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How the conversation around LED grow lighting is fundamentally changing
LED grow lighting has become an established component of professional stadium turf management. However, the technology continues to evolve. New insights from horticulture and protected cropping are changing the way the sports industry views light, plant physiology and turf performance. The greatest advances do not necessarily lie in more technology, but in a better understanding of what a plant truly needs.
We spoke with Florian Mans, Chief Commercial Officer and co-owner of Stogger Turf Care, about the lessons that can be learned from horticulture, the evolution of LED grow lighting and the importance of knowledge sharing within the industry.
What the sports industry can learn from horticulture. Before Stogger Turf Care became active in the sports sector, the company built its expertise within horticulture. It was there that the team gained first-hand insight into how strongly the development of LED technology is driven by the professional growing industry. Professional sports turf accounts for only around 0.5 per cent of the global LED grow lighting market. The remaining 99.5 per cent is found in horticulture and greenhouse production, where the largest investments are made in LED efficiency, optics, spectrum development and thermal management.
Mans explains: “When we turned our attention to sports turf, one thing immediately stood out. For many years, the sports industry assumed it already had access to the most advanced lighting technologies available. Today, many of the most significant technological developments take place outside the sports sector, making knowledge exchange between the two industries increasingly relevant.”
While horticulture is often focused on maximising production, sports turf is driven by different objectives. “In elite sport, the aim is not maximum biomass production,” Mans clarifies. “We are not trying to grow as much grass as possible. We are striving for a strong, dense and resilient turf surface that can recover quickly, withstand limited sunlight exposure and continue to perform under the constant pressures of modern stadium operations. That requires a different philosophy towards grow lighting, where light is not regarded as an objective in itself, but as a tool for influencing specific plant responses.”
Over the past few years, Stogger Turf Care has experienced significant growth. Within two and a half years, the company expanded from eight to 54 employees and developed nine LED grow lighting systems entirely in-house. Mans comments: “We continuously evaluate the latest developments in LED technology, optics, cooling systems and electronics, always asking ourselves one simple question: what is genuinely best for the end user? Not what is cheapest, not what is easiest to manufacture, but what gives grounds teams the greatest opportunity to succeed.”
According to Mans, the industry needs education just as much as it needs new technology. For a long time, the conversation around LED grow lighting was dominated by established routines and existing assumptions. Today, however, grounds teams have access to insights and tools that were simply unavailable only a few years ago. “Concepts such as Daily Light Integral (DLI), spectral control, uniformity and dynamic lighting strategies can have a fundamental impact on turf performance. Understanding these principles enables grounds teams to move beyond simply applying light and instead use light strategically. The industry was not doing things incorrectly in the past, but both technology and knowledge continue to evolve.”
When it comes to innovation, Stogger Turf Care deliberately adopts a pragmatic approach.“Perhaps that is precisely why we are not necessarily most proud of the number of machines we have sold, but of the number of people we have convinced through experience rather than promises.” The company has now deployed more than one hundred demo units at clubs and organisations across Europe, allowing grounds teams to assess the results under their own conditions.“ We chose to simply place our technology on the pitch and let the results speak for themselves. Presentations generate interest, but proof creates trust.”
According to Mans, the first opportunities came from local clubs that were willing to give a relatively unknown player a chance. From that foundation, the company steadily expanded towards some of the biggest names in international football, including organisations such as Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund, Brighton & Hove Albion FC and BC Place Stadium in Vancouver. Through the latter, Stogger Turf Care is contributing to the largest FIFA World Cup ever organised. “At BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, Canada, we are involved in one of the three largest LED grow lighting projects of the entire tournament.”
At the same time, the stadium is regarded as one of the most challenging venues within the tournament due to the limited availability of natural daylight. “Maintaining a world-class natural grass surface there requires much more than tradition alone. It requires innovation, expertise and trust,” says Mans.
Reflecting on the past few years, Mans emphasises that the story has never been solely about grow lights. “Every step in this journey confirmed what we believed from the very beginning: that innovation must be practical, that knowledge should be shared and that every decision must begin with the people who work with our technology.” Ultimately, according to him, it is all about the professionals who are responsible for the quality of the playing surfaces every day. “It is about supporting the people who arrive first and leave last – the grounds teams responsible for some of the most iconic playing surfaces in the world.” By providing better insights and creating greater certainty in an exceptionally demanding working environment, the company aims to contribute to stronger decision-making and improved on-pitch results. “Our goal has never been to become the biggest player in the market. Our focus has always been on doing the right thing: building the best possible solutions, educating the market and helping our customers make better decisions. If that journey ultimately leads us to become one of the largest players in the industry, that would simply be a wonderful consequence of staying true to what we believe in,” concludes Florian Mans.
