Design with water in mind

Design with water in mind



Speaking at the invitation of Ken Moodie, the institute's Vice President at the historic Castello Di Carimate, he told members that the uniform application of water is often overlooked as an objective in the design of irrigation systems.

He stressed: "Maximising the efficiency of an irrigation system through good design has aesthetic, agronomic and golfing implications for the course. In the quest to save water, appropriate design is arguably more influential than merely adopting technologies such as valve-in-head sprinklers, computer controls and weather stations."

Whilst the appearance of wet and dry patches on a golf course can be caused by wind or variations in root-zone, drainage or topography, it's often poorly uniform irrigation application that's at fault.

"Having emphasised that, achieving a uniform application of water from an irrigation system is a far more complex issue than just specifying a head-to-head sprinkler spacing". Giles went on to explain the scientific principles of uniformity and the approaches available to the irrigation designer to optimise it.

Using densograms generated by SPACE (Sprinkler Performance And Coverage Evaluation) software, he illustrated the dramatic effect that seemingly unimportant design options can have on the efficiency and uniformity of an irrigation system.

Mr. Moodie, who's also Chair of the institute's professional development committee commented: "The EIGCA arrange Continuing Professional Development seminars on a regular basis to keep our members up-to-date with advances in technology. We were very pleased that Giles agreed to speak and he delivered an excellent talk. With growing environmental awareness, the need to conserve water and apply it efficiently has never been more important."

For further information about Giles Wardle and IrriPlan, please visit www.irriplan.net