Good find.
direct link to article
Jim Dobmeier posted a comment explaining more detail. I will post it here but will not post the original article:
"aturf says: May 9, 2011 11:36 AM
A-Turf, Inc. is very excited about the upcoming turf project for the Buffalo Bills and Erie County taxpayers at Ralph Wilson Stadium. We’ve followed some of the chatter and want to alleviate any concerns on the part of the passionate football fans and taxpayers in general.
In the field building business, it’s rare to have the opportunity to showcase your system at an NFL stadium venue. The marketing value and credibility is immeasurable. This truly is a win-win situation, the Bills get a premier system and we get the honor of installing it.
Given that this was a public bid led by Erie County, the price is a matter of public record. Over the years many NFL stadium fields have been given away by other field builders, at reduced prices or in some cases at no cost at all. In many of these cases, the Club makes the decision, meaning it’s not a public bid process and therefore the cost of such fields is not released. Why would a field builder do this? Again, because the exposure is tremendous and the difference between market price and paid price is treated as a multi-year marketing investment. Given the scope of work at Ralph Wilson Stadium, market price would have been in the low $300,000’s, not the $700,000 – $1,000,000 mentioned in above comments. The three quarters of a million dollars would be more typical of converting a natural grass field to synthetic, which includes considerable site work cost. The Ralph Wilson Stadium project is much simpler – remove the old and replace it with the new. As a matter of public record, the second low bid was $269,100.
A-Turf has built more than 250 athletic fields in the last nine years … our record is impeccable … our systems are as player friendly, safe and durable as any on the market. Our Dalton, Georgia based turf manufacturing partner, Controlled Products, is the largest turf producer and arguably the most capable in the industry. They participated hand-in-hand with A-Turf in providing this one-time reduced pricing.
Now it’s back to business as usual charging reasonable prices and providing outstanding value!
Jim Dobmeier
A-Turf, Inc.
President & Founder"