Setting up

[WoodMouse]

Afternoon,

 

Here's my plan so far. Id like all the advice i can get really.

 

Firstly id have to get trained.

 

Considering doing the professional short courses with Capel Manor.

 

CS30, 31, 32, 38, 39, 40 & 41.

 

Possibly the chipper operation and maintenance course too.

 

First question is if this is sufficient, too much? Have i missed any out?

 

I'd like to go on and do further courses, but for the sake of starting to earn some money, im hoping the above would allow me to get started with small scale jobs and perhaps supporting other people on larger jobs.

 

Id be kitting myself out with 2 saws, hedge trimmer and a brush cutter. All the usual PPE plus climbing and rigging equipment suitable for small operations.

 

A decent size tipper, and a chipper.

 

Boy do i have allot of questions...

 

I guess i wont be able to work at height without a groundy. Worried about taking on other people full time because the business just wont be there from the get go i'm sure (or is there always stuff i can do?), Can i get people in on short notice, regularly and reliably. Labourer's, agency's, do people use them?

 

I've also been considering an Avant. With one of these i can see being able to do stump grinding and transporting larger pieces of wood to the tipper on site. Wondering if i'd have a big enough tipper to justify having one, how do people without lifters deal with the wood.

 

i think i've asked enough so far, this is by no means the extent of my inquiry's but i don't want to swamp the thread with too much.

 

I really appreciate all your help.

[Steve Bullman]

I think the best advice you've had yet was in your other thread...go and get some experience before you try starting a business in the tree game from scratch

[WoodED]

good post mr bullman.. this isnt a game you can just hop on and hope for the best.. experiance is vital in this industry. to learn the best practises, how different people would handle different situations. and to also learn a good reduction from a brutal topping.

cs30 31 is a good starting point.. work on the ground for a climber for a year and you will learn alot..

[silky fox]

P.M Sent:001_smile:

[WoodMouse]

good post mr bullman.. this isnt a game you can just hop on and hope for the best.. experiance is vital in this industry. to learn the best practises, how different people would handle different situations. and to also learn a good reduction from a brutal topping.

cs30 31 is a good starting point.. work on the ground for a climber for a year and you will learn alot..

 

What do you think i could earn doing that. Sorry for seeming bit gung ho, but im 34 and don't feel like i have years to get experience. I thought i'd be better just keeping it small and working my way up. Perhaps hiring a climber to get some sort of experience on board that way. An apprenticeship would be optimal but i don't think i have the time.

[Chris Sheppard]

I admire your enthusiasm and wish you the best of luck but fear your may be trying to create a business by doing nothing more than throwing money at it.

 

If you've no experience of the actual work side of it in a working situation, then I'd suggest doing that before anything else - how you may imagine it in your head is not necessarily how it will be in real life.

 

Also, no amount of qualifications will make up for experience, so start small. Like Ed said, CS30 and 31 is a good start.

[WoodMouse]

I admire your enthusiasm and wish you the best of luck but fear your may be trying to create a business by doing nothing more than throwing money at it.

 

If you've no experience of the actual work side of it in a working situation, then I'd suggest doing that before anything else - how you may imagine it in your head is not necessarily how it will be in real life.

 

Also, no amount of qualifications will make up for experience, so start small. Like Ed said, CS30 and 31 is a good start.

 

Thanks Chris, i kinda thought that brush clearing, brambles etc, hedge trimming and small trees would be a small start. Although i'd be trained, i wasn't intending on taking on work any bigger than this. Unless i was able to support other teams doing it.

[WoodED]

What do you think i could earn doing that. Sorry for seeming bit gung ho, but im 34 and don't feel like i have years to get experience. I thought i'd be better just keeping it small and working my way up. Perhaps hiring a climber to get some sort of experience on board that way. An apprenticeship would be optimal but i don't think i have the time.

 

a good groundsman could be earning 80-100 a day (depending on the firm) but u would probly need cs30 31 and cs38 for the higher groundsman wage

[Andy Collins]

Realistically, starting at the bottom and working for someone else with next to no experience, you aren't going to earn very much for a couple of years, £60 a day til your ticketed, then a slow climb up as your experience grows.

You could go out right now, chuck shedloads of money about and gear up for say £15k, hire in a good climber and groundie and pay them a lot of money, take a bit for yourself and your kit, and you might see a return on your money one day...or you may lose the lot!

If you're a shrewd businessman, you might be able to make it work, but a shrewd businessman would put his money into something with far better returns than tree work.

I'd be asking myself why I want to do this job in particular, why take a risk at this stage of my life, why invest in an already saturated Market, in the middle of a recession, and isn't there an easier way to make my money work for me? If its a lifestyle thing, go WI a crew for a few years and learn what its all about before investing.

[Albedo]

Take the advice in post number 2 from Steve.

 

I was 32 when I started and now I'm 52...I only started my own business 5 years ago and freelance climbed for five years before that.

 

You need to learn a bit on the tools first mate and as you say you won't have the volume of business to start with to learn by employing freelancers.

 

Catch 22 innit:001_smile:

 

Having said that there are a number of AT members who have done exactly what you propose to do and have got away with it:001_smile: