SALTEX PREVIEW
GKB SP100 proving top of the topdressers for Garsons Group
o support their rapid
T and continued growth , Garsons Group Ltd have been investing in equipment to help them deliver contracting and maintenance services to the full spectrum of sports surfaces . One machine that joined the fleet and has now become their ‘ go-to ’ for topdressing is the GKB Sandspreader - and while perhaps it wasn ’ t quite ‘ love ’ at first sight , Director Gareth Davies says it was definitely ‘ the perfect fit ’ at first sight after spotting the SP100 at BTME !
“ Straight away , I could tell that SP100 was a great size machine that would suit the variety of work we do ” explains Gareth , who has spent 25 years working in the groundcare industry and established Garsons as a limited company three years ago . “ We ’ re conducting renovations , reconstructions and ongoing maintenance for winter sports pitches , cricket and golf courses so need something with a large enough hopper capacity to be efficient , but not too big that access to certain sites may become compromised . The Sandspreader ticks all the boxes .”
Gareth opted for the mounted SP100 model and , since its delivery in the spring of 2021 from local dealer Ernest Does , he estimates they ’ ve applied in the region of 4000 tonnes of sand with it . “ The hopper is the main benefit for us . The SP100 holds 1m3 of material at a time meaning we can apply over 100 tonnes in a day which is critical when the team are working to tight deadlines . It ’ s also really easy to use and adjust for lighter or heavier applications when needed . We use it primarily for football and rugby , but this year we used it on a cricket square for the first time and it did a brilliant job .”
The GKB SP100 is the smallest unit in the Sandspreader range , with larger models offering up to a 4m3 hopper capacity . The material is transported from the hopper to the adjustable metering valve via an internal conveyor belt , before being efficiently and evenly distributed via the double disc hydraulic spinners . As well as trailed and mounted formats , GKB also offer the SPM model , which features a side material handler for the convenient filling of bunkers or trenches .
“ Another big thing for us , has been the support and customer service from GKB , which has been excellent throughout . Tom Shinkins is always on hand for advice and , when we needed some additional parts recently , he was able to get them to us in under 24 hours which is the kind of back-up we need as we drive our business forward .”
www . gkbmachines . com
48 GroundskeepingJournal . co . uk | September / October 2022