The award-winning grounds team at York Racecourse have gained two new recruits, in the form of an Echo TM-1050 and Echo TM-2050 robotic mower from GroundTech.
In the few shorts weeks since their delivery, the pair have been well received by Head Groundsman Adrian Kay as well as visitors to site who have commented that the enclosures and other perimeter areas have never presented better at this time of year.
With a busy race season from May to October, and a calendar compromising of weddings and corporate functions, the maintenance is a year-round operation for Adrian and his team of seven.
Like many in the sector, York Racecourse have found recruitment to be a challenge, particularly since the pandemic. They’ve decided to turn to technology to provide a helping hand. “We recognise that people don’t want to be working 60-70 hours per week, or at unsociable hours, much of which was attributable to the time it takes to mow our expanses of lawn. By investing in this pair of robotic mowers, I can redeploy my skilled team to other maintenance tasks, ensuring we can maintain presentation levels” Adrian explains.
Following advice from Echo’s Sam Daybell, they opted for the Echo TM-1050 and TM-2050. “We worked really well together, assessing the size and specification of the prospective areas to find the right fit. The TM-1050 is primarily used on our premium grass car parking areas, and the TM-2050 on the enclosures, parade rings and a number of medium and high spec lawns.”
“We’re already benefiting from all the well-documented advantages that robotics brings – mowing through the night and at weekends, in all manner of weather conditions.” Adrian continues, “It’s also meant that we’ve been able to retain presentation over a difficult, wet winter with the light footprint of the robots. This has not gone unnoticed by visitors to the course.”
“Considering the wider benefits, it means less need to turn to our petrol or diesel mowers which is a big plus from an environmental sustainability standpoint. In 2023 we launched ‘Green Knavesmire 300’ demonstrating our commitment to reaching Net Zero by 2040, with these new editions from GroundTech playing their part in this wider goal.”
Together with the expert support from the team at GroundTech and Echo, Adrian is enjoying exploring the full functionality of the software, allowing him to monitor the robots 24/7.
“I’m not sure I should admit this in print, but I find I’m on the app at four in the morning, making sure everything is going according to plan!” he laughs.
“But it is very useful, being able to see things like the battery life etc. Every day we’re taking the opportunity to learn more about them and really bed them into our routine before the season kicks off in May.”
