Old university pitch replaced with multi-purpose synthetic field

 A very widely used synthetic pitch at Aston University in Birmingham (UK) has come to the end of its natural life after ten years of usage.

Indeed, this hockey pitch at Aston University had begun experiencing a number of performance issues due to its age. The pitch got condemned for hockey, but its huge importance for the university’s staff and students, as well as for the local community, meant that a quick replacement was well needed.

Thanks in part to the facility’s extensive community use, the university was successful in applying for funding at the Sport England’s Community Sports Improvement Fund. The university then prospected for a new surface which could accommodate hockey as well as football, at recreational and club level. With each sport placing very different demands on a surface, the university worked with a consultant to select a long-lasting pitch able to cope with a high level of use.

The new 6000m2 full-size pitch was successfully completed ahead of schedule in just ten weeks last July.

Clive Eals, project manager for the Estates and Capital Development department at Aston University, commented:

“We were keen to use a product which was manufactured in the UK, as this meant we wouldn’t have to pay for the turf to be shipped from the other side of the world and also that we could rely on delivery times”.

“The new pitch looks outstanding. Whereas the old pitch had a longer length and rubber crumb infill which wasn’t ideal for playing hockey, the new surface is made with a sand infill – although you wouldn’t know it as you have to go looking for the sand.

“It’s a beautiful, even surface and it just makes you want to get out there and play sport, which is what we want for our students and the community.”