GURNEE, Ill., Sept. 1, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- When the Warren Township High School Blue Devils kick off their 2011 football season Friday against New Trier High School, a state-of-the-art field will be underfoot: a Mondoturf 3NX Thermo-bonded artificial turf system.
The Mondoturf 3NX Thermo-bonded artificial turf system is manufactured by Mondo, the global leader in the sports flooring market. Installation was completed this week.
The Mondoturf field—which replaced a natural grass field—is the latest in a series of enhancements to WTHS' multipurpose stadium. During the past five years, the school has expanded the venue's seating capacity, added new lights and installed a new scoreboard.
As the final improvement, school officials also wanted to upgrade the field from natural grass to a highly durable playing surface so that the stadium would be better equipped to handle the large number of events it hosts throughout the year. With a surface that can withstand heavy use—even in inclement weather—the stadium now will be home to WTHS football, boys' and girls' lacrosse, boys' and girls' soccer, physical education classes and band practices, as well as a community lacrosse club and youth football practices and games.
"Previously, the field was limited to football and boys' lacrosse, and we didn't practice on it very much because we didn't want to tear up the field," said Mark Pos, Warren Township High School's athletic director. "Throw in the fact that our band uses the field a couple of times a week, and during football season, the grass field would get pretty beaten up, especially if it rained before a band rehearsal. Now, none of that is going to matter."
WTHS administrators chose Mondo from among the leading artificial turf suppliers based on visits to other nearby sports venues where they could evaluate fields first-hand, as well as the Blue Devils' experience playing on rival high schools' fields. "From everyone we spoke with, Mondo stood out as being a quality product—we knew we would be extremely comfortable going with Mondo," Pos said.
The Mondoturf field's groundbreaking 3NX fiber has proven core characteristics that allow it to perfectly mimic the responses of natural grass, and to do so with outstanding resilience and durability while offering superior player comfort.
Thermo-bonded, Mondo's newest artificial turf backing, provides a dimensionally stable tufted turf without needing a polyurethane secondary backing. A dual primary backing holds the turf fibers in place more securely than traditional primary backings can, so the field can be handled as necessary with virtually no fiber loss.
About Warren Township High School
Comprising two campuses approximately 4.5 miles apart, Warren Township High School serves more than 4,000 students and is one of the largest high schools in Illinois. The campuses are located about 40 miles northwest of downtown Chicago. A member of the Illinois High School Association, the school fields 13 boys teams and 14 girls teams and competes in the North Suburban Conference.
About Mondo
Mondo is the global leader in the sports and contract flooring markets, manufacturing flooring surfaces for virtually every application. More than 1,100 Mondo tracks and 800 Mondo artificial turf fields are installed worldwide. The official supplier of the athletic track for the past nine Olympic Games and the upcoming 2012 London Olympics, Mondo also is the official supplier or official sponsor of more than 100 sports federations and associations.
The company supplies a wide variety of commercial flooring, and it 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.
A family-owned business since its founding in 1948, Mondo sells its products in more than 196 countries. The company's global headquarters are in Italy, and it has manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and Asia. More information about Mondo is available at mondoworldwide.com.
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Mondo is a registered trademark of Mondo.