Shaw Sports Turf and Shawgrass recently received a patent for their cutting-edge Playability Assessment Tool. A trailblazing company at the forefront of upgrading playing surfaces around the nation, Shaw Sports Turf and Shawgrass is revolutionizing the ever-changing scope of field playability and design. After years of testing artificial turf against high-end natural grass, the Playability Assessment Tool is slated to improve turf fields in both college and professional football.
Shaw already has several keynote partners in both NCAA and NFL football. Some of the more forward-thinking franchises around the league have already installed their turf product at their practice facilities, a list that includes the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, and Las Vegas Raiders. All three franchises have been praised for accepting the product as the way of the future. The Ravens in particular are an organization that is constantly searching for ways to upgrade their product via analytics and fresh technology, and identified Shaw's product as the ideal playing surface for their practice facility.
Through the Playability Assessment Tool, Shaw will successfully manage to enhance safety, durability, and overall performance evaluation for sports and recreational facilities. The process of creating the Assessment Tool consisted of seven rigorous tests that were thoroughly developed and tested on world-class facilities around the country. It served as Shaw’s compass to navigate through the vast number of potions in turf field creation, leading to the desired product with the athlete’s best interest in mind.
“We are very proud of this patent which represents the great investment we’ve made in helping customers understand their sports field from a multi-dimensional perspective.” Dr. Trey Brindle, Director of Shaw's Research and Innovation department, said. “Our playability tool not only leverages the large amount of data we’ve collected on top-level sports fields to guide us when developing high-performing turf systems, but also helps our clients make informed maintenance decisions.”
The NFL isn't the only organization recognizing Shaw's achievements in the field of playability and design. Various collegiate programs have been using the product for a number of years, ranging from Ohio State to Georgia Tech and SMU. Ferndale High School and Montana Tech are included in the list of playing fields around the nation that have installed the product.
Shaw uses its GameOn technology to integrate field line packages while enhancing graphics during the manufacturing process. The traditional way of installing turf fields is to lay down a mostly green field, then cut in and seam inlays, which include lines, numbers, hash marks, and logos that are different colors. With GameOn’s integrated field line packages and enhanced graphics technologies, there can be a massive reduction in inlays, directly contributing to the consistency of Shaw's playing surfaces.
Year after year, professional athletes are consistently getting bigger, stronger, and faster. Ensuring they're developing their abilities via the highest quality and safest environments is critical to the process. With many partners already on board, Shaw Sports Turf and Shawgrass are ushering in the next era of playing surfaces via their Playability Assessment Tool.
