Replay rejuvenates Minster School in Southwell
The Minster School in Southwell may be one of the oldest schools in England, having been founded in 956, but its sports facilities are up to date.
To complement its natural rugby and football pitches it has a state-of-the-art all-weather pitch. After experiencing problems with it in early 2018 David Everett, Acting School Business Manager called on the expertise of Replay Maintenance.
David oversees the maintenance of the playing surfaces and has a team of 3 site staff and a grounds person working hard to maintain the natural surfaces. “We had a problem with the all-weather surface as the sand had become very dirty and compacted due to the use over a number of years and this had a major impact on drainage. We therefore approached various companies with a view to undertaking a rejuvenation and Replay Maintenance provided the most comprehensive quotation” explained David. We were impressed by the process and we’ve now entered into a quarterly maintenance contract with them for the next 5 years.“
The Replay Rejuvenation® process can restore compacted and contaminated synthetic football, rugby, hockey and tennis surfaces to ‘as new’ performance and appearance. The first stage of the process is to extract the contaminated infill from the surface. Replays’ Beaver machines feature unique constant air-flow plenum technology and uses compressed air to remove the contaminated layer of infill and fully decompact the surface. It can extract the infill to any chosen depth, including to the carpet backing if necessary. The pile fibres are cleaned, untangled and restored to vertical. The operator will then assess the general condition of the carpet, repairing any weak or damaged seams. A purpose-built spreading machine then distributes the fresh infill to the correct depth. An integral centrally-mounted oscillating brush then works this infill down into the surface, completing the rejuvenation.
The process can fully restore a synthetic surface’s porosity, ball bounce and roll and player comfort. Unlike replacing a surface, the Replay Rejuvenation® procedure can be completed in days, minimising downtime and the important revenue stream that a synthetic pitch can bring. It also goes without saying that it also comes at a fraction of the cost of a full replacement.
David again: ‘The all-weather surface is used during the school day and also most evenings by external groups including different Football and Hockey Clubs. With such a busy schedule it’s important that the maintenance regime keeps downtime to a minimum. The planned maintenance programme with Replay will ensure this.’
