Recent Project: Heineken Cup, Quayside

With fan zones and other attractions set up across the city centre there was plenty to do for the visitors to the North East of England.

We were and are hugely proud to be asked and trusted to provide and install artificial grass for such an important event. There were huge complications whilst planning for the big day such as the weather forecast as well as the normal situations such as access covers like fire hydrants etc.

The overall installation would be close to 2500 square meters which ended up being one of our biggest tests to date which we can happily say we passed with what believe were outstanding results.

Our installations were split along the Newcastle quayside where the main fan zone for the event was held.

On the day of installation, the weather was against us and we had torrential rain fighting us all day. In these situations, it becomes vital that we take care when joining and securing the grass to the floor so that there is no lifting in high winds or any trip hazards left. No matter whether it is one person using our product or thousands we have a duty of care that we take very seriously to ensure that all our artificial grass installations are safe to use.

The main part of this project was on Wesley Square which is well known for NE1’s very popular Seaside Quayside. The difficulty with this area is it has bollards across the full length as well as trees with steel frames and monuments. The ground on this area is not completely flat either so in areas, we needed to level the area off using granno dust before covering it in the artificial grass.

These areas were made up of the cobble borders which surround the paving on Wesley Square as well as several sinkage points caused by the tree routes. Overall once the ground had been levelled you could not tell that there were any undulations within the ground works.

Due to the obstacles, the joints on this area were very difficult and time-consuming to complete. Again, with the grass being soaked by the time we needed to do this it made it more of a challenge which our team of skilled installers did not shy away from. We use an all-weather adhesive when needed which ensures that it will set regardless of how much rain fell that day.

ON short events like this, we would not normally use glue as it is designed to last for many years but when safety is involved it is paramount that the installations are safe. When removing the grass following the event it is very difficult to break the joints but proves that the system works.

The other areas we were tasked to cover were at the guild hall site under the Tyne Bridge tower which was used for many different bands during the whole event. This was also the main entrance to the fan zone and alongside our giant grass letters #NE1 this was an outstanding welcome to the thousands of fans visiting.

We also installed on the main roadside in front of the law courts creating a small dancing area in front of the stage used for live bands in the evening. Not to forget a miniature rugby pitch in front of the Baltic for the Newcastle Falcons to run small training sessions on with groups of youngsters.

Overall the whole event was a resounding success putting the local area on the international map and once again we proved that we can provide the best results for artificial grass during events.