Mowing at top level

Maintaining a professional soccer field is a feat, as the playability and aesthetic appearance of a field are also becoming increasingly important. So decent machinery is essential. AH Vrij, a company that specializes in soccer field maintenance, found the ideal solution in a custom-built Jacobsen Eclipse 360 ELiTE Sport.

With fields such as ADO Den Haag and Sparta Rotterdam in their portfolio, AH Vrij is no small player in maintaining sports fields. Every day many people from the company are busy maintaining 160 grass fields and about sixty artificial fields. This ranges from grass sowing and fertilizing to mowing. During the season, AH Vrij's people focus mainly on playability and maintenance, while in the off-season the focus is often on the complete reconstruction of a grass field. 

Lawn mowing

You can probably imagine: one of the biggest occupations of AH Vrij is lawn mowing. In the winter months, this is done once or twice a week, and in the summer it can even go up to three times a week. With such a high mowing frequency, it is a necessity to have a well-functioning lawn mowing machine. That machine AH Vrij found at Pols, namely the Jacobsen Eclipse 360 ELiTE Sport. The mower, originally designed for golf courses, required some initial adjustment to perform optimally on soccer fields. "At the start at ADO Den Haag, this was the only mower available," says Bo Videler, implementer at AH Vrij. "A golf course is mowed to 0.5 centimeters, but a soccer field you're more likely to mow at 2.2 to 2.7 centimeters. You can see that difference in the mowing pattern."

Quick solution thanks to good cooperation

The shorter cutting height initially produced a less tight field, with a light glow and brown spots. But that was quickly addressed. "We contacted Cees Wolters of Pols. Together we found a partner who could supply other blades. Since then, the mowing pattern has been as it should be."

Videler is very appreciative of how the cooperation with Pols went. "This problem would not have gotten solved without the help Pols offered us," he continues. "Because we were so satisfied, we immediately purchased the exact same mower to maintain Sparta Rotterdam's grounds. We hope to continue working with Pols in this way in the future."