IOG SALTEX - the annual show extravaganza for the landscape industry - is forecasting it will be at least as big as last year when over £1 BILLION worth of sales were generated. The show will be held on September 8-10 this year at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers. Research has revelaed that visitors to last year’s IOG SALTEX will have collectively spent around £1.2 billion as a result of visiting the UK’s leading open space management exhibition. Commenting, IOG SALTEX Sales Director Clare Johnson says: “The figures certainly reinforce that IOG SALTEX is the most important show for the whole of the open space industry – from fine turf and sports surfaces through turf maintenance equipment to outdoor play, for example – and the visitor feedback gives us every confidence that despite the credit crunch the spending trend will continue at this year’s show.”

A staggering 68 per cent of visitors last year said IOG SALTEX influenced their purchasing decisions, and 73 per cent considered IOG SALTEX as the most important event for their business, and 77 per cent of visitors went to the show to look for new ideas or products.

RESEARCH REVEALS THAT:
- Almost 1,000 visitors were from organisations that spend over £1 million each year on open space management products and services
- 410 were from organisations that spend over £500,000
- Nearly 800 visitors spend up to £500,000 each year, and
- Over 1,000 spend up to £50,000.

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WITH torrential summer thunderstorms comes the fear of devastating floods that could dramatically shorten the life of traditional land drainage for both homeowners and landowners throughout the UK. One British company, however, has created a revolutionary system to drain the panic away. Aquadyne is created from 100% recycled plastic, which is converted into easy to install blocks of macro and micro porous cells that effectively drain surface water from agricultural fields, sports pitches, golf courses and domestic gardens, without clogging. Research undertaken at the European Turfgrass Laboratories, Scotland, has revealed that Aquadyne significantly improves the drainage of water, compared to conventional methods, due to the unique capillary draw action created by the product. “The problem with traditional land drainage is that over time the aggregated soil and particles washed through from the surface eventually clog the pipe below. Clay, in particular, can be a nightmare as it contains such fine particles,” says James Arrowsmith of Aquadyne Sales and Marketing.

“Aquadyne panels have been scientifically proven not to clog, so once it has been installed with minimal disturbance to the grass surface, draining up to 20 litres of water per second, there is no need to replace the product or even wash the panels.” “During times of unpredictable weather patterns, Aquadyne provides peace of mind that no time, energy or hard earned money will have to be spent digging up and replacing land drainage that have been clogged by flooding. It is the most environmentally conscious system on the market as it saves up to 200 tonnes of green gases for every 200 metres installed.”

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TRAVIS Perkins has taken delivery of 190 new Bobcat microand mini-excavators and skidsteer loaders worth more than £3 million from Doosan International UK Ltd. The new Bobcat machines, which include a mix of E08 micro-excavators, 319 mini-excavators and S100 skid-steer loaders, are part of Travis Perkins’ ambitious expansion plans in the hire market. Product testing by Travis Perkins’ customers prompted the company to make the purchase of 150 excavators (comprising 30 E08 micro-excavators and 120 319 mini-excavators), with an additional 40 Bobcat S100 skidsteer loaders. Travis Perkins now operates one of the UK’s largest tool and plant hire operations with more than 300 outlets nationwide based within its Travis Perkins and Keyline Builders’ Merchant businesses. All the new Bobcat equipment is being fitted with the Datatag security system and registered with the Construction Equipment Security and Registration (CESAR) scheme. The official CESAR scheme acts as a powerful deterrent against plant theft and aids identification and recovery in the event of theft.

Easy to transport, the E08 and 319 models meet Travis Perkins’ exacting standards for compact excavators, offering an enviable combination of high performance, operator safety, ergonomics, stability and durability. The E08 micro-excavator is the smallest model in the Bobcat range, with a machine weight of 1028 kg and a maximum digging depth of 1.82 m. Like the E08, the 319 1.3 tonne mini-excavator has an expandable undercarriage, allowing access through narrow passageways for work inside buildings or entry into back yards and gardens through narrow gates. The 319 offers a maximum digging depth of 2008 mm and a maximum dump height of 2281 mm. With an operating weight with bucket of just 1800 kg, the S100 skidsteer loader offers a rated operating capacity of 453 kg and a tipping load of 907 kg.

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LAST month, ITV News at Ten aired two special reports on the exploitation of children in the Indian sandstone industry highlighting the plight of children as young as five and the hard back-breaking labour they undertake on a daily basis. ITV reporter Rohit Kachroo said: “The stone is a cheap and endless natural resource but here it seems, so are the children. With an estimated 200,000 children employed in this industry, campaigners say few foreign companies can claim their Indian stone is free of child labour.” This figure is backed up by UNICEF which estimates that at a typical Indian quarry nearly 20% of workers are children, some often bonded to gang masters and working to pay off their family’s debts. None of this is a surprise to Marshalls, referred to by ITV as an ethical supplier. We’ve been campaigning to raise awareness of the use of child labour in the sandstone industry in India for the past four years, as well as working on-the-ground with our Indian supplier and local NGO. We participated in the ITV report and it’s good to see these desperate issues being brought to the attention of consumers and ministers alike so that they can now fully engage in the debate and actions needed. It is also a wake-up call for those within the industry who refuse to acknowledge the problem. The issues are very clear. The industry cannot continue to deny the facts or procrastinate, and must now respond.

The answer, however, is not for importers, retailers or others to withdraw product and stop trading with Indian quarries and suppliers, but to engage in the process of improving the supply chain, ethicising the industry and in so doing tackle the human rights and worker rights abuses and improve conditions for the communities who depend upon this industry for their living. What matters is that there is collaboration, co-operation and action. The financial climate is tough but that doesn’t mean that businesses should bury their heads in the sand or withhold funding from important initiatives. Consumers now more than ever are looking for brands that they can trust to behave in the right way and do the right thing. As the first member of the Ethical Trade Initiative (ETI) in our sector, Marshalls led the way for the recruitment of others in the hard landscaping industry. This led to the formation of the Stone Group. Sadly, not all group members have committed to real action on the ground. Over the years, we’ve been open to co-operating with other European countries but we’re very worried by some activities such as those in Germany for example where a paid-for accreditation has been launched even though product is still sourced from some of the worst areas of Budhpura.

Clearly this isn’t acceptable and there is some urgent work to be done here. It is only when buying Indian sandstone in the UK from an ETI member that has actually implemented the ETI base code with an independently audited supply chain, like Marshalls, that consumers can be sure that everything possible has been done to ensure their new patio has not been produced by child labour. It is imperative that consumers fully understand the impact of their buying decisions, so that change and real progress can be made in India.

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THE Building Research Establishment (BRE) used 100 tonnes of British Sugar’s Topsoil product Landscape20 to create the landscaped area’s on their Innovation Park at its facility in Watford, Herts. The BRE’s Innovation Park is a grouping of some of the world’s most sustainable buildings – zero and low carbon homes grouped around a landscaped area designed to provide a cohesive community space. The international group PRP Architects Ltd was commissioned to undertake the project. The practice was very impressed with the quality and service from British Sugar Topsoil and the fact that the product has such a strong sustainable pedigree. The chairman of BRE was delighted and made a special mention of the project at the opening ceremony.

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SUPERB weather, impressive demonstrations and a positive turnout have given the Turfgrass Growers Association (TGA) its most successful Turf Show to date. The biennial event was hosted by member grower Q Lawns at its turf farm near Thetford, Norfolk on June 24. As well as attracting growers from across the UK, turf producers travelled from as far afield as Slovakia, the Netherlands, Norway, Germany and Italy to give the show a European boost. In total, staff from 58 grower companies attended. Machinery demonstrations ran throughout the day covering ground preparation, netting, harvesting, mowing, vaccuming and hands-free steering tractors. TGA members and affiliates then gathered in the evening for a gala dinner at the Menzies Hotel in Cambridge. Feedback from the event has been unanimous in stating that there was a huge feeling of optimism amongst those attending and exhibiting. John Bailey, UK Sales Manager of exhibitor Moffett agrees: “As normal for us as a supplier the show was a great success. It gives us the opportunity to meet with old and new customers plus allows us to showcase new products. Overall, this year’s show was well organized and laid out. One point that I picked up on was the increase in overseas visitors, which for us as a company selling worldwide makes the event even more appealing.” TGA Chief Executive Tim Mudge praised hosts Q Lawns for the superb site and those who exhibited and attended: "The TGA is extremely proud of its unique Turf Show and the quality of exhibitors is reflected in the high number of specialist producers, their staff and affiliated companies who attended this year's event. An added bonus is the recognition by European and Scandinavian producers that this specialist show has so much to offer."

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SHOPPERS and workers in the busy Round Foundry area of Leeds can enjoy real grass beneath their feet this summer following the opening of a temporary green space. Wonderwood, opened in Holbeck Urban Village recently, (the brain child of artist/architects Amenity Space and The Culture Company) is an experiment which has transformed land earmarked for future development into a temporary, urban inspired woodland clearing. Two hundred sq metres of Lindum’s Grassfelt, the company’s patented strong soil- less turf growing in a felt made from recycled British textiles forms the base of the design, which includes children’s’ play areas, tree sculptures, murals and deck chairs. “Rather than leave an unattractive derelict site in the middle of the city Wonderwood provides a welcome, relaxing environment, especially if we have the predicted hot summer,” says Lindum’s MD Stephen Fell. “We were asked to supply and install a grass surface that would survive for several months on a hardcore base with some additional topsoil that could be used by a large number of people almost immediately. Grassfelt fitted the bill perfectly.” “Wonderwood has been designed to sit in, play in, lunch in or host a range of outdoor activities,” Stephen continues. “Remembering how grass transformed the atmosphere in Trafalgar Square when it was laid for only two days we’re sure that the sward, over a period of months will weave its magic in Leeds.

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THIS ingenious little tree mover was developed in conjunction with a local landscape contractor who was having difficulty in moving bag grown trees from the point of lorry delivery to the place of planting, down narrow alleys, sometimes even through a front door and out the back to the planting area. The tree transplanter runs on two 400 x 8 pneumatic wheels. The hand handles are lowered to the ground and the tree bag is skidded onto the carrying platform meaning the tree is easily and simply loaded onto the trolley. For one-man operation and the down rope is fitted round the bag and secured. The handles are raised and the tree pulled to its place of planting. Trees are expensive and can easily be damaged in transport. The SCH tree transplanter reduces the chances of tree damage in transit to the point of planting. The transplanter can be adapted for towing if required. The unit costs only £175 excluding VAT.

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