10 minute read
Estate management
Vision fulfilled at Hampshire estate
Andrew Day, the Estate Manager at a large property in Hampshire, says his vision for the aesthetic appearance of the estate has been fulfilled with significant help from his two Ventrac all-terrain compact tractors and a comprehensive selection of attachments.
Andrew has been Estate Manager since 2011 and his vision for the estate has resulted in a level of presentation, high in quality and detail, across the entire property.
The estate is a large and varied property, set in the rolling hills of the Test valley, with challenging farming ground, renowned fishing on the UK’s pre-eminent chalk stream and some stunning vistas throughout.
“Our local agriculture and groundscare dealer is TH White, with whom we have an excellent working relationship. I wanted to enhance the overall appearance of the estate and they suggested the Ventrac. To be honest it didn’t initially catch my eye, until I gave it a moment and then decided to have a demonstration,” said Andrew.
“Rupert Price, and his colleague Tony Doe turned up with a selection of attachments and put them through their paces in several different areas across the estate. It proved to be a very successful demo; their ability to fully demonstrate every aspect of each attachment resulted in the purchase of two Ventrac tractor units, four Contour mowing decks, a Tough Cut deck, an Edger, a Turbine blower, a Power bucket and an Aera-Vator.
“With this level of investment, we have the versatility and flexibility to tackle a host of estate management tasks. One machine, together with a specialist attachment, can be used for taking down scrub in our nursery plantations, maintaining our field boundaries, keeping the riverbank pathways accessible, edging the roadways, blowing leaves and debris and striping up the numerous formal lawned areas.
“Some are kind enough to comment on the fantastic condition of the estate and our Ventracs play a very important role in this; they have helped me to fulfil the vision I had in mind. They are simply brilliant machines,” revealed Andrew. n www.priceturfcare.com
Chipper with everything
The Babraham Research Campus, one of the UK’s leading locations for academic and commercial bioscience, has taken delivery of an EVO 205D SAFE-Trak to keep pace with the site’s demand for wood chip and weed suppressant.
The 100-acre campus sits within an additional 360 acres of estate land, maintained by Estates and Waste Manager Matt Antrobus and two ground teams – all of whom have been mightily impressed with the power, performance and build quality of their new woodchipper from GreenMech’s EVO series.
“The site has grown and changed a lot over the last decade, both in terms of the variety and types of research conducted here and the push towards more environmentally-friendly methods of maintenance” explained Matt, who has been at the Campus for 15 years.
“We use in the region of 300 tonnes of woodchip every year for suppressing weeds as well as decoration for borders, beds and miles and miles of public footpaths! Our previous chipper was struggling to cope and, after comparing a couple of options, the EVO 205D emerged head and shoulders above the competition.”
The backbone of the EVO 205D’s design is a deep beam, high tensile steel chassis, with a generous in-feed hopper measuring 1250mm x 700mm allowing the easy processing of bulky material. Maximum chipping efficiency is powered by a Kubota Stage V-Complaint 50hp diesel engine, while GreenMech’s SAFE-Trak system delivers ground clearance of up to 400mm, enabling access across uneven terrain and in difficult ground conditions.
“The EVO was installed in July by our local dealer Thurlow Nunn Standen and Julian Cullis, of GreenMech, who delivered some outstanding training to the team that was on a par with – if not better than, some of the official woodchipper courses available.
“The first major thing they commented on was the ease of manoeuvrability and access, meaning we can position the 205D exactly where we are working which saves a lot of time. Secondly, the feed rate is drastically quicker with this machine… the teams just can’t keep up with it!” revealed Matt
“There isn’t really much the team haven’t been impressed with. The build quality is fantastic and from a usability perspective, you can tell that GreenMech have really thought about what the operator wants and needs from a woodchipper.
“This EVO 205D will be fundamental to our new willow replanting and rotation programme which will help give us the quantity of wood and chip we need to continue our sustainable site management programme,” he added. n www.greenmech.co.uk
Banish fallen leaves with Billy Goat’s wheeled vacuums
With the autumn months upon us, and we deal with a drop in temperature, it’s an opportune time to clear pathways and grounds of debris, such as fallen leaves, twigs and branches. Removing debris from the ground is an essential maintenance task that ensures lawns stay healthy all year round while preventing pathways from becoming treacherous, especially during bouts of colder weather.
Billy Goat manufactures a powerful and robust range of industrial wheeled vacuum for commercial outdoor property clearance and is the expert when it comes to the maintenance of outdoor spaces. Its range of industrial vacuum offer the power and performance to keep these spaces at their best throughout the autumn and winter months.
For smaller, residential areas, the KV601 Multi-Surface Wheeled Vacuum is the perfect choice. Powered by a reliable Briggs & Stratton engine, the KV601 offers a powerful suction and easy operation, so the clean up of leaves, seeds, mulch, blooms, branches, litter and debris is quick, simple and fatigue-free. It’s also ideal for multi-surface residential and light commercial use, while it’s versatile 27” wide lawn and litter vacuum has a range of height adjustments, making light work or hard surface and turf clean up. For greater ease of operation, the KV601 boats robust 12” tyres, making uneven terrain and hilly environments a breeze to travel over.
For both lawn and hard surface areas, the MV601 Multi-Surface Vacuum offers the perfect machine for larger clean-up projects, thanks to its Briggs & Stratton electric easy start engine, self-propelled and 3-speed vacuum. Plus, its powerful 6-blade serrated impeller en-courages maximum suction, picking up leaves, grass clippings, litter and other debris quickly and efficiently, making mass clean-up easy and stress-free.
The MV601 has also been manufactured using abrasion-resistant composite housing components, offering a lightweight model that won’t rust or dent so it can be used year after year.
Billy Goat’s QV900HSP Industrial Duty Vacuum offers the world’s quietest vacuum, making it the perfect choice for clean up in busy, public areas such as school sites, hospitals, airport pedestrian areas, parks, churches and resorts.
It also offers a unique cyclonic filtration with exclusive Dust Sock technology that dramatically reduced dust in dry conditions. The robust vacuum is perfect for clearing up a range of hard surface areas and is ideal for contractor or municipal clean up applications, such as tarmac, city streets and pavements.
Its housing and 6-blade armour plate steel fan combination also provides optimum suction, making clean up fast, while it features a self-propelled drive type that is powered by a reliable and dynamic Honda engine. n www.billygoat.co.uk
Kubota release LXe-261 compact electric tractor
Kubota’s new LXe-261, which has been designed to meet current environmental standards, will be available for rental and showcased at several events around Eu-rope over the coming months.
With an increasing number of European markets tightening regulations and implementing bans on diesel vehicles, many local authorities and other public bodies are actively seeking alternatives - such as electric vehicles and fuel-cell vehicles. In light of this, and in line with Kubota’s Environmental Vision published in 2021 to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, they have been researching, developing and trialling electric tractors.
One of the major challenges when developing electric tractors is range and operational time. For that reason, the new LXe-261 is equipped with a largecapacity battery that can provide rapid one hour charging and three to four hours of continuous run-time. This means operators will be able to quickly charge the batteries during lunch and continue working in the after-noon for optimal efficiency.
The LXe-261 also includes key features for mowing, hauling, and other green space man-agement tasks, such as an independent PTO, a comfortable HST transmission and multiple hydraulic outlets. The specification of the LXe-261 is contained in a compact size, making this model well-suited to a range of applications.
Kubota’s new LXe-261 will soon be displayed at several shows in Europe, including Salon Vert in France, EIMA in Italy and SALTEX in November, Europe’s largest turf management show. It will then be available for rental in the UK from April 2023.
After its release, customer feedback will be sought in order to shape the future developments and expansions to Kubota’s eco-friendly product line-up.
Kubota Corporation is the first Japanese manufacturer to release a limited number of LXe-261 compact electric tractors in Europe, with the company actively striving towards carbon neutrality. For that reason, Kubota has been transitioning to electric, hybrid, and fuel-cell drives in an effort to decarbonise power sources and reduce CO2 emissions.
These developments represent an important strategic step for Kubota in the UK and Europe, as it aims to fulfil the requirements of core customer segments who have long invested in Kubota’s range of compact tractors, utility vehicles and ride-on mowers for park maintenance and other groundcare tasks. n www.kubota-eu.com
Make way for smart controller
The new RC2 Smart Irrigation Control Solution has been added to Rain Bird’s range of irrigation controllers. Used in conjunction with and accessed through the Rain Bird Mobile App, it enables users to manage remotely residential and light commercial installations with confidence, with or without WiFi.
The RC2 is a powerful, contractor grade controller that is fast and easy to use. It has an eight station capacity, three standard programs and four start times/programs as well as a Master Valve pump start relay. When paired with the free of charge professional App, contractors and site managers have full WiFi control of irrigation scheduling of multiple sites and zones.
Through alerts, users can monitor and manage all irrigation events and warnings in real-time and make adjustments to prevent overwatering or costly wastage. The landscape will receive only the water it needs while potentially saving up to 50% in water.
A number of features support the claim that combining the RC2 with the Mobile App makes it the most efficiently programmed controller available today. WiFi connectivity and Rain Bird’s Quick Pair technology enables fast, seamless initial set-up between a mobile phone or tablet and lasting stability. The RC2 is compatible with iOS 8.0 and Android 6 or later mobile devices.
Irrigation programs are instantly sent and imported into the controller. Schedule templates allow contractors to employ commonly used irrigation programs or alternatively customised schedules can be set, including watering specific zones at specific times. Weather data from local weather sources can also be obtained and be used to automatically adjust system run times daily.
As well as access to the advanced scheduling features of the Mobile App, the RC 2 also has simple touch commands at the controller interface.
A built-in complete system access point enables allows users to configure and make changes to the controller on-site if a Wifi network or hotspot is unavailable. In the event of power failure, the RC2 memorises and permanently saves the current programming. n www.rainbird.eu
