Photo: Woodard & Curran
Just as one would maintain a house to improve its longevity or design a car with airbags for safety, proper design, maintenance, and use are required for synthetic-turf fields. Without these elements, the field warranty may not be worth the paper it is written on; further, athletes will be at risk for injury, and the owner could potentially be liable.
Planning and designing an athletic field should be as much about safety as performance. The key user-group age and sport should be identified, and the field section (i.e., the subsurface components) should be designed for that group. Part of the design process includes not only product and performance requirements, but other important items, such as maintenance equipment and warranties.
Key Maintenance Activities One myth surrounding synthetic-turf fields is that they do not require much in the way of maintenance. While maintenance is reduced when compared to that necessary for natural-grass fields, it cannot be eliminated. There are simple yet important steps that an owner or operator should take to inspect and maintain a synthetic-turf field: