Powerscourt Golf Club, Ireland, has adopted a fleet of fully ‘connected’ Precedent i3 vehicles from Club Car, the world’s largest manufacturer of electric golf cars, to enhance course maintenance, further improve customer service levels and increase additional revenue opportunities.
The former Irish PGA Championship venue upgraded its existing Club Car fleet with 16 new Precedent i3 golf cars, all fully equipped with the market-leading interactive touch screen ‘connected’ technology, Visage.
Club Car’s Visage technology, which is offered as standard on the company’s Precedent i3 golf car, has already been installed at many of the world’s leading golf destinations; including Gleneagles, home of The 2014 Ryder Cup in Scotland, The Grove, a World Golf Championship venue, The Belfry, one of the UK’s busiest golf resorts, Quinta do Lago in Portugal and Yas Links in Abu Dhabi.
The user-friendly touch screen system is designed to connect the vehicle to the golf operation, while providing golfers with hole-by-hole information, electronic scorecards as well as messages from the golf shop.
“The ability for staff to be remotely connected to the vehicles at all times has provided us with a number of significant benefits, all of which will help to increase the club’s on-course revenue,” said Gavin Hunt, General Manager at Powerscourt Golf Club.
“During wet weather conditions we would often have to limit golf car use. We have in excess of 15km of cart paths around our two championship courses and the flexibility of the system has enabled us to create a route the cars can travel without encroaching on the golf course. The control the Precedent i3 now provides us with has allowed us to extend our golf rental period to 12 months a year, which will considerably improve our return on investment.”
The ‘connected’ Visage system is designed to communicate fleet performance information and diagnostics, enabling operators to receive enhanced information on battery status, service notifications and detailed diagnostics in real time, which mitigates and prevents maintenance issues.
Gavin added, “As well as the opportunity to extend the vehicle’s rental period, one of the key additional benefits to us has been the ability to monitor the vehicle’s battery use. This has led to a more balanced use of the fleet and ensures we are able to maximise the number of daily rentals we are now able to offer customers.
“As a busy 36 hole complex we must have complete confidence in our vehicle fleet to ensure it continually reflects the high standards we provide for our members and guests.
“The Precedent i3 has already enabled us to offer a greater level of service to the golfers, which enhances their overall experience on the course and although we are in the early stages of introducing the vehicles to our members and guests, the feedback has been very positive so far.”
The importance of high service levels was not only critical for maintaining the customer experience at Powerscourt Golf Club, it was also one of the deciding factors in adopting the Club Car fleet.
Gavin explained: “We have a long-standing and very productive working relationship with Club Car supplier The Buggyman and the support and back-up service we receive from them is second to none.
“We looked at a number of suppliers and golf cars, but the Precedent i3, the ongoing service levels we receive from the team at The Buggyman and the opportunity to increase our return on investment, meant it was an easy decision for us to choose Club Car in the end.”
Club Car www.clubcar.tv
Powerscourt Golf Club http://powerscourtgolfclub.com
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