New USA plant enables TigerTurf to grow

On the back of global success, including the six year old TigerTurf UK operation, sports and leisure turf manufacturer, TigerTurf International, has announced that it is building a new state of the art factory in the United States to cater for the growing demand for its products in the Americas.

As the next step in its global expansion plan, the new US plant is planned to open in June, and will be situated in Austin, Texas, because of its central location and proximity to transport routes. TigerTurf Americas will service a network of distributors already in place throughout the United States, Central and South America.

”We are already selling into the US, using product from our New Zealand and UK factories and also some made under contract by a local manufacturer, but having our own facility will enable us to be more immediately responsive to our customers,” says Graham Vivian, founder and owner of the company. ?The Austin plant will also be unusual in the US in that tufting and backing operations will be carried out in the same factory which will allow better product development and quality control.”

?That TigerTurf now ranks as one of the top companies in the world in our industry reflects our strong commitment to research and innovation which enables the development of products that set us apart from our competitors. And, in a relatively young industry, our 25 years of experience gives us another leading edge,” says Vivian.

TigerTurf has become the market leader in the UK since opening a factory in England in 2001 and the company supplies sports and landscape products throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Where appropriate, these surfaces are accredited by world governing sports bodies such as FIFA, FIH, ITF and World Bowls. Products include different turfs for soccer, rugby, hockey, tennis, cricket, bowls and golf, as well as market leading dual sport champion, TigerTurf Challenger.

The company has pioneered realistic looking synthetic grass for aesthetic and environmental landscaping uses, as well as developing complete systems for the childcare and safety play markets.

TigerTurf UK Managing Director Bryn Lee adds, ?On the back of the success in our New Zealand and Australian companies, it was possible to start in the UK in 2001. We are delighted that continued global success has enabled the group to now take on the huge challenge of the American market. Becoming a FIFA Licensee last year showed we had arrived, but to be the first company in the industry to have three manufacturing facilities strategically located around the world is a real sign of TigerTurf's ambitions.