “A great result for Eden Park, and a great achievement by Mexteds, ReadyLawn and Field Drainage. For us at HG Turf Group, it was one of our most rewarding projects, because seldom have we collaborated with like-minded companies on such a high profile job, and never before have we helped create such a legacy.”
groundsmen who will no longer have to set up portable sprinklers. It will be a great investment for the Hutt City, as we strive to improve the quality and play of wicket blocks within the Wellington region. Rob Willis says, “The new systems will help us water much more efficiently, minimising water runoff from overwatering and avoiding watering during the middle of the day when the conditions are too hot. It will also help reduce disease.”
Upgrading Naenae Park
The SISGrass Universal machine can operate 24 hours a day to complete jobs in the shortest possible timeframes
Installing the primary drains on Naenae’s No 1 soccer field—January 2020 In April 2021, Naenae Old Boys Cricket Club will be celebrating its 75th Jubilee at the newly upgraded Naenae Park, which Mexteds re-contoured in the last few months, widening the playing field and building two new wickets. The work involved planing off 20mm across the 2.3 hectare site and removing the old wicket clay, before cutting to fill and laser grading the site to achieve the new contours based on the survey design. Mexteds then installed a 160mm collector drain on the No. 1 soccer field and 1,540 metres of 100mm primary drains at five metre spacings, using our trenching wheel. With a focus on sustainability, Mexteds recycles material on site wherever possible, and on this job the trenching spoil and clay from the old wickets was used to fill a bank edge, enabling us to widen the playing field by five metres. Mexteds’ contracts manager, Shane Maddren, says, “This created enough space to fit a full-size field between the cricket block and where the natural bank dropped away. Hutt City wanted to have the cricket block stand alone so it wasn’t in the middle of the playing field.”
A Rainbird automated irrigation system was installed in both the No. 1 soccer area and the two new Patumahoe clay wickets. Irrigation pipe was ploughed in along with the irrigation control cable, which was linked to a Rainbird two-wire decoder control system. Rainbird PEB series valves were used, which offer the best and most cost-effective option for sportsfield irrigation. Mexteds irrigation expert, Rob Willis, says “Each new wicket has six Rainbird 5-inch pop-up sprinklers that can be individually controlled, giving the groundsman full control of the water being applied to different sections of the wicket.” Rainbird pop-up sprinklers were also installed on the No. 1 soccer field, ensuring the turf will go into winter with a healthy and dense cover. Naenae Old Boys Cricket Club Captain, Ernest Cunningham, is happy with the end result, thanking the Council and Mexteds. “The outfield is fantastic and the blocks are playing very well – consistent and providing a great contest between bat and ball.”
New cricket block for Donnelly Park, Levin
Planing off the old clay surface at Donnelly Park Levin Old Boys Cricket Club were thrilled with the results of their newly constructed cricket block when they played their first Premier Men’s one-day match against Masterton United at the beginning of the season.
Evan Hicks, Recreational Services’ Horowhenua Operations Manager, says “It was a fantastic result and great performance of this newly constructed cricket pit0.ch.”
With Levin batting first, the home team scored 418/4 off 50 overs, with their number three batsman scoring 211.
Mexteds’ work included planing off 50mm of the existing clay surface and de-compacting the subgrade, before relaying the Patumahoe clay wicket, laser levelling, sowing and fertilising.
Mexteds was sub-contracted by Recreational Services to build the new wicket and install irrigation at the Park.
We also plowed in a new irrigation line to the wicket block.
Aotea College Aotea College has undergone a major redevelopment with two-thirds of the teaching spaces being replaced and four new single-storey blocks being built, along with a new auditorium for the performing arts. Where the old administration building stood, the 5,500 square metre area has been transformed into greenspace. Mexteds was brought in to grade, topsoil and sow the area.
Synthetic turf maintenance
HIBS artificial turf ‘rage cage’, a popular spot for basketball and three-aside football
Trust House Memorial Park, Masterton Mexteds has seen a steady increase in its artificial turf work over the last 12 months, maintaining the synthetic sports surfaces in the Hutt Valley and at the Olé Soccer Academy in Porirua. We have also recently taken on a quarterly deep clean maintenance contract with Trust House Memorial Park in Masterton, the home of Wairarapa Bush rugby club and Wairarapa United soccer club. This follows earlier work we undertook for Polytan at Trust House Memorial Park, where we roto-tined the existing crumb infill to loosen it, then incorporated an additional 20m3 crumb infill. This was redistributed and levelled across the playing surface in preparation for the park’s IRB and FIFA certifications.
Removing the old crumb infill at Te Whaea Park, Wellington
Mexteds also worked for Polytan in Wellington on the renewal of Te Whaea Park’s artificial surface, where we removed the old crumb infill and synthetic turf. We then remediated the pavement layer before grading and rolling AP20 topcourse, ready for the laying of the new synthetic surface.
Mexteds now SISGrass distributors With the goal of bringing state-of-the-art hybrid turf technology to New Zealand’s playing fields, Mexteds has signed a Distribution Agreement with SISGrass B.V. Cameron Mexted says "We are very excited to be the sole distributor of SISGrass within New Zealand. We feel that the quality of the SISGrass product and service is of an extremely high level - one that complements Mexteds’ other services very well. We feel there is a really strong market opportunity for hybrid stitching in New Zealand, particularly in cricket, football goal mouths and other hightraffic areas." Mexteds first brought the SISGrass stitched turf system to New Zealand in 2019 for demonstration purposes, when we installed it in trial areas at 11 high-profile venues including the Basin Reserve, Eden Park and Lincoln’s Bert Sutcliffe Oval - the home of NZ Cricket. We also demonstrated the machine to turf managers at the Fine Turf Seminar in Taupo and stitched trial areas for several councils. The results lived up to expectations, with both Mexteds and clients convinced that the state-of-the art technology has great potential for reinforcing cricket pitches, stadiums and sports fields to improve the durability and stability of the turf profile and create a consistent playing surface. Nearly two years on, Tim Bargh, Turf Manager for Porirua City Council, says he’s really happy with the results of the SISGrass stitching that was carried out at Porirua Park No. 1. “The SISGrass was stitched into an area on halfway on our premier ground. Since the stitching, the area has shown no signs of wear like it did in previous seasons and performs well in any conditions.” At Endeavour Park, Whitby, it was put in the goal mouth at one end. “After a full season it held up really well and had little wear,” says Bargh. Steve Tsukigawa, NZ Cricket’s High Performance Centre Turf Manager, says the SISGrass stitched run-ups and cricket blocks at Bert Sutcliffe Oval are performing well. “The run-up area normally gets quite worn and dusty, but with the stitched fibres it’s holding together better.” SISGrass is 95% natural grass, reinforced with polyethylene fibres that are stitched into the soil profile by a laser-guided, electric-powered, custom-built machine. A full-sized hybrid soccer pitch can be stitched in just a few days and is ready to play on immediately. The stitching machines are shipped around the world to wherever they are required, ensuring the highest quality results every time. To find out more about how SISGrass can improve your sports turf, contact Cameron Mexted, who can also put you in touch with venues around the world that have installed this system.
Introducing our Hutt maintenance crew 2020 was a big year for Mexteds, with Cameron and his wife Jean Mexted taking over the company from his parents Sue and Steve Mexted. At the same time the company doubled in staff numbers after winning a major contract to maintain Hutt City’s sports parks for the next 10 years. Our new Hutt maintenance team are already part of the Mexteds’ family and we’re getting great feedback from sports clubs on the quality of their work as they look after and prepare the sports facilities each week. Caleb Ladbrook— Operations Supervisor Caleb joined Mexteds in 2019 as a Senior Turf Specialist working in a solecharge role on our Upper Hutt sports fields maintenance contract. 2020 saw him step up as he took on the role of Operations Supervisor, running our 12-strong Hutt maintenance crew in both Lower and Upper Hutt.
L to R Anthony Bryant, Tim Boggiss and Caleb Ladbrook Tim Boggiss—Groundsman A move to Wellington from Tauranga saw Tim Boggiss join the Hutt maintenance crew, and build on the skills he learnt as an apprentice greenkeeper in the Bay of Plenty. He’s now based at Petone Recreation Ground, where he prepares the pitches used year round for rugby, cricket, touch football and athletics. Anthony Bryant—Groundsman In joining Mexteds, Anthony Bryant was looking for a change of career and already knew sports turf was the direction he wanted to take, having begun studying through the NZ Sports Turf Institute. Anthony is continuing his sports turf apprenticeship through Mexteds, while getting plenty of practical experience working on Upper Hutt City Council’s sports parks.
Jo Davey—Contract Administrator Providing administrative support for the Hutt City sports parks contract, Jo’s the person with the challenging task of keeping everything in order, including taking bookings for the numerous teams who use Hutt City’s 27 sports grounds and 200 sports fields!
“ Just a quick note to say thank you for our beautiful lawns. They have never looked so
great. A pleasure to play on them today.” Barbara Hartley—Secretary, Wainuiomata Croquet Club Kevin Wakefield—Groundsman Kevin has an in-depth knowledge of Hutt City’s sports parks, with 42 years’ experience with Excell, Downer and now Mexteds. He is based at Hutt Recreation Ground where he takes pride in presenting the playing surfaces to the highest standards and sharing his skills with juniors in the team.
Finbar McGuigan—Groundsman After three years working for our construction team, Finbar took the opportunity to transfer to our new Hutt maintenance crew and now works as a Groundsman, keeping Naenae and Delaney Parks in great shape.
Andrew Searle—Groundsman Lower Hutt’s largest sportsground, Fraser Park, is where you’ll normally find our Groundsman Andrew Searle. The 27 hectare park is home to numerous sports clubs and is regularly used for local, regional and national tournaments, keeping Andrew busy looking after the natural turf, softball diamonds and cricket wickets.
Campbell Webster—Groundsman Campbell’s a keen sportsman whose interests in cricket and golf drive his passion for learning about pitch preparation as he begins his sports turf career with Mexteds. Campbell looks after Wainuiomata’s sports fields and is looking forward to beginning his sports turf studies with Primary ITO this year.
Mitch Fowell and Peato Litala—Mowing Operators You’d be hard pressed to find two more genial characters than Mitch and Peato, who brought years of experience to their roles as mowing operators. They’re familiar with all the Hutt City facilities, having worked for Downer before joining Mexteds.
Daniel Roe—Sports Turf Operator Daniel is an all-rounder with experience as a greenkeeper, caretaker and mowing operator. His diverse skills are put to good use on a variety of sports fields maintenance tasks around the Hutt Valley.
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James Powell—Sports Turf Operator James’ abilities in machine operation have seen him slot into the role of Sports Turf Operator since joining our Hutt maintenance crew. Like most of our team, James has a strong interest in sport and is a competitive bowls player.
The grounds were prepared to a high standard with our visitors from Nelson, Marlborough and the Wairarapa all commenting on how wonderful the presentation of the grounds was and how well the wickets played.” Mark Borthwick—Sports Co-ordinator, HIBS
Wade Kernachan—Amenity Mowing Operator Joining Mexteds straight from Year 13 at Wainuiomata High School, Wade Kernachan is quickly learning new skills as he begins his career in the sports turf industry, including preparing bowling and croquet greens for the local Hutt clubs.
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Jules de Vries—Artificial Turf Specialist Jules has been with Mexteds for several years, having previously worked for an artificial turf company. Since then he’s helped us grow the synthetic turf side of our business, including installation work. In the Hutt he is kept busy looking after all the regular maintenance of the synthetic playing surfaces for both councils.
We would like to thank you and your groundspeople at Fraser Park for the presentation of Diamond one. It looked fantastic … ” Paul Chattington—Hutt Valley Softball Association
Maidstone Park—Super Rugby comes to town
The sun shone on a 5,000-strong crowd who enjoyed a carnival atmosphere at the Super Rugby pre-season ‘Game of Three Halves’ held at Maidstone Park in Upper Hutt in February, between the Hurricanes, Blues and Chiefs. Mexteds’ maintenance crew, led by Caleb Ladbrook and groundsman Anthony Bryant, worked hard preparing the field in the days leading up to the event, ensuring the grounds were in pitch-perfect condition, drawing positive comments from Upper Hutt Mayor, Wayne Guppy. “I know the Hurricanes personnel were impressed with the quality of the pitch and enjoyed working with the team on co-ordination of the event. I was super proud.” Mexteds has a particular interest in Maidstone Park, Shane Maddren and Caleb Ladbrook work on the line marking having built the four-hectare, fully irrigated sand carpet fields finishing touches before the ‘Game of Three Halves’ event. for Upper Hutt City Council in 2019.
Mexted Sports Turf | 27 Ulric Street, Plimmerton 5026 | PO Box 54-236, Mana, Porirua
P: (04) 233 0703 | Cameron Mexted, Managing Director M: 027 4953 963 | www.mexteds.co.nz
GAME ON!