2008 News Releases and Information

CARY, North Carolina (February 01, 2008)— Busy golf superintendents will soon have two more tools to help them remotely manage golf course irrigation systems: John Deere's eAurora™ Professional and eAurora Mobile.

eAurora Professional is an enhanced version of eAurora Lite, John Deere's popular Internet-based irrigation management software. The new eAurora Professional includes all the functionality that eAurora Lite users have come to count on, but also includes flow management capabilities, allowing golf course professionals to control water volume from anywhere in the world.

"With eAurora Lite, we've allowed superintendents on the go to access their irrigation system from any location and have eliminated the need for a dedicated computer to run the irrigation program," said Gregg Breningmeyer, director of sales and marketing, John Deere Golf. "Now, with eAurora Professional, users can have even more control of their irrigation any time, any place."

eAurora Mobile also gives superintendents an added level of control and freedom. The new application allows superintendents to access their eAurora accounts over any Web-enabled PDA.

Optimized for a small-screen format, eAurora is streamlined enough to run quickly on a handheld device but powerful enough to handle any function performed by a maintenance radio. It also allows programming, program writing and alarm log review.

And while similar products allow PDA users to control irrigation on-site, eAurora Mobile is the only software that can be used anywhere cellular service is available.

"eAurora Professional and eAurora Mobile offer superintendents an unprecedented level of convenience and freedom," said Brian Birdwell, irrigation product manager for John Deere Golf. "The quality of a course depends on the success of its irrigation, and with these powerful tools, superintendents can develop precise irrigation programs and deploy them from any location. eAurora Professional and eAurora Mobile users are in complete control of their water management – on and off the course."

eAurora Professional will be available in early spring 2008. eAurora Mobile is available now to eAurora Lite users. The eAurora Mobile capability will be included with all future eAurora Professional subscriptions at no additional cost.

John Deere Golf offers quality agronomic products, precise irrigation systems and innovative equipment for golf course construction, renovation, and ongoing mowing and maintenance. As the official golf course equipment and irrigation supplier to the PGA TOUR, John Deere brings tournament-level quality to today's courses, giving golf course superintendents and other management professionals the products, expertise and support they need.