Forsyth Barr Stadium First in Australasia to Welcome Desso Grassmaster

Another exciting milestone has been checked off the construction programme as Forsyth Barr Stadium nears opening on 1st August 2011, with Desso GrassMaster currently being integrated into the natural turf.

The pitch itself is something special, being the first time worldwide that natural grass has been grown under a fixed roof. Now, with the addition of Desso GrassMaster, Forsyth Barr Stadium will be capable of holding 3 times the number of events of a natural grass field with this permanent structural improvement to the pitch.

Desso GrassMaster is installed by a computer controlled machine with bobbins of artificial grass, injecting artificial fibres 20cm deep into the soil, every 2cm across the pitch. This results in approximately 20 million artificial grass fibres, which equates to enough fibre to stretch one and a half times around the world.

During the growing process, the roots of the natural grass interlink with the synthetic grass fibres as they grow deeper into the ground, anchoring the turf into a stable and even field. And although 3% of the pitch is made up of the synthetic grass fibres, Desso GrassMaster gives players the feeling of playing on a 100% natural grass pitch.

David Davies, CEO Forsyth Barr Stadium, commented “The introduction of Desso GrassMaster is just another unique factor that makes this Stadium absolutely world class.

With the increased stability and durability of the turf, we can deliver on our promise to be a truly multi-purpose facility, providing a wide range of events to meet the needs of the whole community”.