John Deere on safety and finance

Safety to the fore with new John Deere fleet

By Steve Mitchell

When Aston Wood Golf Course in Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, bought its first John Deere course maintenance fleet at the beginning of

"Naturally we looked at equipment from all the major manufacturers, but John Deere offered us the best combination - a good product range, reliable back-up service, the most cost effective finance, but probably most important of all, comprehensive operator training, particularly on safety aspects," says Ken Heathcote, Aston Wood's general manager and club secretary.

"Not a day goes by when there is not some aspect of health and safety to deal with in this job," he adds. "There's an increasing amount of legislation that we have to be aware of and conform to, and we have to be seen to follow good working practice throughout the business.

"At a recent two day national seminar run by the Association of Golf Club Secretaries, which covered all aspects of running a golf course, the best part of a day was spent addressing health and safety issues.

"John Deere offered us two full days of training on their range of machinery, one at their own training centre and one here at the course. This involved going through the product manuals and showing greens staff how to operate and maintain all the equipment properly and safely.

"Although the training was optional, we made a positive decision to take it up to ensure we are meeting all relevant health and safety requirements - this is a serious subject and it deserves to be taken seriously."

Head Greenkeeper John Holmes and his staff of six are now operating a full range of new John Deere machines on Aston Wood's 180 acre, 18 hole championship course, designed by Peter Allis and Clive Clarke, and constructed to USPGA standards.

These include a 3235B fairway mower, 2653A tees and surrounds mower, 2500A greens mower, 1445 front rotary mower, 4x2 Gator utility vehicle and Pro Gator utility vehicle with cargo box, worth in excess of £100,000, bought on a five year lease through John Deere Credit.

New appointments at John Deere Credit

John Deere Credit has announced three new area manager appointments to its UK finance team, providing support to the John Deere dealer network for both agricultural and Groundscare equipment sales.

Alma Draper is the new area manager for North Yorkshire and Lancashire. Alma started with FAF 13 years ago,

Paul Martin is the new John Deere Credit area manager for the north of England and the Scottish borders, based near Hexham in Northumberland. His appointment follows a five month spell as a trainee area manager covering the whole of the UK. Paul previously spent five years with FAF and John Deere Credit, working in asset management and dealer liaison.

Further information on any aspect of equipment finance can be obtained from John Deere Credit on free phone 0800 592 422.