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TURFGRASS. PADEL RACKETS MAGAZINE
Projects and News
Turfgrass logos in artificial grass
Turfgrass and Lankide join the bwin 2011 Pádel Pro Tour circuit through the design and installation of two large artificial grass mats clearly showing the bwin logo, which is woven into them.
Lankide, which specialises in setting up infrastructure and in the production, design and management of events (www.lankide.com), has placed its trust in Turfgrass, specialists in the design and production of top-of-the-range artificial grass, for the manufacture of these innovative mats.
Using this unique system developed by Turfgrass, it is now possible to weave a crest, logo or any other image into artificial grass.
This new format is available for all those sponsors who wish to be noticed at events and clubs. The format is both original and long lasting, since the mats’ colours stay bright for up to 8 years without fading in the rain and sun. More information at www.turfgrass.es
Playing Surfaces. Selection Criteria
Artificial Grass Surfaces
This kind of surface, which is currently experiencing enormous popularity, began to be developed in Australia in 1985 by Dale Hansen, with the aim of a creating a surface for the Australian Tennis Open. There were several attempts in the USA in the 1970s, when the first polypropylene fibre was created. This surface was tried out at a Californian tennis club and failed. At that time, there was not sufficient knowledge of the elements needed for a tennis ball to bounce and interact correctly with a soft fibre surface similar to grass.
Once enough was known about sand-ballasted artificial grass in Australia, and after helping to develop these fibres for the Australian market, where grass courts were popular, Hansen was ready to develop this new surface.
The technical staff did not try to replicate traditional long-pile synthetic grass, but focussed on a dense, short-pile surface that required less sand to support the fibre system.
Additionally, they developed a cushioned system that was more comfortable for players’ bodies and also offered a uniform ball bounce. Later on, this cushioned system became one that would meet all the requirements in terms of a perfect balance of uniform bounce, moderate speed and protection for the player’s legs and back, as well as offering an innovative and refreshing appearance.
In view of the exceptional success of this kind of surface in outdoor sports like football, hockey, golf, tennis, etc. and although the demand from padel tennis is comparatively smaller to that in other sports because of its smaller playing surface, we have detected a strong commitment to manufacturing artificial grass in Spain.
Up until now, the majority of artificial grass sold in Spain has been imported. Today, as we have been able to see for ourselves at the Tecnodeporte Trade Show this year, there are many brands that import and distribute in Spain, and four companies that fully or partially manufacture in the country, including Mondo Ibérica, Tecnograss (Grasstec), Poligras and TurfGrass.
Some, like Mondo, are already manufacturing their own yarn at their facilities while others are importing the yarn and sewing it to the backing, and later adding a primer of latex or polyurethane (sub-layer) to this backing.
Nowadays, the grass that is installed on padel tennis courts is made up of a short-pile carpet (normally with an 11-15mm pile length) sewn to a sub-layer (backing) of impermeable latex that is perforated to allow water to pass through (drainage) to the porous concrete below, a layer which also allows water to drain through.
The grass’s quality, as well as its height, is determined by the composition of the fibrillated or monofilament pile, and the number of stitches (knots), which give it a greater or lower density. The fibre layer that makes up the surface of the grass is known as the wear layer. The main difference between the two types of fibre is the so-called fibrillation effect. In fibrillated grass, each pile element is made up of a union of a number of fibres, whereas in the monofilament version, each pile element is an independent fibre.
The artificial grass requires three things for assembly:
- Dry silica (sand). This provides ballast to the surface and allows sliding and twisting when making playing movements. The approximate quantity required per square metre is between 9.5 kilos (11mm grass) and 16 kilos (15mm grass).
- The geotextile joining strip and the bicomponent glue responsible for joining the sections of artificial grass together. This glue does not stick to the ground.
Maintenance
The best attraction that a club can offer is having courts in perfect condition and ready to play, where the members feel comfortable and can see the difference in quality between these facilities and others elsewhere. That is why choosing a high-quality artificial grass is crucial for prolonging the good condition of the playing surface, as well as for ensuring members’ loyalty and attracting new players.
Unlike other surfaces, the characteristics of artificial grass when playing padel tennis can vary greatly from one product to another, even though these products may look similar. Each artificial grass producer offers the market its own proposals by varying the composition of the materials, the fibre structure and the height and density of the stitches; these properties determine its quality and one should consider them when choosing the product.
The same product can present significant differences, such as appearance or response to play, when installed at different clubs. This is because other factors, beyond the grass itself, are also important and change its characteristics. These factors include the type of floor that the grass is installed on, the sand infill, the age of the courts, how often they are played on, the maintenance and even the location of the courts (covered/uncovered, near the sea or not, etc.).
For these reasons, although the most logical thing might seem to be to analyse and test a court in use, in practice this may be misleading. Analysing the grass’s technical characteristics is the best guide we have to tell us how durable our courts will be.
How to analyse technical characteristics correctly.
Lists of characteristics given by artificial grass manufacturers tell us information about the materials used and each one’s quantity.
Given that the fibre is what lies on the surface, and that this material will have to withstand all the wear (abrasion, footfalls and sliding motions, maintenance, temperature changes, etc), this will be the point to focus on.
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The fibre’s structure: Fibrillated or Monofilament. The monofilament has a thicker structure than one provided by a fibrillated fibre, and therefore it will offer more protection in terms of wear.
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The fibre’s composition: Polypropylene or Polyethylene. Polyethylene offers greater resistance to UV rays and abrasion, as well as a tolerance to low temperatures. Polypropylene, on the other hand, is less elastic and tends to break.
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The fibre’s weight: This is given in gr/m2 and is determined by the fabric’s gauge (the distance between needles), the number of stitches, pile height and Dtex number (the yarn’s mass). The greater the fibre’s weight, the greater the product’s quantity and quality.
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Finish: Latex or Polyurethane. Since this is a product with a relatively short life, the advantages of Polyurethane over Latex are not important during installation, although it is important to remember this when carrying out maintenance.
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Durability: Usually, this information does not appear in the technical characteristics, since a product’s life is determined by the use and maintenance of the courts. However, it is possible to get an idea of the number of playing hours a court can be used for until it starts to appear worn. This is done using what is known as the lisport method, which is used by FIFA to certify football pitches; it consists of rolling two cylinders with studs over a grass sample for a certain number of cycles, simulating the duration of play.
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Total product weight: This section is the total of the weights of the fibre, the primary backing and the finish. We should not just consider this piece of data, since the most influential thing is the finish’s weight, which will depend on its composition.
The importance of maintenance
Artificial grass cannot be installed and simply left. Only with appropriate maintenance can good results and a long life be obtained.
Reasons for looking after your artificial grass:
Aesthetics
Safety
Durability
Quality of play
Common problems:
Horizontal fibre. Initially, the fibre is erect. With time, use and exposure to the elements, the fibre lies down. This affects the fibre negatively, since it is no longer only the end that is exposed to wear, as would be the case if it was erect, but the central part is exposed and wear occurs transversally. In this way, defibrillation occurs, the fibre wears prematurely and becomes loose.
Maintenance:
Turf-Soft machine, which decompacts the sand and cleans debris and dirt by vacuuming microparticles. Furthermore, it sweeps the sand, spreading it evenly, and places the fibres in a vertical position.
Blower and vacuum machine.
Highly-qualified personnel.
Maintenance estimate:
Includes:
Maintenance to prevent compaction every three or six months.
Periodical actions such as sweeping and spreading the sand ballast using specialised machinery.
Transport.
Checks of net, cords, fencing, glass and cabling.
Does not include:
Spares for exceptional repairs.
Find out more about Artificial Grass maintenance
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31. NEW PADEL TENNIS CLUB IN ZARAGOZA
This summer, a new padel tennis club opened in Zaragoza: the Pádel Indoor Aragón. The club, built in a former industrial unit, has 7 covered padel tennis courts, with a central court. It also has a complete gymnasium, cafeteria, a shop specialising in padel tennis products and an indoor terrace so that spectators can watch the games being played.
The club has a website where users can register and sign up for matches and events, and book a court from the comfort of their own homes.
Pádel Indoor Aragón is now the largest padel tennis club in Aragon region, and one of the largest indoor facilities in Spain. This very complete club has installed latest generation Turfgrass Artificial Grass in all its padel tennis courts.
Installation was carried out by Euronix Metal S.L., an Aragonese company that specialises in the installation and assembly of metallic sports structures: stands, seating, changing rooms, gyms, courts, tennis and padel tennis facilities, etc.
Euronix Metal is an official Turfgrass distributor and installs Artificial Grass for sports all over Spain.
