GreenFields Invests in children

Today, Greenfields has a staff of sixty, all of whom are enthusiastic and inspired. Greenfield employees are particularly proud of the innovative approach of their employer. The company’s current showpiece is the V-shape, which in many ways is unique in its approximation to real blades of grass. But no matter how many innovative synthetic turf systems Greenfields sells, the company does not forget the less fortunate, like the children of Africa.

Greenfields develops, produces and delivers synthetic grass systems and the accompanying substructure. By providing installation, construction and maintenance services, Greenfields is able to offer a totally complete package. “Our goal is to achieve worldwide coverage by 2009, not only in the Netherlands, but throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East,” says Miranda Laseroms, Project Manager at Greenfields.

Experience experts

The advantages of synthetic grass are countless. “Large quantities of rain can ruin playing grass since it can be easily destroyed when kicked. Artificial turf counterbalances this disadvantage. It stays green and is averse to bald spots, not to mention the fact that synthetic grass is of consistent quality. It also guarantees at least 1,200 additional playing hours a year compared to natural turf. Having one or more artificial turf fields is especially beneficial for amateur teams, either for training or as their main playing field. This takes the pressure off the surrounding natural turf fields, giving them more time to recover.”

Not everyone is immediately enthused, claims Miranda. “So we feel very strongly about the differences and changes players experience after playing on artificial turf. How does our artificial turf affect the game and techniques? And how can we further improve our products? Many of my colleagues are enthusiastic athletes themselves, some even at the highest level. So they’ve become true experience experts.”

Local entrepreneurs

“Greenfields is a young, rapidly growing, innovative and, equally as important, highly flexible company,” explains Miranda Laseroms. “Good ideas are put into practice almost instantly. This was also the case with the V-shape, our most recent innovation. We’ve created a V-shaped blade of grass that mimics a natural blade of grass. This keeps the blade standing upright. It also makes it easier for players to get under the ball and makes the grass naturally resilient.”

Greenfields fields can be found in the Rotterdam region, including at RV & AV Sparta and the Varkensoord training complex. But, as stated above, the company prefers to think of the entire world as its playing field. “In some countries, not a single blade of grass can grow naturally due to the climate. One such place is Rwanda, the location of a major project in 2008 where we have succeeded in installing a synthetic playing field together with local entrepreneurs who had never installed a playing field before. The responses have been so overwhelming that we now have received several requests for fields elsewhere in Rwanda and in neighbouring countries.”

An important development for 2009 is the construction of a 16,000 m2 hall at the head office of Greenfields in Genemuiden. “We are expanding our number of machines to meet growing demands. At Greenfields, our focus is on innovation and delivering high quality.
And, in 2009, we plan to (further) conquer Australia, America and the Far East.”

FIFA programme

At the same time, Greenfields realises that, for many people, the grass is still ‘greener’ on the other side. Miranda Laseroms continues, “We not only want to focus on the commercial aspects, but also on societal issues. That is why we are proud to be a part of the FIFA programme ’20 centres for 2010’ for underprivileged neighbourhoods in Africa. Local, regional and international organisations are joining forces for this project to give young people a place to play and easy access to education, health care and social support. The idea behind the programme is to use football to create a better future for children and young people.

The centres are being built at locations in Africa that are far from as safe and peaceful as found in the Netherlands.
The first Football for Hope centre will be constructed in Cape Town.” Miranda adds, “Greenfields has already installed numerous fields in Africa for FIFA, where we are happy to provide prospects and positive contributions to the future of the top athletes of tomorrow!”