Page 22 - english winter 2017

Irrigation has come a long way from manual dials to remote control from anywhere in the world.
operators and related stakeholders, presenting one united voice within the golf course industry.
“We have seen lots of group purchasing organizations try to enter this particular arena over the years. The philosophy of continued service to our members is what has allowed us to succeed where so many others have failed. Our in- depth knowledge of our members’ businesses and the products and services they need, allows us to continue to create programs that serve the best needs of golf facilities”, states Jeff Calderwood, CEO of both the NGCOA Canada and the CGSA.
Since the launch of the Golfmax Purchasing Program in 1993, Golfmax now boasts a total of 40 supplier programs managed in-house, and an additional 200 vendor programs managed by our partner entegra Procurement Services.
NGCOA Canada members purchased over $80 million in products and services through the Golfmax Purchasing Program in 2016, and saved over $3.9 million. In addition, the NGCOA Canada sent members almost $300,000 in rebate cheques in 2016. These rebate cheques are above and beyond the discounts negotiated individually by golf courses, and
are delivered post transaction through the NGCOA Canada.
Like the NGCOA Canada, Golfmax Supplier partners and the products and services they sell, have evolved over the past 25 years. In 1992, Club Car was just launching the industry’s first overhead valve engine, and blended-in colour advanced polymers ensuring better lasting golf cars with higher resale values.
Fast forward 25 years, and Club Car’s Precedent i3, became the first car with built-in connectivity as a standard feature, and VisageTM, the industry’s first mobile golf information system; and a re-imagined Café Express and Precedent 4Fun, big ideas to improve the guest experience and the bottom line for golf course owners and operators.
In those early years, the technology that allowed for payment processing was limited. Manual imprint machines were commonplace for credit card transitions, as well as large countertop terminals which required a phone line to process a transaction. Payments slowly transitioned to magnetic stripe cards which required PIN entry or a signature, and then to EMV cards with a small chip embedded into the card. The technology behind
payments in today’s markets covers a variety of options, including chip cards, contactless “tap” payments and payments through mobile devices.
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE
The future of the Golfmax Purchasing Program is very good. NGCOA Canada members continue to operate their golf facilities in a highly competitive marketplace. This puts an increased emphasis on finding new ways to cut operating costs in order to generate more net revenue.
The Golfmax Purchasing Program will continue to play an integral role in boosting net revenues for members, by delivering savings in form of discounts directly off invoice, manufacturer’s rebates, and eliminating the staff time needed to research and qualify suppliers.
The NGCOA Canada continues to look for strategic alliances to help grow the reach of
22
Golf Business Canada