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INDUSTRY NEWS |
The Toro Co.’s utility vehicles, walk power mowers and riding mowers are helping to prepare the grounds at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama for the venue’s multiple NASCAR and other racing events this year. Toro’s presence at Talladega is part of its renewed status as the exclusive supplier of turfgrass maintenance equipment to the famed track. For the 212 acres of land on the speedway’s interior, Toro’s Groundsmaster 580-D wide area rotary mower will be used. Other machines on site include the company’s Workman 1110 utility vehicles, a Workman 3200 heavy-duty utility vehicle and a mid-size floating deck mower with hydrostatic drive and Toro’s exclusive Turbo Force cutting system.
Pop-Up Products Ltd., a U.K.-based company, is extending its business to the U.S. The company, which manufactures the Pop-Up, a scissor lift built to replace ladders and steps used indoors in low-level access environments, launched its products at trade shows this year in the U.S. and also has had success in Europe and Australia, it says.
Engine and outdoor power equipment manufacturer Solo Kleinmotoren GmbH is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year. Founded by brothers Hans and Heinz Emmerich in 1948, Solo says its success came with the production of a compact, two-stroke backpack sprayer that, because it could be operated by a single person, inspired the name of the company — Solo. Today the company is operated by Hans Emmerich’s two sons, Wolfgang and Andreas, out of Sindelfingen, Germany. The company markets products in more than 85 countries with major production facilities in Germany and Newport News, Va., which also is headquarters of the company’s U.S. subsidiary, Solo Inc.
The deadline for nominations of Rain Bird Corp.’s 2008 Intelligent Use of Water Award is fast approaching — superintendents have until the end of this month to nominate a person or organization whose innovation, leadership, ingenuity and overall commitment to improved landscape water efficiency has raised the standard for outdoor water conservation. The recipient of this year’s award will receive $10,000 to honor water conservation efforts and also be featured in a short film shown at the final screening event of the Intelligent Use of Water Film Competition in Los Angeles in October. After the nomination period ends, an independent panel of experts will select the finalists and winner based on leadership, innovation and implementation of water-efficient measures.
ProLink Solutions recently won a $3.7 million contract from the U.S. Air Force to install its GPS systems at seven golf courses on Air Force bases throughout the Pacific region. When the contract was announced in April, the installations were expected to occur within the next two to three months. The golf courses are located on the following military bases: Andersen AFB Guam, Elmendorf AFB Alaska, Hickam AFB Hawaii, Kadena AB Japan, Misawa AB Japan, Osan AB Korea and Yokokota AB Japan.
With the registration of OvoControl P for pigeons by the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources, Innolytics LLC says its nonhormonal oral contraception for birds is now registered in 49 U.S. states. Registered by the EPA in May 2007, the product has gone through subsequent state registration processes. The one state still pending registration is New York.
Jacobsen has upgraded its Web site with a new section dedicated entirely to providing information and guidance on selecting and ordering Jacobsen genuine parts. Because the company noticed a recent surge in searches on parts information on its site, it decided to add a separate genuine parts section online where customers can log on and find a comprehensive parts catalog, several search options, an inclusive parts manual, specific product information and more. The company adds that its Never-Out Parts program guarantees that the 1,000 most commonly requested maintenance items are constantly in stock. Visit www.jacobsen.com/parts for more information.
Three SUNY Delhi students have been awarded scholarships from an endowment established by the Long Island GCSA. The endowment, established in 1990 under the leadership of Bob Kamp, then president of the Long Island GCSA, grants scholarships to exceptional students from the Long Island area who are enrolled in turf management, golf course operations or golf course management-superintendent programs at the college and who have completed one semester. Ryan Abbate, a golf course superintendent major; and Kevin Anderson, a golf course operations major and GCSAA student member, both received $1,000 scholarships. Eric Newell, a golf course superintendent major and a GCSAA student member, received a $750 scholarship. The group has provided 12 scholarships to date for SUNY Delhi turfgrass students.
Gateway Tire & Wheel Group Inc. has opened its third distribution warehouse in Lakeland, Fla. It also operates facilities in Litchfield, Ill., and Phoenix. The move was prompted to reduce delivery time and cost to the company’s Southeast customers. It says it offers next-day delivery to most of its customers in Florida.
The Rhode Island GCSA recently awarded $18,000 in scholarships for 2008 to the following students: Cathryn Arruda, Rhode Island College; Ryan Chalifour, Bishops University; Craig F. Devaney, Assumption College; Peter Fish, University of Rhode Island; Katherine Kennedy, Northeastern University; Thomas Lund, Quinnipiac University; Christa Piquette, Florida Gulf Coast University; Craig Richard, University of Rhode Island; Ross E. Smith, University of Vermont; and Leslie Maureen Skyes, University of Rhode Island. The group’s Ryan Reynolds Legacy Scholarship went to Kevin Medeiros, Community College of Rhode Island, and Bart van Luling, a University of Rhode Island student, won the C. Richard Skogley Memorial Scholarship.
KemperSports is assuming management of LinksCorp Holdings’ 14 properties. Several of LinksCorp’s executives and staff, including president Ben Blake, will join KemperSports’ senior management staff. Blake, who previously worked for KemperSports before founding LinksCorp in 1991, will be named executive vice president of KemperSports. Under the agreement, LinksCorp will continue as a holding company with its properties under contract to KemperSports for marketing and management. LinksCorp’s portfolio, which includes private clubs and daily-fee courses, is concentrated in the Southeast, a region where KemperSports says it’s experienced growth over the past several years. KemperSports now operates in 27 states, Puerto Rico and Latin America.
The San Diego GCSA announces new leadership and award recipients. Its new executive board includes Troy Mullane, The Farms GC, president; Brendon Reaksecker, Bonita GC, vice president; Sandy Clark, CGCS, Barona Creek GC, immediate past president; and Glenn Foreman, CGCS, Ocean Hills GC, secretary/treasurer. Members of its 2008 board of directors are John Baasch, Lomas Santa Fe CC; Vince Zellefrow, The Golf Club of California; Geoff Haynes, Maderas GC; Brian Sandland, Bear Creek GC; Kent Graff, JC Resorts-Encinitas Ranch GC; Mark Grund, Mark Grund Enterprises; and Teddy Rosztoczy, AA Equipment. The group also awarded its 2008 Superintendent of the Year Award to Dave Buckles, the Class A superintendent at JC Resorts-Rancho Bernardo Inn.
Lansdale, Pa.-based Neptune Chemical Pump Co., manufacturer of chemical metering pumps, chemical feed systems and peripheral products, has been acquired by Dover Corp. Neptune will become part of Dover’s newly formed Pump Solutions Group within its Fluid Management segment, which offers a variety of pump technologies. Terms of the transaction were not released. Mike Dowse, president of Neptune, said in a release that he expects the Pump Solutions Group to lead Neptune into new markets and expanded opportunities. PSG operates plants in California, Michigan, Georgia, Germany, China, India, France and the Czech Republic. Dover Corp. reports more than $7 billion in annualized revenues.
Club Car experienced a large demand for a commodity at this year’s Masters Tournament — and it wasn’t for hotel rooms or event badges. Displaying one of the company’s golf cars outside a local business is becoming a tradition at the historic event held every April in Augusta, Ga. Each year the Augusta-based company says it’s inundated with requests from restaurants, hotels and car dealerships wanting to place a Club Car vehicle on display for the week. The requests are concentrated on Washington Road, which leads to Augusta National Golf Club. The company started getting these requests up to two months prior to the event, and by March had received 100 requests for cars, according to the company’s director of aftermarket sales, Ray Bentley, whose job it is to round up the loaned out vehicles after the event — a sometimes tricky task. One year he found a vehicle swimming in a pool in the aftermath of a hotel party, he said.
People news
Bob Ehrler, CGCS, director of golf and sports field maintenance for the town of Huntington, N.Y., has achieved another designation to add behind his name — Certified Sports Field Manager (CSFM), granted by the Sports Turf Managers Association. Ehrler, who also is an MG, CTP and CGIA, earned the CSFM designation through work experience and standards, and a series of tests on topics such as agronomics, IPM, cultural practices, pesticides, administration, field layouts and more. The six-year GCSAA member is the fifth person in the state of New York to earn the designation.
Dow AgroSciences has named two new employees to its turf and ornamental sales staff. Marney Dorsey and Justin Stewart will serve distributors and customers in the lawn care, golf and nursery industries. Dorsey will cover Ohio, eastern Michigan, western Pennsylvania and western West Virginia. Stewart’s territory includes Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi and Kentucky.
Becky Gauthier is the new technical service associate for
Profile Products LLC. Gauthier previously worked for Fiber Marketing International/Canfor and Wayerhaeuser.
Bryan Gooch is the marketing manager for coated products for Agrium Advanced Technologies. Working out of the company’s Sylacauga, Ala., location, Gooch will be responsible for product marketing and management for the company’s Polyon and Duration brands. He previously worked in sales and marketing positions for Bayer Environmental Science for almost 10 years.
David Oberle, an industry veteran who worked for more than 20 years as product specialist, field sales and management with The Scotts Co. and BASF, has founded a distribution company focused on turf and ornamentals in golf courses and lawn care capacities. Excel Turf and Ornamental will serve the Upper Midwest region of the U.S. with offerings in product and technical support, agronomic services and customer service, Oberle says.
Lebanon Seaboard Corp. has hired Dave Heegard as its national sales manager. Heegard will be responsible for sales of all LebanonTurf branded fertilizers and seeds in the golf, landscape and professional markets. He previously worked for Scotts and Pursell Technologies Inc.
Michael Rohwer, superintendent at Shadowridge Country Club in Vista, Calif., and a Class A GCSAA member, has passed the Irrigation Association’s examination to become a Certified Water Conservation Manager — Landscape. The certification for water conservation managers signifies an irrigation professional involved in the evaluation, operation, management and improvement of irrigation systems to achieve the highest level of water conservation possible. Rohwer completed a certification exam designed to meet standards of validity, reliability and difficulty, and also subscribed to a code of ethics and a commitment to professionalism in the industry.
Four new sales representatives have been added to the staff at National Golf Products, makers of The Golf Mat. Tom Conway will handle key accounts in Indiana; Gregg Gersen will cover territories in Idaho, Oregon and Washington; John Jenkins will service the Michigan territory; and Kregg Moyer will handle accounts in Connecticut and New York.
PBI/Gordon Corp. announces the promotion of Laylah VanBibber to the position of director of marketing. VanBibber, who will work in strategic planning for the Kansas City, Mo.-based company, has worked for the company for 21 years, most recently serving as marketing manager. She is a member of GCSAA, TOCA and the National Agri-Marketing Association.
Jacklin Seed announces John Rector as a new sales staff member. He previously worked for Rose Agri-Seed in Hubbard, Ore., and a number of other lawn and sod companies. Rector will work in direct sales to sod accounts, wholesale seed companies and technical support for distribution. He will primarily focus on states in the western U.S.
Derek Homan is the new regional sales manager for Wood Bay Turf Technologies. Homan is a former superintendent with 19 years of experience in the turf industry. The company also announces Nicole Fletcher as its administrative assistant.
The New York State Turfgrass Association announces its newly elected officers and directors for 2008. Owen Regan, owner of Organics & More Ltd., is president; Greg Chorvas, superintendent at Cantine Veterans Sports Complex, is vice president; and Robert Sanderson, grounds and landscape manager of the Sodexho Campus Services team at Nazareth College, is secretary/treasurer. Newly elected directors are Craig Yunker, Batavia Turf LLC; Craig Currier, Class A GCSAA member at Bethpage State Park; and Tom Wright, Mohonk Mountain House.
Golf briefs
Greg Norman’s newest golf course in the U.S. is set to open this month. Cornerstone Colorado, a 6,000-acre residential community near Telluride, Colo., features an 18-hole, par-72 championship course that offers views of the San Juan and West Elk mountains. Norman has infused into the course his “least disturbance” design philosophy, which limits large earth movement and takes advantage of the area’s natural landscape, including mature aspen groves, rock outcroppings and mountain views. Wildlife native to the area include elk, mule deer and wild turkey. The property also contains a practice facility on more than 20 acres with a short game area, tree-lined driving corridors with multiple variations, an uneven-lie practice area, greenside and fairway bunkers and a family-friendly short course. Tom Huesgen, CGCS, is superintendent at Cornerstone.
The Rock Golf Club, a Marriott Golf-managed property in Minett, Ontario, Canada, officially reopened last month after undergoing a series of refinements to further the golfing experience for all skill levels. Renovations to the 18-hole Nick Faldo design included the redesigning of six holes to feature different approach shot views and increased landing areas, expanded tee areas and widened fairway landing zones. Overall, 14 holes were altered, 16,480 square feet of surface rock were removed and all greenside bunkers were reconstructed. Jason Winter is the superintendent at The Rock GC.
The Country Club of St. Albans in St. Louis played a minor role in a major motion picture as the scenic backdrop for “Meet Bill,” which was due out in theaters this spring. The cast and crew of the movie, including actress Jessica Alba, filmed for two days on location at the club and in other regional locations. Scenes were shot in the club’s dining room, under the club’s signature porte-cochere, around the facility grounds and on the golf courses. The CC of St. Albans, which includes two 18-hole championship courses, tennis and swimming, is set against 5,400 acres of rolling hills and vistas of the Missouri River in West St. Louis County. The club also has recently been selected to host the 2009 USGA men’s state team championship. The championship will be played on the layout’s Lewis and Clark Course.
La Jolla Development Group LLC, San Diego, has acquired StoneRidge Country Club, a private club in Poway, Calif. StoneRidge features an 18-hole, 6,500-yard course designed by Ted Robinson Design and a full practice facility. The 24,000-square-foot property includes a clubhouse, pro shop, dining rooms, banquet areas, nine tennis courts, a 25-meter swimming pool, wading pool and Jacuzzi. Most recently, La Jolla Development added Escondido Country Club to its portfolio. Thomas Robillard is the superintendent at StoneRidge CC.
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