18.04.2017 - Ausgabe: 2/2017

FV Steinmauern sets itself apart from competitors with a cork filling

The football club FV Steinmauern has recently started playing on a modern artificial turf pitch. Previously, they played on a 30-year old clay surface and a natural turf pitch which was often only really suitable for play in summer. During their search for an all-weather pitch, the club worked together with Nicolas Krieg from the engineering company Ingenieurbüro Krieg in Freiburg, who carried out the planning and construction site management work. Together the people responsible in the club he visited different reference pitches to demonstrate the advantages and disadvantages of individual kinds of artificial fibres and fillers. A choice was then made for a pure monofilament with quartz sand and cork filling. The requirements with regard to surface, density and quality of the pitch were satisfied by the manufacturer, Trofil Sportbodensysteme GmbH & Co. KG, with Trofil-Green® 30-138, which was installed over an area of 6600 square metres by the Gotec Sportplatzbau GmbH Company based in Weil am Rhein. Before this new surface could be installed, the old clay surface needed to be removed. As the new pitch was to be slightly smaller than the old one, it was possible to leave the original substrate and lay interlocking paving stones for access paths. With a length of 100 metres and width of 66 metres, the new pitch is still large enough to fulfil the size requirements for a football pitch. The new artificial turf used is characterised in particular by its monofilament fibers. The high number of fibers – more than 140,000 fibres per square meter – and the resulting high yarn weight ensure a full appearance as well as an optimal play and ball roll behaviour. Thanks to this new playing surface, grazed knees after a hard tackle are a thing of the past, just as much as grass stains on the players' kit. The weather-resistant surface can be used for training and competition play in strong sunshine or freezing cold and rain. The cork filler also plays a decisive part in the new play feeling. In comparison to other materials, cork does not become as hot in summer and, being a natural product, does not emit any odour. "With the cork filler, the FC Steinmauern sets itself apart from competitors' pitches where as a rule, rubber granules are used", explains Nicolas Krieg and adds, that the players are very enthusiastic about the high-quality artificial turf and the pitch's rapid installation time.

 

Photo: Trofil Sportbodensysteme GmbH & Co. KG