We’re taught from a young age that ‘sharing is caring’ but for Grant McDermid, Head Groundsman of Hearts Training Pitch, when you have a machine as good as the INFINICUT ® SM34 Rotary Mower it’s a challenging philosophy! Installed for use at the Oriam Sports Performance Centre – which is also home to the hybrid training surface of Hearts FC – the ability to pre-programme and select set-up configurations of the SM34 on the InfiniApp™ has made the shared usage situation that much easier.

Located in Edinburgh, Oriam is home to some of the best sports facilities in Scotland, offering an unrivalled performance environment for sports teams and athletes of all levels. Working alongside Oriam’s dedicated grounds team looking after the mix of natural and artificial playing surfaces is Grant, who is solely responsible for the maintenance of the hybrid pitch construction used for Hearts first team training four times a week. “The majority of the equipment used across the wider complex, including mowers, are ride-on whereas I hand cut this pitch” Grant explains. “To deliver the high levels required by the first team, it’s crucial I have the right tools for the job.”

“Oriam have a longstanding relationship with dealers Fairways GM and, I myself, with Alan Jack of INFINICUT ® so there was very little competition when it came to finding a new rotary mower for the all-important clean up cut. I’d been fortunate enough to trial the SM34 previously so knew how it worked and how easy it was to use, so was delighted when one was installed at the end of March… the trouble is I have to share it!” he laughs.

One saving grace for Grant has been the InfiniApp™, allowing each operator to store a number of parameters such as deck speed and walking speed, for quick and simple set-up straight from a smart device. “Not only does this save a huge amount of time, it also means I can be assured of consistency with every operation – and consistency, as they say, is key.”

Grant continues, “Everything with the purchase, the installation and all the support we received from both Fairways and Alan Jack has been excellent and, since we’ve had the machine, I’ve been really impressed with the quality of cut and finish it delivers.” With the end-of-season renovation now taking place on the Heartspitch, the SM34 Rotary is primed and ready to be back in action when pre-season training returns at the end of June. “Now that I’ve had a taster of what this machine will help us to achieve, I can’t wait to start using it as part of my daily maintenance programme. It’s going to be in demand that’s for sure!”