By the numbers

Paul F. Grayson

Shortly after I started at Crown Golf Club a heated argument ignited among returning mower operators in cold storage – the shop’s unheated indoor storage area subject to freezing in cold weather. Each operator was complaining the other guy was blocking their way and to get their mower out in the morning the other had to move. Unfortunately, the suggested relocation was in the way of someone else’s mower.

It is a fact of life that golf courses outgrow their storage buildings almost immediately, and this chronic lack of space is frustrating. I knew the drivers understood the mowing sequence better than anyone else. So I asked them to park their mowers in the order in which they need to go out in the morning, with the first one out closest to the door and so on. I then let them sort it all out.

Once the mowers were parked, I marked the center isle edge of each mower with blue painter’s tape and put a short stripe between each mower. A small square of painters tape on each mower got a “temporary” number and with the tape I made matching numbers three stripes wide and five stripes high on the parking spots. I then told everyone the numbered parking spots would be strictly enforced. Having chosen the order themselves, everyone agreed this was fair.

The blue painter’s tape was meant to be temporary until I could get around to painting the lines, but the tape held up remarkably well when applied to a clean floor. In fact, the blue painter’s tape lasts several mowing seasons before needing to be refreshed, and a putty knife easily scrapes up the lines or numbers.

At day’s end, few vehicles get parked in the traffic isle and they get moved out into the grass first thing the next morning. Machines that don’t fit in cold storage have parking spots outside of the building and the keys are brought in at day’s end. Rarely used machines that can stand being stored outside are parked in the tall weeds. Equipment no longer used is sold or scrapped to free up space.
 

In addition to the mowers flowing in and out with few complaints, there have been other unexpected benefits. For example, using the mowers’ numbers simplifies recordkeeping. Each time a machine comes in to be checked, set or repaired I enter the mower’s number, what was done to it and engine hours in my work log. When parts are ordered, I note what mower they are for by mower number. When the parts arrive, I mark which mower they are for, then the new parts lying on the workbench tell me which machine is ready to be worked on.

Numbering the parking spots and leaving just enough room for the machine that goes there has resulted in the densest parking pattern yet. The parking spots allow a few inches between mowers making the best use of the available space.

A clean parking area makes it easy to spot fresh leaks. And since they are all backing into the space for a quick morning getaway, mapping the leaks under each machine allows me to zero in on which machine needs attention.

Since it is difficult to tell clear hydraulic fluid leaks from water, I added red dye to the hydraulic fluid making it arterial red. Looking like blood, it gets everyone’s attention. Engine coolant is iridescent green, water is clear, grass juice is dark green, crankcase oil yellow to black depending on the engine type, and coffee spills are light brown.

Paul F. Grayson is the Equipment Manager for the Crown Golf Club in Traverse City, Mich., a position he’s held for the past decade. Previously, he spent 8½ years as the equipment manager at Grand Traverse Resort & Spa. Prior to that, he worked as a licensed ships engine officer sailing the Great Lakes and the oceans of the world.