Dear California Customers:
Thanks so much for contacting us about the City of Glendale, California’s recent decision to ban the use of synthetic grass in front yards throughout the city. We were surprised to learn this news, as the area still faces an important need to conserve water and synthetic grass eliminates the need for watering lawns. Also, while the ban impacts front yards, the City continues to permit homeowners to install synthetic grass in their backyards.

Unfortunately for local residents that already enjoy their synthetic grass landscape, Glendale Mayor Laura Friedman and city leaders might not have been adequately briefed about the safety and many benefits of synthetic grass. The Synthetic Turf Council, a non-profit trade association we belong to, has urged the City of Glendale to reconsider its decision. After all, today’s environmentally friendly synthetic grass looks like natural grass and has been proven to be safe by organizations such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Glendale High School, Disneyland, the Twentynine Palms Marine Corps Base and thousands of homes, businesses, golf courses, and public spaces have turned to synthetic grass to provide a lush, attractive landscape solution that saves precious water, eliminates the use of toxic fertilizers, and requires minimal maintenance. Synthetic turf playgrounds and sports fields help combat childhood obesity by giving kids a safe place to play while also creating more recreational opportunities for people with disabilities that require an accessible play area. It is used by retirement communities for landscaping to assist residents with mobility challenges.

According to the Southern Nevada Water Authority, every square foot of natural grass replaced by synthetic turf conserves 55 gallons a year. If an average lawn is 1,800 square feet, then homeowners in Glendale save 99,000 gallons of water each year or about $400 annually. Glendale should also study the impact of yard trimmings on its municipal solid waste. In the U.S., the EPA estimates that 33.2 million tons of yard trimmings were generated in 2009, the third largest component of Municipal Solid Waste in landfills. As yard trimmings decompose, they generate methane gas, an explosive greenhouse gas and acidic leachate. Recognizing these benefits, other California municipalities such as Riverside and Foster City are offering homeowners rebates to replace their irrigated areas with synthetic grass.

The safety of synthetic turf has been verified following studies by the U.S. EPA, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment of the California EPA, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and Department of Health, Connecticut Departments of Public Health and the Environment to name a few. Visit www.syntheticturfcouncil.org to see studies posted in their entirety under Research & Latest Thinking or to learn more about synthetic turf overall.

We appreciate your time and will keep you posted as this situation unfolds. Thanks for your interest in synthetic grass!

Regards,

Challenger Industries, Inc.
www.challengerind.com

We all know about the water saving benefit that EnvyLawn artificial grass provides, but converting to EnvyLawn can also help reduce water pollution. EnvyLawn does not require any pesticides, fertilizers, herbicides or other chemical treatments that are commonly needed for grass, but you can have an even more significant reduction on water pollution by simply having fun on the weekends rather than mowing the lawn. A study by the University of Minnesota found that “plant residues such as lawn clippings and leaves have considerable potential for pollution of lakes”

Since there is no need to mow EnvyLawn, there are no lawn clippings in the storm water runoff and this leads to lower phosphorous levels in lakes and streams. Yet another benefit from switching to EnvyLawn artificial grass!

According to research, for every one manufacturing job that exists, there are 5 more that are created, such as
accounting, truck driving, clerical, research and development positions. With the loss of over 5.5 million manufacturing jobs in the United States over the last decade, our country has seen the loss of over 33 million jobs! This alone should drive the American consumer to desire to purchase American made manufactured goods.

The fact remains, however that purchasing outside the country seems to offer immediate financial
benefits. Certainly purchasing goods overseas, especially from the Chinas and Indias of the world, allows for the average American to afford consumer goods and durables that were once only
afforded by the middle-upper class American. Yet, if we could take the seemingly immediate gain off the table for only a moment – one might reconsider that the pros of purchasing American
certainly outweigh the cons – TENFOLD.

» US Manufacturing Processes are much healthier for the environment than many other countries.
Purchasing American made products can help to keep the global environment a
little bit cleaner – a benefit for us and generations to come.

» Many foreign countries have low standards that allow unsafe working conditions. When you support American manufacturers, you are also supporting good working conditions for the American worker and
ensuring that child labor laws are enforced.

» When one chooses American made products, he or she is supporting a fair day’s wage for an honest
day’s work. Many countries do not have a minimum wage law and workers are exploited.

Why support jobs being shipped overseas? When you purchase goods made in the US, you support the American economy. Supporting domestic manufacturing by purchasing American products prohibits the “leakage” of US funds overseas. Should we participate in a concerted domestic procurement program we, as consumers, have the ability to increase U.S. manufacturing job creation by an astounding 33%! All the while ensuring that our tax dollars actually go directly to US job creation!

» Foreign product safety standards are much lower than those in the US. By purchasing American goods, one can be assured that consumer protection laws and safety standards will be in place to protect one’s self and their entire family.

» When we make the decision to purchase American goods we are helping America to grow more
independent by not forcing us as a nation to outsource our need for manufactured goods to any other country.

» If America’s commerce becomes solely dependant upon service and agricultural endeavors, we
allow precious jobs to continue to disappear. Buying American helps to ensure that jobs with fair wages continue to be available to us and for future generations!

At Challenger Industries, Inc. we strive to keep business on American soil. Our vendors are all American-based and/or materials from vendors made in the U.S. , and all of our manufacturing is done locally in Dalton, GA.

By purchasing Envylawn artificial grass from Challenger Industries and it’s network of dealer/installers you are supporting the American economy!

We are VERY excited to announce some changes / upgrades to our existing Envylawn® Product line. We have been working for over 2 years to develop a series of new yarns that will add both a better look and greater durability to our products.

These yarns will begin being introduced over the coming weeks so please work with your Challenger sales representative and our customer service staff as we make the transitions.

The following is a list of product changes by turf series:

Envy Series (NVY1, NVY2, NVY3):

• Upgrade face yarn to new MS ULTRA fiber technology

Superlawn Series (ELSB, ELSP, ELSE, ELSF):

• Upgrade face yarn to new EL OMEGA-R fiber technology

• Addition of new product:

o ELSF – Superlawn First cut, 60 oz, 1.56 inch pile, tan thatch layer

Fescue Series (ELFP, ELFE, ELFC, ELFS, ELFX):

• Continue use of MS Pro yarn

• Upgrade thatch layer to heavier denier for greater durability

• Addition of 2 new products:

o ELFS – Fescue, 50 oz, 1.75 inch

o ELFX – Fescue Xtreme, 80 oz, 2 inch

Note: CMD1 will now be called “ELFP – Fescue Pro”, CMD2 will now be called “ELFE – Fescue Elite”

Product specification sheets and samples will be ready in the coming week(s) so please contact your sales representative with any questions or requests. Also, please be on the lookout for more details on these changes that will be sent via our Challenger Newsletter.

We pledge that we will continue to keep the Envylawn® product line at the top of it’s class by our research and development of new yarn systems. We appreciate your continued loyalty and hope that all these upgrades and additions will allow you to better serve your customers!

Challenger Industries, producer of the leading Envylawn turf brand, is upgrading the entire line with the latest advancements in yarn technology. Over the coming months the product line will begin changing as the company incorporates these cutting edge yarn products. These changes will provide installers and end users with the very latest in yarn enhancements and continue to make the Envylawn product line the highest quality on the market. Powered by the Duraflo E.E.B.S. backing system, all Envylawn products are 100% recylable and the “greenest” products in the world today! All changes are expected to be made by June 2011. For more details about the Envylawn line of synthetic turf visit www.envylawn.com.

Environment-friendly, eco-friendly, nature-friendly and green are all terms for the same cause. Artificial turf, fake grass, artificial grass and synthetic turf are all terms for the sports turf to support this critical cause. Challenger Industries, Inc. has challenged itself over the past 27 years to provide the most eco-friendly, high-performance field turf in the industry. We boast that we have met that challenge with our DuraFlo E.E.B.S., environmentally engineered backing system, the most environmentally friendly product in the industry. We challenge you to do your part in making greener choices for the future. 

Our talented engineers took the proven technology of hot melt polyolefin adhesive systems and developed it to produce the highest quality products ever. Not only the most trusted leader in the industry, Challenger is also an innovative leader in creating environmental solutions. Recognizing a need for a superior recyclable backing system, we designed DuraFlo E.E.B.S.^®, which is made from completely from polyolefins, making it 100% recyclable. Additionally, it does not need to go through a damaging hole punch process and it will not clog, as do products using perforations for drainage. 

DuraFlo, found in our DURAPlay^® and Envylawn^® sports and leisure turf lines, helps our products make a difference in conserving the planet’s natural resources. You can also make a difference by choosing our products for your indoor fields and outdoor applications.

 Football, baseball and soccer fields

• Golf greens, miniature golf courses, putting greens
• Tennis courts
• Sports performance facilities
• Practice fields, golf mats and batting cages
• Play areas and playground
• Residential and commercial landscaping

 The uses are endless, as are the rewards. Besides saving the environment, you will be saving major time on maintenance while allowing players the opportunity for optimum performance with less risk for injury.

 With increasing water shortages and environmental concerns over chemicals and pollution, the need for synthetic turf solutions increases. Protecting the environment, professional and aspiring athletes alike, children, pets and the community has been a primary mission for Challenger. We consciously continue to fulfill that mission and ask you to help by going green with our products. We will also help you with LEED certification.

 You can meet the challenge! Call Challenger at 1-800-334-8873, our experienced staff will help determine the right choice for your surfacing needs. Check out www.duraplaysports.com and www.envylawn.com for the highest quality, most extensive line of products. We are confident we have the best solution for you.  Contact us today!

Challenger Industries, a global leader in synthetic turf manufacturing,  has just built and began production with the turf industries fastest and most advanced  tufting machine.  The high speed machine, built by Tennessee based Tuftco, is already running at speeds in excess of 800 RPMs.  The fastest high-speed machines currently utilized by other manufacturers top out around 600 RPMs.  The new tufter uses the latest technological breakthroughs to produce high quality products at the fastest speeds attainable.  This machine has replaced two older machines and already doing the work of both combined.    Challenger is already looking to replace other machines with this technology to increase production capacity and provide further efficiencies.

Envylawn is proud to offer a full line up of synthetic turf products, including turf options designed for pets.  Our pet turf products are dense, lower pile products that can be installed with or without infill.  Popular pet hotels and animal hospitals have chosen our products for installation at their facilities.  Our high quality, environmentally friendly products can be used commercially or in a residential setting.  Contact us for more details.

Challenger Industries is a global leader in synthetic turf manufacturing and offers the only 100% recyclable turf products on the market today.  Manufacturing turf since 1983, Challenger markets and sells under the Envylawn and Duraplay brands.  Contact us at 800-334-TURF for more details on all our turf products.