DEKALB, Ill., May 2, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Mondo, the global leader in sports flooring and athletic surfaces, today announced that it will install a world-class artificial turf soccer field at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. The new Mondoturf Monofilament Classic field is scheduled to be in place by soccer season this fall at the Division I school's new soccer and track complex.
University officials say the new Mondoturf field represents a considerable upgrade to the school's existing grass field. Sue Hansfield, assistant athletics director for facilities and games operations at the university, believes that the field will garner positive attention and bolster the reputation of NIU's athletic facilities. "NIU student-athletes and visiting teams will really enjoy playing on our new world-class field, and I expect it will be highly regarded by people throughout our conference."
NIU chose Mondo because the company had successfully installed several other turf fields on campus, and its representatives provide excellent customer service. "The Mondo team is easy to work with and extremely responsive to our needs," said Hansfield.
The new surface will allow NIU teams to use the field more than they had been able to use the previous field, and it will save the university money on maintenance costs.
"Mondoturf's superior resilience will enable our men's and women's soccer teams to use the new field both for practice sessions and intercollegiate matches," said Jeff Daurer, NIU's director of capital budget and campus planning. "The grass field we're replacing required several days to recover after practice sessions before they were ready for game day. Thanks to Mondoturf's outstanding drainage, the teams also will be able to use the fields within a few hours after even a major rainfall. Regular grass surfaces require repair time and time to dry out after a downpour."
NIU's Huskies compete in the Mid-American Conference. In addition to soccer, the NIU sports program includes baseball, basketball, football, golf, gymnastics, softball, tennis, track, volleyball and wrestling. The school's main campus is located approximately 65 miles (104 km) west of Chicago and has an enrollment of more than 25,000.
The Mondoturf Monofilament Classic infill is a combination of 100 percent post-consumer recycled resilient granules and rounded or subangular sand, which provides unparalleled durability. Rounded or subangular sand is virtually non-abrasive, reducing the risk of injury for athletes and minimizing wear on the turf fibers. Mondo's new generation of polyethylene fibers look and feel like natural grass and use color pigments that are free of toxins and heavy metals. Superior molecular alignment and a straight-line molecular direction provide dimensional memory and a greater capacity of recovery, ensuring the fiber will retain its appearance and will not deform even after many years of use.
Mondoturf systems are manufactured in North America.
About Mondo
Mondo is the global leader in the sports flooring market, manufacturing floor surfaces for virtually every sport. The official supplier of the athletic track and basketball and handball courts of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, Mondo also is the official supplier or official sponsor of more than 100 sports federations and associations, including FIBA, IAAF, Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association, NIRSA, U.S. Track Coaches Association and YMCA.
The company also supplies a wide variety of commercial flooring and 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.
Mondo invests heavily in research and development to ensure its products meet the highest quality standards in the industry, deliver optimal athletic performance, are durable, require minimal maintenance and are environmentally safe.
A family-owned business since its founding in 1948, Mondo's global headquarters are in Italy. The company has manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and Asia and sells its products in more than 196 countries. More information about Mondo is available at www.mondousa.com.
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Mondo is a registered trademark of Mondo.