The Synthetic Turf Council has named AstroTurf Corporation “The Innovator of the Year” for the development of the Trionic fiber. The award was presented at the STC’s spring meeting in Seattle March 13. This innovation has been recognized as a significant accomplishment that helps to advance the industry by providing a fiber that is less abrasive yet more durable. Throughout the history of the synthetic turf industry, the great quest of manufactures has been to blend polyethylene (PE) and nylon into a single fiber. That dream became a reality with the development of the Trionic fiber.
“This award is very gratifying,” said Stephan Sick, Director of Research and Development for AstroTurf’s parent company, SportGroup. “Five years of pre-market research and development with teams in US and in Europe, constant testing, and continuous optimization have enabled us to provide the market with a fiber that offers the best possible field performance and wear resistance. This is truly high praise for hard work.”
From the industry’s earliest inception until the 1990s, nylon was used nearly across the board for its superior resilience and strength. The downside of all-nylon fibers was well known. It was abrasive. In the 1990s, polyethylene came into vogue and became the industry standard for tall pile face fibers. The PE fibers were much less abrasive, but they sacrificed the strength that previous generations of turf fields offered. But all of this is in the past as AstroTurf has reinvented PE – making it better, stronger, TRIONIC.
“Trionic monofilament fiber delivers our clients truly ground-breaking technology for their premium AstroTurf fields,” said Rich Jordan, Executive Vice President of Business Development and Marketing. “Developing innovative, state-of-the-art products is very expensive and time-consuming and we appreciate being recognized by the STC for the innovation in Trionic fiber. As founding members of the STC, we share a passion and dedication to be a trusted resource, to educate project stakeholders, and to help them select a surface that will exceed their expectations for durability and performance.”
After a full year of being on the market, it became clear that the Trionic fiber is the future of the synthetic turf industry. AstroTurf has responded by making Trionic the standard monofilament fiber in all its premium infilled systems, including the legendary RootZone Series and Diamond Series for baseball. There are so many technological features with this fiber that the explanation goes all the way down to the molecular level. It contains entanglement technology that helps to reinforce weak spots and helps prevent the fiber from splitting. It also incorporates Sharkskin technology that reduces the contacts points on the fiber, which results in less friction on the skin. All of this comes together to make a more durable field that is player-friendly.
The Trionic fiber has been extensively tested and it delivers a massive improvement in resistance to wear. Accelerated wear tests show that Trionic performs as well at 150,000 cycles as even AstroTurf’s own High Micron monofilament fibers at 100,000 cycles. Polyethylene fibers, regardless of how they are made, or how they may be combined, do not compare to the strength, resilience and durability of a molecularly fused Nylon and Polyethylene fiber.