Sisis, based in Macclesfield Cheshire, is a long established manufacturer of professional grounds maintenance equipment for natural and artificial surfaces.

Following the acquisition, Ian comments:

“We have acquired the respected brand, designs, patents and intellectual property and this new partnership is part of our ongoing investment strategy.

Our traditional strengths – reliability and excellent customer support – will enhance this partnership and we are optimistic about our future together, working as a team to further grow our profile in the market, our products dovetail extremely well.

We will now be conducting an immediate review of all aspects of the business, including customer service and supply.

These are exciting times as we build on a long period of strong performance and a particularly successful year in 2010.”

A selection of Dennis and Sisis professional groundscare products will be showcased on stand A4 at BTME in January 2011.

The Solvert sales staff were instructed on the correct operation of a range of machines and also the features and benefits. Amongst the machines were a number of new or recent introductions including the SISIS Arrow-AerAid pedestrian aerator; the Rotorake 602S with seeder option and also the towed implement frame with attachments for synthetic pitches.

SISIS Equipment, Export Sales Manager, Ewen Wilson, commented that it is important that our distributors worldwide are kept up-to-date with the SISIS range of Turf Maintenance Equipment, therefore regular training sessions are vital.

“We should have had this quick and simple implement from the start as it does a great job”. Andrew Woodhall, Head Groundsman, Pocklington School describing the SISIS FLEXICOMB on a TWIN PLAY frame recently acquired by Pocklington School.

The SISIS Flexicomb has 60 sets of polypropylene bristles which can be made stiffer or softer by adjusting the crossbar. On synthetic surfaces the Flexicomb ensures even distribution of infill material and lifts the pile. The Flexicomb is very effective on natural turf and can, depending on the chosen setting, be used as a brush or as a rake.

Andrew and his small team of Alan Whatling and John Noble are responsible for 21 acres of sports ground and have a varied and challenging task.   A seperate Gardening Dept lead by Head Gardner, Paul Wright assisted by John Maycock is responsbile for the school gardens.

Equipment is shared by both teams who have chosen SISIS to supply the range of reliable and versatile equipment required to look after all the grounds, including a SISIS DP48 slitter, SISIS Auto-Rotorake Mk. 4 scarifier, SISIS Litamina HT sweeper and a SISIS Flexicomb on a Twin Play frame.

“The versatility of these machines help us to do the best possible job whilst saving on storage and maintenance costs. The SISIS Litamina sweeper is suitable for the maintenance of both natural and synthetic surfaces. Also used in conjunction with a mid mounted rotary mower fitted to a compact tractor the Litamina can cut and collect in one operation, helping us to keep the school’s pitches in tip top condition all year round”, Andrew Woodhall, Head Groundsman, Pocklington School

SISIS Equipment (Macclesfield) Limited are delighted to announce the appointment of Ewen WIlson as their Exports Sales Manager.

Ewen has worked for the Company for 26 years as their demonstrator in Scotland and Northern Ireland and, in addition, has undertaken many demonstration trips overseas.

as Territory Manager for Beds/Cambs/Essex/Herts/Norfolk/Suffolk

Mark can be contacted on 07970 642549

or email on mark.sisis@btinternet.com

An abstract from John Rowland’s thesis is given below and we are grateful to him for allowing us to publish it.

“IMPACT AND CONTROL OF ORGANIC MATTER IN USGA ULTRADWARF BERMUDAGRASS GREENS

Ultradwarf bermudagrasses are commonly used for golf course putting greens in Florida due to their ability to tolerate high temperatures and low mowing heights for fast green speeds.  Their dense growth habits can cause excessive organic matter build-up above and below the soil line, negatively affecting surface and soil characteristics.  This experiment was conducted to evaluate seasonal impacts of commonly used cultural management practices on United States Golf Association ultradwarf bermudagrass putting green properties to determine optimum timing and effectiveness of treatments.  Three ultradwarf varieties (‘FloraDwarf’, ‘TifEagle’, and ‘Champion’) were subjected to six cultural management treatments: Hollow tine aerification (one, two, or three times yearly), deep verticutting (three times yearly), solid tine aerification (five times yearly), and an untreated control.

Verticutting and hollow tine aerification 3x reduced shoot counts in the Spring/Summer study.  Verticutting had higher volumetric water content than hollow tine aerification 3x in the Spring/Summer and Summer/Fall studies. Since verticutting had the firmest surface, least mower scalping and localized dry spot, and eventually had higher quality, water-holding capacity, and fewer clippings it was the most beneficial treatment.”

Part of the Abstract of Thesis Presented to the Graduate School of the University of Florida in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science by John Hudson Rowland,  August 2008

With acknowledgement to John L. Cisar, University of Florida (FLREC), Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center.