Since ancient times, man has studied with interest the benefits and regenerative potential of water, which over time has become a true therapeutic medium. But not even the Romans had thought that an entire city could be transformed into a SPA (Salus Per Aquam)!

This is what is happening in Fiuggi, a famous spa town known throughout the world for its curative waters and natural beauty (on the left, photo by Dave518), but also a historic destination for golf lovers. The Municipality of Fiuggi is pursuing an ambitious new project to reaffirm the centrality of the production of the well-known water, combined with major investments to relaunch the entire spa sector, without neglecting the combination of tourism and sport.

Hence the start of a major redevelopment of the historic golf course, the Golf Club Fiuggi 1928: one of the oldest nationwide, but also, with its 18 holes, one of the most important on the Italian peninsula, which has hosted famous golfers, politicians and actors, as well as famous footballers who are passionate about the sport, such as Diego Armando Maradona.

The golf course in the city of Fiuggi has been the subject of a redevelopment of the surfaces of the bunkers, the sand depressions along the course that constitute obstacles in the game. These elements not only constitute an area that every golfer wants to stay away from (the golf ball in the bunker is equivalent to a descent into hell for the player), but also represent a problem for those who have to ensure the efficiency of the golf course, as the sand in the bunkers is washed away by the waters, forcing costly nourishment work.

In this regard, the Mapei Research & Development laboratories have developed a system to improve the efficiency of drainage in bunkers, based on MAPESOIL GF technology, designed to increase the speed at which water moves away from the surface. Thanks to its high drainage capacity, the system maintains the characteristics of the sand above – preventing it from being dragged away by rainwater – and consequently reduces maintenance costs for the club. The system calls for the construction over the entire surface of the bunker of a highly draining layer made up of a mixture of gravel in combination with the high-performance, low carbon footprint concrete binder, MAPESOIL GF, capable of giving volumetric stability, mechanical strength and durability. The installation of MAPESOIL GF technology allows rainwater to be collected which can then be used to irrigate the green. MAPESOIL GF therefore promotes integrated and efficient management of water resources in golf clubs, a crucial objective for reducing the consumption of natural water (it would be a waste of water to use Fiuggi’s oligomineral water to irrigate the greens!!), especially to cope with recurring periods of drought due to climate change. MAPESOIL GF also does not contain any substances potentially polluting the water it drains away, and this aspect – in addition to its excellent mechanical performance and high drainage capacity, which in fact makes it possible to avoid water stagnation even in heavy downpours and violent storms – is of fundamental importance to prevent rainwater from filtering through the macropores of the screed and permeating the ground and polluting the sources of the famous oligomineral water famous all over the world for its use in the treatment of kidney stones.

MAPESOIL GF, in short, is the solution which combines technology (volumetric stability, draining capacity, mechanical performance, durability and low maintenance costs) with environmental sustainability to safeguard the immense and fundamental waters of the city of Fiuggi.   

(News by Mapei Spa)

Contractor: Linea Verde Nicolini srl and Romani Prefabbricati.

Mapei co-ordination: Elisa Portigliatti assisted by Armando Faccani, Paolo Cannella, Alessandro Mechelli, Emanuele Marchegiani.