oving to a hybrid playing surface is
a growing trend for the world’s sports
stadia as, in recent years, natural turf
alone has shown its limitations to cope
with the modern demands that elite
sports and venues require. Organizers’ event calendars
that are packing in more than ever to increase revenue
is putting a strain on all-natural grass surfaces, which
have a finite playing time they can support before
becoming damaged. With the introduction of hybrid
pitches, however, the effective playing time now
available has quadrupled.
Since the first arrival of hybrid pitches, beginning
with Desso’s GrassMaster in 1989, hybrid grass
technologies and products have continued to rapidly
advance. Where hybrid grass pitches typically have
the synthetic fibers woven or injected into the natural
surface in situ, today there is a popular movement
towards a carpet system. This involves turf created offsite
in highly-controlled environments where natural
grass grows through a matrix of artificial turf, and then
transported to the stadium for installation in large rolls.
The benefit of this system is that hybrid turf is
constantly growing throughout the year and is ready
to install far quicker at any given moment a stadium
requires new turf. Spanish soccer side Athletic Bilbao’s
Nuevo San Mamés Stadium is one venue that employs
this system. While some industry experts believe the
carpet approach is currently not as resilient as a
stitched pitch, the carpet method’s technology is
fast catching up.
“Artificial fiber technology is evolving and
developing all the time. Where fibrillating yarns were
commonplace, now advanced monofilament
polyethylene fibers are more common. The same type
“Artificial fiber technology is,
evolving and developing all the time”,
Lee Collier, senior design consultant, STRI Group
Different hybrid systems
require varying maintenance
processes and equipment
Lerkendal Stadium in Norway
has turned to hybrid turf
technology to mitigate harsh
winter weather conditions
HYBRID TURF
50 www.stadia-magazine.com June 2019
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