IN ACTION
Go big and go mow Halesowen goes to town with AMS Robotics’ mowing solution “A huge amount of time and effort has been saved at Halesowen Town FC by using AMS Robotics’ BigMow robotic mower,” according to the club’s co-owner and director, Keith McKenna. “The quality of the cut is very impressive and the mower has certainly caught the imagination of all the supporters and everyone involved with the club. We would recommend it to any football club looking to improve their playing surface.” Grounds care professionals at more than 75 locations across
The TLM allows customers to make small changes to their line positioning
A mark of high quality John O’Conner is reaching new standards of customer service thanks to the TinyLineMarker from Rigby Taylor 22 GROUNDS MANAGEMENT | JULY 2020
The BigMow robotic mower has brought brilliant results to the pitch at Halesowen Town FC
the UK are using AMS Robotics’ robotic mowers as part of their turf maintenance regimes – and as a result are having more time to focus on other aspects of maintenance, as well as seeing improved turf health and reducing their maintenance costs. The company’s large format commercial robotic mower, BigMow, offers coverage of up to 24,000m2 on a single battery charge. It has 15 blades to provide a uniform, manicure-style cut and the mulch produced fertilises the
soil in a 100% ecological way. Low noise output levels allow for extended mowing hours and the robot emits 90% less CO2 than traditional ride-on mowers. It weighs only 71kg, so imposes no stress on the grass and avoids compacting the soil. A smartphone app allows staff to program regular weekly mowing schedules. BigMow requires minimal attention and is self-charging.
Grounds maintenance firm John O’Conner is improving customer service, increasing productivity and reducing its carbon footprint thanks to an investment in a new TinyLineMarker (TLM) machine from Rigby Taylor. The firm’s managing director, Matt O’Conner, says the machine offers several advantages: it saves time, taking just 30 minutes instead of 90 to mark out a fullsized football pitch; saves on paint costs, using just 1.1 litres of paint to mark a football pitch; uses less water, with Rigby Taylor’s readymixed Impact paint; and delivers the service with just one operative and a small van, compared with two people and a larger vehicle for traditional methods. Matt says: “In addition, because everything with TLM is computerised with the operator programming TLM via a userfriendly tablet to produce preciselypositioned lines, the software also allows for clients to make
subtle but sometimes important changes to the positioning of certain lines – for instance, inserting training grids alongside running tracks. This means we can tweak the line marking to satisfy our clients’ every need in terms of additional line marking, and that can only further improve customer satisfaction levels.” TLM utilises the latest GPS technology with an RTK receiver and antenna that connects with global satellites and mobile network connections. It takes the input of pitch line dimensions and multiple pitches via an app and re-positions them to best fit the site using Google Maps. Once stored, the lines are never lost, even if they disappear if a pitch is not used for any length of time. “This means we can save money for customers since we will not be overmarking for the sake of it,” says Matt.
For more information visit www.amsrobotics.co.uk
For more information visit www.rigbytaylor.com
