MJ Abbott and Bailoy save the Buckinghamshire £10,000 a year

Course Manager Andy Ewence joined the 18-hole parkland course in November 2011 and made addressing the irrigation system’s problems a top priority.

He found the 20-year-old control system cumbersome and inflexible, and was unhappy with the UK support system. But, with the pipework and sprinklers still sound, there was no justification for spending some £500,000 on an all-new system.

Instead, Andy chose to upgrade to Bailoy’s GTI computerised central control system, which uses decoder field hardware and GTI software to better manage the course’s irrigation programme.

“I wanted a flexible system that could do more,” Andy reveals. “So we looked at retrofit alternatives and GTI really appealed. I liked that all we really had to change was the controller. The infrastructure is still the same. I have 800 to 1,000 sprinkler heads, so it was also crucial that the wiring was compatible or otherwise we’d have had to rewire all of the heads.”

In fact, GTI is fully compatible with most existing systems, which is why it’s proved popular with an array of clubs and venues seeking a quick, easy and cost effective irrigation upgrade both here in the UK and worldwide. But, on top of that, Andy has found the efficiency savings of up to 20 percent achieved since contractor MJ Abbott installed the system have made GTI a particularly prudent investment.

“When we decided to go ahead with the system, I estimated we’d save 10 percent a year, but we’re already ahead of that target,” he adds. “I reckon it’s saved us £8,000 to £10,000 already in water bills.

“As of early September, that means the system has paid for itself – and we still have a couple of months of watering left in the year. We were spending £45,000 on water annually, so the savings are going to be significant. The club’s managing director and finance director are delighted.”

A favourite feature of Andy’s is the Visual Irrigation Programme (VIP), which displays a full colour map of the course for quick and easy on-screen checks and changes to watering schedules and programs.

Bailoy’s GTI is suitable for both refurbishment and new-build projects across an array of golf, sports and amenity turf applications.

MJ Abbott are irrigation specialists with particular in-house expertise in irrigation control systems, offering a retrofit control option to many older irrigation systems where the controller may have become obsolete but the system infrastructure is still viable. MJ Abbott also offer a remote support service, where they can log in remotely to the control system PC and solve any problems or make any programming adjustments which may be required. They also offer an online system backup service to ensure swift recovery if disaster strikes.

Bailoy:  http://www.bailoy.com/