I'm back in my hotel room in the truly fabulous Westin Peachtree Plaza for a few minutes before yet another dinner appointment with some industry colleagues, and as the first full day of our staff's experience at the GCSAA Education Conference and Golf Industry Show comes to a close, the one theme that has permeated my day has been water and irrigation.
Clearly, that key aspect of the career of any golf course superintendent came to the forefront early this afternoon when John Deere officially announced that it was entering the irrigation business with the creation of John Deere Golf Irrigation. The equipment giant is partnering with Signature Control Systems to create a full-service irrigation division that will begin selling heads, valves and control systems later this spring. It doesn't take much to see this move as a direct challenge to Deere's primary competitors in red, The Toro Co., which has a well-established and well-respected irrigation division.
And earlier Thursday, the folks from Toro had a press gathering of their own to officially announce the new products it is unveiling here in Atlanta, including a wide array of irrigation products. To cap the day's theme, the folks at Rain Bird also had a news conference on Thursday to show off some of its new products, which includes a pair of new rotors -- one of which is designed to evenly distribute water in windy conditions and the other which features a smaller range designed to accurately distribute water in more tight, precise areas.
Clearly, Deere's full-fledged entry into the irrigation world -- they previously offered limited irrigation products and services through an agreement with Hunter Industries as a part of Deere's One Source initiative -- will make the biggest splash, primarily because it signifies the start of a product-to-product showdown with Toro. But don't think today's theme was any accident. Companies in this industry clearly understand that one of the most pressing issues facing superintendents today and into the future is water and irrigation, and they are focusing their efforts to address these issues. For superintendents, this should be viewed as good news. Customer demand plus innovative thinking is always going to pay off for the end user.
That's all for now, but for those in Atlanta, I encourage you to stop by booth 1829 to visit with the staff of GCM. For those checking this blog from afar, we hope you're enjoying this inside look at the show. Keep the cards and letters coming.
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