With padel courts continuing to be installed at an inordinate rate of knots the length and breadth of this green and sometimes sodden land, and plans already being made for next year’s installations, Padel Tech thought it would be a good time to share five gems of information which will help any prospective padel court owner enjoy a successful installation.
Commanding a 60% of the UK market for padel court creation thus far, Padel Tech have installed over 160 courts in the process to create premium offerings at establishments like Canary Wharf’s sumptuous £5 million Padium development, which opened in September.
While it was Padel Tech which Gleneagles,Scotland’s premier 5-star luxury hotel resort, called when they wanted a bespoke singles court installed.
Add to that recent installations with pre-eminent clubs like East Gloucester and The Northern, thus when it comes to sharing our five tips to guarantee a successful court installation we speak from a considerable position of strength.
So without further ado it’s time to hand you over to Andy Ponton our Design and Estimating Director for these five nuggets of information that will help you swerve the pitfalls of padel court installation.
“First of all it’s important that the foundations of the padel court are always sitting at the edge of the court, so that they do not come into the playing surface area.
“If this happens then you will end up having as light hard edge and a potential deviation between the two surfaces. If that happens it impacts negatively on the playing performance of the court, so getting your foundation right is paramount.”
“The main thing is to ask the question: ‘Does the company you are talking to actually have the experience of building padel courts and carrying out the groundworks?’
“The groundworks and the finished surface will determine the overall quality of the court, make mistakes, or cut corners and it will show up, for example we have heard stories of the posts being installed half on the macadam half on the ring beam.
“So people have to understand that because they are installing a court which is manufactured to a very high standard it follows that the groundworks must be completed to the same standard or you will have problems.
“That said I have to admit that the standards as a whole are increasing all the time and being driven by SAPCA and the LTA in this respect.”
“Planning is very much an individual thing which is relevant to each job. The big plus in working with Padel Tech is that we have the in-house expertise to guide the client through that process on a job by job basis.
“However there are many things you must consider which are fundamental to this and the first one is the court and how it will appear relative to your neighbours and then you will need to take into account noise levels, light pollution, and the local ecology.
“So there can be mitigating factors, unique to each installation, which a client needs to take into consideration to get through the process.
“What is also important is that you have the expertise to problem solve as issues arise in this process and that is something, as I mentioned, that we do have within our capabilities and it can save the client a lot of trouble.
“For example right now we are having to do an archaeological dig on one of our sites to allow us to proceed and that is something we have been able to facilitate in-house.
“So this is an important consideration.”
“The main thing to talk about in terms of the playing surface is the carpet. No matter which carpet you choose it will only be as good as the base it is sitting on.
“If the base is up and down and out with tolerance, and we are working to plus or minus six millimetres over three metres,then the carpet will reflect that and any subsequent deviation will impact on the ball bounce and so mean you are not getting a true and consistent playing experience.
“This in turn will impact on people returning to play, so really it comes down to your contractor having the engineering expertise to ensure that the courts are designed properly from outside to in.
“There are a variety of playing surfaces which are excellent and we are working with a few of them on various projects.
“What is important is that you don’t get sucked into buying media hype and marketing and that you research your playing surface as it goes without saying it is a key part of the court.”
“Floodlighting is optional on all padel courts and the usage will be determined by the planning application and the conditions in terms of their period of use.
“The main thing with lighting is that it must meet the relevant requirements in terms of LUX & uniformity. Please see the LTA & SAPCA guidelines for these levels.”
Of course at Padel Tech we always like to add value so it’s time for one extra tip – on the house!
Check With Other Well Established Padel Venues:
“Do your market research. If you are going to be spending a significant amount of cash then it is vital to speak to other clubs or venues who have already been through that process and can provide you with gems of information that will help you avoid potential pitfalls.
“In this respect a lot of the companies who are now coming into the market just don’t have that experience, that record of work which is needed to provide the assurance required they are up to the job.
“Building a padel court is not the same as buildinga tennis court. It has its own unique characteristics and if you don’tunderstand that then you will make mistakes.”
If you need help on any of these issues feel freeto reach out to us on 0131 581 8683 or info@padeltech.co.uk.
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