SportsTurf provides current, practical and technical content on issues relevant to sports turf managers, including facilities managers. Most readers are athletic field managers from the professional level through parks and recreation, universities.
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/338693
42 SportsTurf | July 2014 www.sportsturfonline.com Tools & Equipment For more information on these and other products, please visit www.greenmediaonline.com/productportal. T he increased use of artificial turf for athletic surfaces has created both challenges and opportunities for virtually everyone involved in our industry. Turf manufacturers are naturally vying with their competitors, striving to con- tinuously improve their products and services. Manufacturers of field care products must keep up with the latest in turf manufacturing and installation technology and keep their "ear to the ground" for new product and service opportunities. Finally, athletic field managers and their staff are being tasked with learning and keeping up to date on the technology required to maintain top performance from the turf while optimizing their investment. For everyone involved, keeping abreast of change is essential. According to the Synthetic Turf Council, the number of synthetic turf sports field instal- lations grew an estimated 18% in 2013 and is on track to grow another 16% this year. Anecdotally, all of our distributors report seeing more and more synthetic fields being installed, either to replace or add to natural grass field facilities by municipalities and schools in their markets. Besides the contin- ued improvements in turf manufacturing and installation technology, leading to improved performance and durability, another clear driver behind this trend in certain parts of the country is the persistence of drought condi- tions, where synthetic turf is the clear winner in terms of being less taxing on water supply. Another driving factor is the incremental revenue opportunity presented by a multi- venue use plan for the field, particularly with colleges and professional installations. Synthetic turf lends itself to this strategy since it can be easily and quickly converted from one sport or event to the next and can stand up to the heavy traffic generated by non-sports events occurring on the surface of the field. A successful multi-use program depends on a versatile field marking system that facili- tates changing from one sport to another. If you stop and think about it, the essential criteria for a superior synthetic turf paint are inherently contradictory. The paint is expected to go on easy, not alter the play characteristics of the field, stand up to weather and play wear, and yet, come off easily. Some of the earliest Synthetic Turf driving innovation in field marking technology Editor's note: This article was written by Jim Brady, director of marketing with Eco Chemical Inc., and Jeff Fisher, business division manager for the TempLine Coatings and Equipment Division of Eco Chemical.