Eddie Seaward honoured at Associations’ Reception

Eddie Seaward, Head Groundsman at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, Wimbledon, was guest of honour at the annual Associations’ Reception at Harrogate Week.

The five host associations, the British Association of Golf Course Constructors, National Turfgrass Foundation, Independent Greenkeepers Association, British Turf and Landscape Irrigation Association and Land Drainage Contractors Association dedicated this year’s event to him in celebration of the honour bestowed upon him in the New Year Honours List, when he was made an MBE.

Following an introduction from Nigel Wyatt, Contracts Director for the event’s supporters, MJ Abbott Limited, more than 100 industry guests listened to him describe the moment he discovered he’d been nominated in an unexpected letter from 10 Downing Street.  He also revealed he has no idea who nominated him and that certain members of his staff now occasionally drop to their knees and bow when he enters a room!

Speaking with the passion that has led to him being acknowledged as one of the industry’s finest ambassadors, he took the opportunity to encourage all those working within the sports turf sector to unite in taking it forward.  As Patron of the Land Drainage Contractors Association, he recognises the part played by specialists in all areas of the industry and added that they must work together to raise its profile.

The host associations announced plans to work together on issues of mutual concern last January.

British Turf & Landscape Irrigation Association – www.btlia.org.uk

Land Drainage Contractors Association – www.ldca.org

Independent Greenkeepers Association – www.theiga.net

British Association of Golf Course Constructors – www.bagcc.org.uk

National Turfgrass Foundation can be emailed - ntfoundation at btinternet.com 

January 2008

Dale Hill Golf Club - Sportrelief

MJ Abbott Limited are proud to support Dale Hill Golf Club, Ticehurst, East Sussex to host their Sport Relief Charity Celebrity - AM  on Thursday 13th March 2008.

The event, which starts with a 10.00am breakfast, 11.00am shot gun start on the Ian Woosnam Course and then followed by a Gala Dinner and charity Auction at 7.30pm still has availability!

Celebrity supporters include Liam Botham, Fraser Walters, Gareth Hale and Gary Stevens amongst others.!

For further information or to book participation in the event, please contact Sonia Lewis, Dale Hill Golf Club on Tel: 01580 201800 or click here Dale Hill.

BIGGA Turf Management Exhibition -  2008

Following on from previously successful years, MJ Abbott Limited once again took a stand at BTME.  This year we experimented in a new position in Hall A.  The stand was double our usual BTME stand size which in turn made us more accessible.  The stand size also enabled us to structure our design into 2 parts - 1 for enquiries - showing all the aspects of our operations and the other part for spending time with clients to discuss their projects further.   The result was a resounding success bringing in several new enquiries and the opportunity to meet old and new faces once more.

MJ Abbott also sponsored an evening reception hosted by the industry associations where we had further opportunities to meet exisitng and future clients.

January 2008

Effects of Adverse Weather - taken from Golf Club Management

We all pray for kind weather from time to time but in reality we deal with what’s dealt us.  No one knows this better than Specialist Sportsturf Contractors M J ABBOTT Limtied.

Days lost through weather conditions or down days as they are known, can cause severe problems to both the contractor and their clients in lost time, financial additions and hazardous conditions.

For instance, during July 2007 MJ Abbott Limited who where undertaking Phase One of a new 18 hole golf course based in Darlington, came under extreme pressure due to the large amounts of rain fall which strangely occurred during that month.  Having been in the promising position of being two weeks ahead of their schedule, MJ Abbott found that after 25 days of constant rain, they ended that month being three weeks behind.

There are various other major weather impacts to include such as drought, frost and high winds.  For example long periods of drought will impact the ability to cultivate and seed areas that have no automatic irrigation.  In relation to frost, this can lead to work delays as it is essential that the grass plant doesn’t undertake any form of stress or damage during trafficking.  High winds can occur throughout the year which can impact seeding operations making it difficult to achieve even coverage or prevent wastage during sowing; also during lake constructions winds can make the installation of lining materials extremely hazardous.

As a guide to help them navigate through their schedules and projects, MJ Abbott installs weather stations to the majority of their project sites.  Whilst, of course, these weather stations can’t prevent the weather impacts that occur they can assist in logging vital information and helps to determine when specific elements of work need to be carried out.

Specialist machinery can be adapted for use during adverse weather conditions in order to maintain working schedules however it is important that ground conditions are not allowed to deteriorate.

February 2008

Specialist Machinery - taken from Golf Club Management

Below the surface, specialised machinery can radically improve turnaround times for course contract work, reducing the cost for the job and bringing clubs a major financial benefit.

As a growing number of courses face up to the challenge of retrofitting enhanced irrigation and drainage systems, the time that a contractor spends on site can impact significantly on the total project outlay.

With such thoughts in mind, MJ Abbott Limited, specialist sportsturf contractors, decided to develop their own sportsturf trencher, because, in the words of contracts director Nigel Wyatt, “there was nothing else on the market that could do the job”.

Conceived, developed and built by MJ Abbott chairman Mike Abbott and his team of engineers and CAD specialists, the trencher gets going when the going gets tough.  The company utilises four of them now and they are proving a godsend, as MJ Abbott’s report.  “We use them for difficult conditions such as rocky terrain and areas of fill.  In contrast to the usual chain trenchers, ours uses a diamond tipped wheel that can slice through rock, concrete or hardcore like a knife through butter.”

The machine came into its own recently at Minchinhampton Golf Club, which borders HRH Princess Anne’s estate in Gloucestershire, where MJ Abbott dug no less than 25km of trenching to accommodate irrigation lines throughout the two 18-hole courses.

The trencher triumphed at Celtic Manor Resort too, where MJ Abbott’s met some serious rock issues while excavating the 2010 Ryder Cup course.

Fashioned on the design of a large tractor, the machine delivers the strength and sensitivity sufficient to excavate trenches from 350mm to 1.1m depth while offering an accuracy of cut that allows a trench width of between 130 and 200 mm and to ensure a gradient on a pipe as low as 1:1000.

It also grinds rock into small chunks, enabling them to be used as backfill, slashing transport and disposal costs of waste material.

“The machine has also given us a major advantage when tendering for contracts, because we can save clubs money on the project due to factors such as significantly reduced man hours,” Nigel Wyatt adds.

January 2008

M J Abbott Ltd & Constructionline: A new form of efficiency

Constructionline is the UK's register of pre-qualified local and national construction and construction-related contractors and consultants. Owned and endorsed by the Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform (formerly the DTI), Constructionline is a contributor to the Re thinking Construction initiative.

They have assessed MJ Abbott Limited on behalf of public and private sector procurers who will access the Constructionline database for Company details when considering who to invite to tender for projects.  In addition, this will help MJ Abbott by reducing the need to fill-in pre-qualification forms for every tender.

Constructionline is a valuable tool to help develop an efficient procurement process.

The concept of a single national database was initially proposed by the 1994 Latham Report on construction industry modernization and efficiency, 'Constructing the Team'.  Since then Constructionline has grown and been updated to stay relevant to the needs of modern procurement.

Over 13,500 contractors and consultants, ranging from sole traders and small specialist firms to large multi-nationals, are registered with Constructionline.  Over 1,700 buyers across the UK range from large central government departments and agencies to Local Authorities, Housing Associations, Universities and NHS Trusts. These buyers will have direct access to information about MJ Abbott which should lead to increased invitations to tender for sports field projects and drainage projects.

September 2007

Royal County of Berkshire Show

16 + 17 September 2006

Following our recent success at the Gillingham and Shaftesbury Agricultural Show we enjoyed further success at the Royal County of Berkshire Show last weekend. 

Thank you for visiting our stand which primarily promoted our water division.  We were inundated with enquiries which we are now following up.

For more show details visit: www.newburyshow.co.uk

CITB Health & Safety Test Centre

Having gone through rigourous audits and training recently, MJ Abbott Limited is now able to offer a testing centre facility for all Health and Safety tests for the CITB training scheme.  This is the initial test required by the Construction Industry Training Board before membership can be processed.

The test is seperated into different trades and we are able to provide training, practice and testing for all our personnel. 

June 2007

Rockliffe Hall Estate

We have secured a major construction project in the North East of England, near Darlington.  This 18 hole golf course is part of a multi-million pound development by The Rockliffe Hall Estate to include the renovation of a country mansion into a 5 star hotel and spa complex with formal gardens and 18 hole golf course. 

The par 72 - 7,800 yard long golf course designed by world renowned golf course architects Hawtree Ltd under the control of their designer Marc Westinborg, will be one of the longest golf courses in the UK. 

Over 700,000 cubic metres of earth will be moved and a full land drainage and automatic irrigation system will be installed.  Due for completion in 2009 MJ Abbott Limited will complete all aspects of the construction including earth moving, shaping, drainage, irrigation, cultivation, lake construction, landscaping and early maintenance.

June 2007

C H A S  Accrediation

We are very proud to have achieved CHAS Accreditation in 2007, this nationally recognised standard of Health & Safety allows Local Authorities & Major Contractors to access a central database of companies who have maintained high standards of Health & Safety and are therefore suitable for inclusion on tender lists for major contracts.

This is a major step forward in our aim to continually improve our systems of work and quality and service we give to our clients.

May 2007

Congratulations to Tiger Woods

- winner of this year's World Golf Championships, American Express Championship at The Grove. 

"It really has been a fun week," he said. "I hit the ball really well, for all 72 holes to be honest, and it is a lot of fun when you feel like you can control your golf ball that well."

Tiger was untouchable by the rest of the field who as usual had to battle for second place, which turned out to be England's Ian Poulter and Adam Scott of Australia who tied.

The championship week placed The Grove under an international spotlight. The quality of the golf course has received outstanding praise since opening in 2003, but this was the first time for many watching, across the globe to see and have a look at The Grove for themselves. The Groves facilities, staff and grounds were given a tough test, how did we do? Ernie Els sums it all up perfectly:

"I loved The Grove. Let me tell you, it is very, very impressive. I would say it's the best conditioned golf course in Europe; certainly from my experience. Everything was perfect; the course is great, the tees, fairways and greens were incredibly manicured, the practice facilities were amazing. And the food we had at the club all week was magnificent. This was the benchmark for how a tournament should be. It was that good."

As reported at www.thegrove.co.uk

M J Abbott Ltd joins the Building Safety Group

The Building Safety Group Limited is the UK's largest independent health and safety advisory group dedicated to the promotion and advancement of health, safety and welfare within the construction industry.

BSG offer their member companies the strength and assurance of a national organisation, together with the benefit of local representation through its network of regional advisers.

Each region operates under the control of a Principal Safety Adviser and a team of qualified Safety Advisers, all of whom work in partnership with members to advise them on how best to meet all their health and safety requirements.

BSG will be making regular site inspections (approximately every 15 days) at MJ Abbott Limited sites all over the UK. The results of these inspections will be promptly reported back to the company's Safety Director. This system will provide independent confirmation that the rigorous M J Abbott procedures regarding Health and Safety are being complied with consistently across the company.

BSG will also inspect the company workshops 4 times a year and our offices annually.

In addition the BSG staff will provide assistance with the continual updating of all health and safety documentation within the company including the Health and Safety Policy, Risk Assessments, COSHH Assessments and Method Statements.

January 2007

OTTERBINE® AERATOR SERVICE CENTRE

Otterbine® Barebo Inc has been leading the world in lake and pond water quality management for over 50 years. They manufacture a range of aerating fountains and industrial aerators to keep lakes and ponds in a healthy condition.

MJ Abbott Limited have recently sent two of its engineers on a 2-day Otterbine service and installation training course held by Lely (UK) Ltd, the UK authorised distributor. Here, under instruction from Otterbine engineers, they were taught the maintenance and service techniques used to keep these pieces of equipment in working order. On completion of this course, they were issued certificates authorising the company as an Otterbine Service Centre.

This was followed up by a sales training session at our offices run by Reg Varney, the Otterbine International Manager, which was attended by a number of our key sales and project managers. This session introduced them to the basics of pond and lake management, the range of aerators available, and an overview of efficient aerator use and layout.

With this new knowledge, MJ Abbott is in a position to better serve both existing and new customers in their quest for clean and healthy water bodies. This has become even more important in recent years with the need to utilise and recycle as much stored water and rainfall for irrigation purposes, and in some cases, to comply with Health & Safety requirements where public access to ponds and lakes is concerned. With certain models, the addition of lighting can add a dramatic effect by creating a spectacular night-time display.

With a range to suit anything from a garden pond (or even an unused outdoor swimming pool) to the largest lakes, Otterbine can supply an aerating fountain to suit your requirements.

For more information on sales or servicing, either visit the Otterbine website (www.otterbine.com) or contact our sales department.

December 2006.

Vehicle Asset Management System provides multiple gains for M J Abbott Ltd and its customers

M J Abbott Limited has purchased a Vehicle Tracking and Management System from Tracker Network (UK) Ltd. This web-based system will provide real time live information detailing vehicle location, speed and direction. This information is also available in various report formats allowing the historical recovery of journey details.

Each vehicle is also equipped with a Driver ID system. At the start of every journey, the driver will touch their electronic key to a receptacle on the dashboard to identify themselves.  This will allow our management team to better comply with our Duty of Care in the control of drivers' hours and necessary rest breaks.

With the system fitted journey times, site times and non-productive times can be accurately evaluated leading to increased efficiencies benefiting all parties.

At a glance our Operations Manager can see the status of all vehicles, call up the closest service engineer to an incoming service call and allocate the work accordingly.

With the large range of reports available it will enable MJ Abbott to provide a streamlined and efficient service, ensuring full compliance with Road Traffic Regulations and Health and Safety Legislation and at the same time protecting vehicles from theft and misuse.

Updated 05 October 2006