SIOUX FALLS, S.D., Dec. 16, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mondo, a global leader in the sports flooring market, today announced that the University of Sioux Falls has completed the installation of its new Mondoturf Fine Tuned System 3 artificial turf soccer field. It is the first facility in the U.S. to install this innovative new artificial turf system, which features the Fine Tuned System underlayment and Ecofill Star infill.
Mondoturf FTS 3 replicates the playing performance and characteristics of a natural grass field, and it produces minimal environmental impact. Because of its low lifecycle cost, the new FIFA 2-Star-certified system is an excellent value and it boasts exceptional safety features, including optimum shock absorption and energy return.
"The Mondo field contributes significantly to the success of the University of Sioux Falls soccer program," said Dr. Mark Benedetto, president, University of Sioux Falls. "Our student athletes who have practiced and played on the surface have given the Mondo system a resoundingly positive critique. The improvements to our soccer field have resulted in immediate success: this fall we were just one goal away from advancing to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Men's National Soccer Championship, which would have been a university first."
The Fine Tuned underlayment is made of recycled tire pellets and other recycled materials that are treated and encapsulated in polyurethane, preventing the possibility of contamination and leakage. The underlayment's excellent drainage eliminates the need to remove much of the soil and subsoil, and replace it with stones, which can cause viability problems and can be time consuming, expensive and environmentally damaging.
The underlayment compacts less than traditional systems, so the field's play and performance characteristics remain consistent throughout the entire surface, ensuring optimal play and outstanding ball action while minimizing the risk of injuries to athletes, even if the infill migrates.
The new turf system's infill, Mondo's Ecofill Star, is a patented, environmentally friendly, factory-manufactured polyolefin-based granule infill, not reground tire pellets, which are commonly used by the artificial turf industry.
University of Sioux Falls officials selected the Mondoturf FTS 3 turf system after extensive research, including a visit to MondoJuve -- the official training center of Juventus, one of Italy's most successful professional soccer teams -- and other venues in Italy where the field is installed. University leaders also visited Mondo's plant in Alba, Italy, to see how Ecofill Star is produced.
"When we made the decision to build a pure soccer facility, we wanted the best soccer turf we could find, even if we had to travel to Italy to see it," Benedetto said. "What really sets Mondo apart is the extensive research the company has done to develop a field that produces the same kind of soccer ball bounce as a natural grass field. Other synthetic fields we evaluated produced too much bounce. We also believe Ecofill Star is superior to infill made from rubber and sand."
The Sioux Falls field will be used predominantly for soccer, but it will also be used as a practice field for the university's football team, for various sports by the neighboring high school and as a playground for the grade school. The field is regulation size for FIFA soccer, so the venue also could host national and international tournaments. USF is a private, Christian university with an enrollment of 1,600 students. USF fields 19 athletic programs as a member of the Great Plains Athletic Conference and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.
About The Mondoturf Fine Tuned System 3
Mondoturf Fine Tuned System 3 comprises the Fine Tuned System underlayment and Ecofill Star infill. The Fine Tuned System underlayment is an innovative, environmentally friendly solution for reusing granulated post-consumer rubber that provides a safe surface for athletes. It also produces minimal environmental impact because it reduces the amount of soil and subsoil removal and stone procurement and placement required. This reduces the production of harmful CO2 emissions.
In addition, the Fine Tuned System underlayment provides excellent value. The turf playing surface can be easily removed at the end of its useful life and another playing surface can be laid on top of the same underlayment for considerable monetary savings versus completely replacing the field. Plus, the removed playing surface is fully recyclable thanks to a patented process, and field maintenance costs are as little as 5 percent of the maintenance costs of grass fields. The system is guaranteed to maintain its performance and playability characteristics over its entire lifecycle.
Installed in more than 300 facilities worldwide, Mondoturf Ecofill Star was designed through extensive biomechanical research to reproduce all of the properties of natural grass without the problems associated with artificial fields made of the increasingly controversial reground tire granules (crumb rubber).
An environmentally friendly material made from recycled content, Ecofill Star is virtually odor free, even in hot, humid conditions. It delivers the appropriate amount of shock absorption and energy return for optimal, natural field-like athletic performance. Ecofill Star also retains less heat than traditional black rubber granules, so it dramatically reduces field temperatures and the potential for athletic fatigue/dehydration, and it minimizes the need for fields to be watered down prior to use. In addition, it is completely recyclable, which is an industry first, and it is manufactured in a factory-controlled environment with a combination of select raw components that are guaranteed to be free of potentially harmful substances.
About Mondo
Mondo is the global leader in the sports flooring market, manufacturing floor surfaces for virtually every sport. More than 1,000 Mondo tracks and 800 Mondo artificial turf fields are installed worldwide.
The official supplier of the athletic track for the past nine Olympic Games, Mondo also is the official supplier or official sponsor of more than 100 sports federations and associations, including FIBA, IAAF, Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association, NIRSA, U.S. Track Coaches Association and YMCA.
The company also supplies a wide variety of commercial flooring and is the world's largest producer of sports and toy balls with an average daily production of 450,000 units. In addition, it manufactures large luxury yachts under its Mondo Marine division.
Mondo invests heavily in research and development to ensure its products meet the highest quality standards in the industry, deliver optimal athletic performance, are durable, require minimal maintenance and are environmentally safe.
A family-owned business since its founding in 1948, Mondo's global headquarters are in Italy. The company has manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and Asia and sells its products in more than 196 countries. More information about Mondo is available at www.mondousa.com.
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Mondo, Mondoturf, Fine Tuned System and Ecofill are registered trademarks of Mondo.