At Haileybury School in Hertfordshire, Kress robotic mowers are playing a key role in helping the grounds team maintain consistently high standards across a 500-acre estate. For Head of Grounds and Gardens Andy Richards, the technology has become an important part of a wider strategy to manage a busy, high-pressure site more efficiently.
Set within a co-educational boarding and day school environment, the grounds are in near constant use.
“We’re a 365-day school,” says Andy. “We’ve got students, lettings, tournaments and events throughout the year, so the pressure on the grounds never really stops.”
With 17 winter sports pitches, cricket facilities and extensive amenity areas, the demands are relentless, particularly on heavy London clay soils.
“It’s probably the most unforgiving soil you could have,” he explains. “It holds water in the winter and then dries and cracks in the summer. The weather just adds to that pressure.”
Haileybury’s journey into robotic mowing was not immediate. Like many in the industry, Andy initially viewed the technology with curiosity rather than intent.
“We were aware of robotics and where the industry was going, but at first we couldn’t really see where it would fit for us.”
That changed when noise became an issue on the main school quad.
“It’s a high-profile area right in the centre of the school, but we had complaints during exam periods because of loud mowing. We needed a solution that could work quietly and out of hours.”
Early trials with other systems fell short.
“We tried a few other brands, but the finish wasn’t good enough and the mowing patterns were too random,” Andy says. “It didn’t give us the quality we were looking for.”
A demonstration from Kress changed everything.
“The Kress demo was a game changer. To see a mower cutting in straight lines and producing a proper striped finish was completely different. Everyone was blown away by it.”
Unlike most robotic systems, Kress machines use satellite-guided navigation combined with their own RTK network, removing the need for on-site antennas. This ensures the aesthetic of historic grounds remains uncompromised, while enabling operation without line of sight and even under tree cover. The result is greater flexibility in the areas that can be maintained, with fewer operational limitations.
That flexibility has proved invaluable across the estate.
“We’ve got a range of Kress robots now and they’re an integral part of our toolkit,” Andy explains. “We use them where they fit best and move them around the site depending on demand.”
On the main quad, the robots deliver consistent presentation throughout the week, while on sports surfaces, they have opened up new possibilities during difficult conditions.
“This winter was so wet we couldn’t get machinery onto some of the outfields,” he says. “But the Kress robots kept working. We’ve been able to bring cutting heights down gradually and get surfaces ready for play when we otherwise couldn’t.”
One of the most noticeable improvements has been the consistency of cut and overall turf health. Because the machines operate continuously with sharp blades and follow structured mowing patterns, the finish is more uniform and the sward responds well.
“You get a much cleaner cut,” Andy says. “And because it’s cutting all the time, it helps with things like worm casts. It’s massively reduced the impact without any chemical control.”
For Andy and his team, the biggest benefit is not just time saved, but how that time is reinvested into other work.
“It gives us more flexibility,” he explains. “We can spend longer on the key areas like cricket pitches or first team surfaces, while the robots keep everything else in top condition.”
With pupils, staff and visitors on site seven days a week, presentation is a constant priority.
“The place has got to look its best every day,” Andy says.
For him, robotic mowing is now firmly embedded in how the site is managed.
“Without hesitation, I’d recommend Kress,” he adds. “You can walk around any site and see where a Kress robot would make a difference. It’s helped us raise standards everywhere.”
For more information, please visit https://www.kress.com/en-gb/
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