Auditing & Performance
ASTC provides independent sports field auditing of natural turf facilities, including elite and community sports fields, schools, golf courses, racetracks and bowling greens.
Benchmarking
Achieving improved accessibility, safety and quality sporting surfaces requires a clear understanding of the factors affecting the performance of the surface. Factors include venue usage, design, construction and maintenance. To quantitatively define and measure these factors and assess any limitations present, it is essential that an independent sports facility audit be undertaken.
Councils, schools, community and elite sports facilities who have engaged ASTC to conduct sports field auditing have in turn requested repeat testing, otherwise known as benchmarking.
Sports facility benchmarking enables the client to track how their facility is performing based on earlier data, seek additional turf maintenance advice, maintain their asset and show a duty of care to the end user. Testing for Councils also helps them prioritise which of their fields should receive an allocation of their annual budget to conduct routine, minor or major works to improve turf quality and/or field safety.
ASTC can also undertake an independent review of sports field usage data and provide information that will assist Councils, clubs, schools etc. to make sure they are not over using their asset(s).
Auditing Services
Specialist sports field auditing and/or benchmarking services may include, but not limited to following the following tests using a range of performance testing tools:
- Traction testing
- Surface hardness testing (Clegg Impact Hammer)
- Shear turf/rootzone strength
- Soil moisture testing
- Water infiltration testing
- Irrigation auditing e.g. a check of sprinkler head and valve box heights, distribution uniformity testing etc. A detailed irrigation audit can also be undertaken
- A measure of surface undulations
- Surveying to determine surface levels, low areas and fill requirements
- Turf quality and cover, including weed identification, incidence of pests and disease
- Analytical testing including independent soil, leaf tissue and water nutritional testing, organic matter content testing, plant health disease testing etc.
- Observation of turf maintenance practices and field usage
A detailed report on observations made and recommendations to improve turf quality, maintain field safety and to help maximise resources is provided.
Contact us to get your project started
Recent auditing and performance projects
2022 Moreton Bay Regional Council Sports Field Auditing
Toowoomba Regional Council
Somerset College
