Brighton & Hove City Council appointed ETC Sports Surfaces to a 70x31m pitch reconstruction at Hove Park, East Sussex. An Artificial Grass Pitch (AGP) was resurfaced with a modern 3G artificial grass surface, and had added fencing, pitch divider, sports equipment and associated works.
AGPs are commonly Astroturf, but ETC combine this surface with their 3G surface to make an all-weather pitch. Essex-based ETC worked alongside Desso Sports UK, who supplied the iQ3 50 artificial grass, while West Midlands fence manufacturer Zaun Ltd provided 225m of its Duo8 Super Rebound sports fencing plus two pairs of double gates and one single leaf pedestrian gate.
Zaun says that its Duo8 Super Rebound forms a play area that is durable, low maintenance and ‘graffiti-proof’, with rebound properties similar to a wall and rubber inserts between panels and posts to keep ‘rattle’ during play to a minimum.
Hove Park covers almost 40 acres and features open grass, mature trees, flower beds and recreational facilities, as used by residents, dog walkers and runners. At the eastern edge of the Park is the ‘Fingermaze’, a piece of public sculpture carved into the park and lined with stone and lime mortar. The Fingermaze is a giant fingerprint which incorporates a Cretan labyrinth within its whirling design. The 3G football surface is in use by clubs and schools.
3G pitches are split into two varieties: the dynamic base, which is a hardwearing, cost-effective choice of synthetic grass surface; or the non-abrasive engineered base, considered the optimum 3G pitch with the look, feel and endurance, providing the right shock and slide performance. A major advantage of modern all-weather artificial pitches is their adaptability.
