New Organization Boosts Industry Professionalism

A new organization called the Turf Equipment Technicians of the Carolinas has been created to increase the professional image, technical knowledge and safety awareness of equipment technicians, previously referred to as mechanics.

Defined, equipment technicians are the people who maintain the equipment necessary to properly manage golf tees, greens and fairways.

The purpose of the association is to open the lines of communication between turf equipment technicians, manufacturers, distributors and other groups within the industry. Through this organization, its leaders hope to provide education in the form of technical seminars, which will help to further enhance technicians’ abilities and expand their knowledge of different products, procedures and facilities within the industry.

This will also enable members to create a forum with manufacturers in which they can exchange comments and feedback with respect to the maintenance and repair of turf equipment products. The group’s overall goal is to establish a standard for all turf equipment technicians and increase the industry’s knowledge of the value of a properly trained equipment technician.

The Turf Equipment Technicians of the Carolinas currently has a board including Brandon Gayle as president, Lynn Lane as vice president and John Riopel as secretary/treasurer.

This year’s goals include establishing an annual meeting of the association membership, establishing local chapters within the association, providing periodic educational seminars within the local chapters, developing a newsletter, Web site and member directory, and including a list of equipment at each member’s course.

For more information, visit the association’s Web site at www.tetac.org or call Gayle at 919/369-9106.

The author is Managing Editor of Lawn & Landscape magazine and can be reached at nwisniewski@lawnandlandscape.com.