Artificial Turf Field Testing Across Texas

Texas has more high school football programs than any other state -- over 1,400 UIL member schools field football teams, and hundreds of those programs have invested in synthetic turf. When you add middle school fields, baseball and softball complexes, soccer and lacrosse facilities, and municipal recreation centers, the total number of synthetic turf installations across Texas runs well into the thousands. No other state concentrates this much synthetic turf on this many campuses.

The culture of Texas athletics drives that investment. Communities fund stadium renovations and field upgrades at a level that is rare elsewhere in the country. Frisco ISD built a 12,000-seat high school stadium. Allen ISD's Eagle Stadium seats over 18,000. The level of commitment to athletic facilities in Texas school districts is unmatched -- and with that investment comes significant responsibility to maintain and verify those fields are safe.

Synthetic turf does not last forever. Most installations carry a 10-year design life, but field hardness as measured by GMAX and HIC scores begins to drift well before that. Infill compacts, fibers wear, and fields that looked fine at year three can present elevated injury risk by year six without anyone noticing unless they are tested. Independent, third-party testing is the only way to know.

Field Health Systems founder Andrew Neal is based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which means the entire state of Texas is accessible for on-site testing visits. From El Paso to Beaumont, from Amarillo to the Rio Grande Valley, Andrew travels to where the fields are. No region of Texas is too remote to schedule.