contracting

[clueless]

morning all

 

i've had a couple of friends ask me lately if i can go and process some windblown trees for them into firewood. This has led me to wonder if anyone actually does log production 'contracting' or hire of processing kit? is there much call for it as i thought it could be a bit of pocket money outside of work. if you are doing it what are the pros and cons and what kit are you running?

 

cheers

[Charlieh]

i think if you search on ebay there are a few (at least two) people offering this service on their

[clueless]

ebay isnt quite the font of knowledge that this site is though to be honest

[Marko]

See Firewood processing equipment for hire which was launched recently to cater for anyone offering such services

[Charlieh]

ebay isnt quite the font of knowledge that this site is though to be honest

 

sorry thought it would be a starting point to see how much others offering the service were charging,

[clueless]

yeah sorry mate wasnt being flippant. keen to hear if anyone is actually making it stack up though as i can imagine the labour costs must be the killer if your kit isnt 110% productive

[Rupe]

Surely you just hire yourself out at a day rate which is profitable for you. Then if you create less logs than the amount the customer has paid you then tough for them but at least they got the windblown tree down.

 

For example, I have a job next week. Limb off an Ash tree to remove and cut into rings. Cost to customer 200 quid. He'll be lucky to get 100 quids worth of logs from it (I'm not splittign any) but at least it gets the limb removed. If he just wants wood then he can go buy some.

 

One problem you may face is that you say its "friends" that have asked you. Don't forget that real friends will want you to have a happy and financially fulfilled life and therefore they will gladly pay you the going rate for your time and equipment.

 

If they are expecting cheap logs then just sell them some poplar and have done with it. I do mates rates jobs occassionally. They have to help ALL DAY, and do the clearing up and make tea and hot meals and provide beer, then I'll knock off the costs of the extra employee I would have had to bring and the profit that that employee would have got me. Thats mates rates. If they go out for the day and expect the job done when they get back then its full price plus a bit extra so that they feel good about keeping a roof over my head!

[clueless]

yeah i know what you mean about mates rates. we're all farmers round here though so theres plenty of back scratching going on! ooh arr!

 

when i was doing a lot of plant hire work i used to do mates rates a fair bit but its too much hassle like you said. treework is something i'm just playing at so to do a few bits and bobs for the boys is as good for me as it is them at the moment its not about the money with them just the chance to do a bit elsewhere. If i could earn a living out of it then things may be different, but thats what the day job is for unfortunately.

 

i was mainly looking at if there was any opportunities in going in to arb yards and processing arb waste (i.e. not for the domestic customer) rather than actually taking trees down, as thats what you guys do day in day out. I suppose kind of like a real stripped down version of the guys that go in with beasts or while tree chippers, to produce chip. However, many people dont produce enough gear to warrant making and selling chip, hence they look to firewood.

 

i thought get a decent enough set up and i could go to them offering a m3 rate, which from a business point of view would be more appealing than an hourly rate. they would then be able to work out their margin for selling on, plus i would know my production rates could cope as i would have got some decent kit on the go. risky for me i know, but if i was in their shoes i wouldnt pay someone an hourly rate to do something i could get a labourer to do with a cheap splitter and an axe when the work was quiet. at least you know you have Xm3 of timber in your yard which you can sell for £Y/m3 if split. If it costs you £Z/m3 to split it and you know it will be done in one hit, or at least quickly (as me the log splitting contractor extraordinaire, for example, would be going flat out to make it pay) then its less risk for you as the end retailer.

 

what you reckon?

 

PS all this assumes Y is greater than Z

Edited October 19, 2009 by clueless
algebra sucks

[Joy Yeomans]

We fell all our own timber from Forestry Commission for Firewood production - wouldnt touch windblown too much effort to get back the bit of return we do, taking out all our costs - employees wages, fuel, repairs, cutting wood, forwarding wood, transport to yard, stack for a year, process, load into truck, deliver to customer - when youve taken out all your costs you sometimes feel youve done all this for veryvery low return - youll never be rich in firewood!

[Rupe]

Oh, I see where your coming form now. I have a yard full of crap wood and some hardwood which I sell after i split with my little splitter, slowly, and I get pocket money and the space back in my yard but thats about all.

 

Your saying you would come for day and turn my pile into xm3 for z£. I thien sell the wood for what its worth to my existing customers and the proffit should (in theory) be high than if I had split it all myself slowly.

 

I don't know if it would be viable or not. For me I'm happy to do a bit here and there. I only have about ten customers within hafl mile of my yard and I keep them topped up as and when required.