NEW ULM, Minn. (June 14, 2010) --When Cheryl Kormann walked into work Wednesday at the New Ulm Parks & Recreation Department, the last thing she expected was a free playground. But that’s exactly what she got.
And since Kormann is assistant director for the department, that means the city's children will be the real winners of the BCI Burke Nucleus play system, valued at more than $20,000.
BCI Burke decided to hold the national contest to call attention to its Nucleus playground, according to CEO Tim Ahern. "This is the most technologically advanced play system we've ever introduced, and our biggest product introduction in years," said Ahern.
“When I heard this over the phone, I was in total disbelief,” Kormann said. “Just shocked. I heard about the Nucleus play system about six months ago, and thought it was a really innovative product, so I entered BCI Burke's contest to win a free system. It never occurred to me I might win!”
The good news couldn’t have come at a better time, according to Kormann, who adds that the New Ulm Parks and Recreation Department has suffered nearly $380,000 in cutbacks since 2008.
“We really needed some good news, and this is a tremendous blessing for our community,” she says. “We’ve been trying, over the course of about five years, to replace old and outdated playgrounds with newer and better products, but it’s been a slow, painstaking process. I can’t express how exciting this is, and how much we’ll benefit from this new playground.”
The Nucleus play system combines traditional play with fitness-oriented activities designed to build strength, endurance, balance, aerobic fitness and physical skills.
“When I saw this product, I was really attracted to it,” said Kormann. “We already have one piece of BCI Burke equipment that we installed about a year and a half ago, and we’ve had nothing but positive feedback on it. It’s just unreal to me that we’re receiving this totally innovative new playground for free.”
But now that she has it, Kormann has her plans in place. “I’m 90 percent certain that we’ll install it in North Market Park. It’s the perfect size for this unit, and since several day care agencies use that park for recreation and exercise, it’ll really be put to good use.”
The Nucleus play system includes more than 10 play events and has a capacity for 57 children ages 5-12. Contests for other prizes will continue throughout the year, according to Ahern. Individuals may enter by visiting www.playnucleus.com.
BCI Burke, with headquarters in Fond du Lac, Wisc., is a premier manufacturer of commercial playground, park, and recreation equipment. More information is available at www.bciburke.com.
FOND DU LAC, WISC. -- BCI Burke has introduced a new playground system that allows the company to build more variety into playgrounds, integrate traditional and fitness-oriented equipment, and make better use of limited playground space.
The new playground, dubbed Nucleus, uses a new connection system that combines a dual direct-bolt clamp system with industry-standard 5" O.D. posts.
The new playground will be TÜV certified to the EN (European Norm) standard, paving the way for Burke to offer its full line of playground components internationally.
"Both in the United States and internationally, customers have been telling us they wanted a better way to integrate our fitness-oriented Intensity fitness play complex with our more traditional component systems built around platforms. Nucleus enables us to respond to the market demand with the strongest and most versatile system we've ever offered," said Tim Ahern, president of BCI Burke.
Central to Nucleus is Burke's new KoreKonnect system, which uses a proprietary dual direct-bolt connection and a clamping system that allows customers to connect each platform to more components.
"Many schools have playgrounds that are used for recreation after school hours. They've told us their needs during the school day differ from those after hours. While children are at school, teachers like to organize fitness activities around Intensity, often using the Intensity Curriculum developed for the playground. But after hours and during free play time, schools still want traditional post-and-platform playground equipment," said Ahern.
Fitness-oriented equipment is beginning to grow in importance in schools because of the surge in childhood obesity. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that among children between six and 11, the prevalence of obesity has shot up from 6.5 percent in the 1970s to 17 percent in 2003-2006.
Nucleus is designed not only for strength and versatility, but also for ease of installation, according to Ahern.
"The holes for the direct bolts are pre-drilled in our factory for precision, so customers don't have to worry about drilling them during installation and risking mistakes. This makes the installation go much faster, with the greatest possible precision. In addition, the decks are connected using our new EZKonnect system, a self-leveling system on which we have a patent pending," said Ahern.
BCI Burke, with headquarters in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, is a premier manufacturer of commercial playground, park, and recreation equipment and an avid supporter of playground safety. More information is available at www.bciburke.com and www.playnucleus.com.
