MEWP or Climbing?

[skyhuck]

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How old are you? You must be ancient if you consider me the modern generation. And you must have a bit of a chip on your shoulder if you think I'm implying my lot is harder than yours might have been. Times change old sport, working methods move on and health and safety is now (fortunately) more important than ever.

In the past you have suggested that there isn't a tree that you wouldn't climb and I'm not suggesting that you wouldn't have the spuds to see that promise through. I know plenty of lads with the same attitude (I used to be one of them, but I'm getting too fat now), and it is a great attitude to have 99% of the time. However, there are always going to be those jobs that are too risky - why stick your neck out when modern technology is there to lend a hand? There should be no need for unnecessary risks nowadays - safe systems of work should always be implemented before misplaced bravado kicks in.

 

If your post below was not suggesting that, I'm not sure what you were saying?

 

I have no chip on my shoulder, I simple hold a different opinion to you

 

Things were a bit different 20 years ago. Trees only got cut when they were a problem, and bringing conductors down was almost accepted as something that happened from time to time. Nowadays that is a huge no no - if you damage the network then you can say goodbye to your authorisation. The utility job is (quite rightly) far more regulated now than it ever used to be - safety is paramount. There are jobs where MEWPs are essential, and the job couldn't be done safely within the required timeframe without them. Arguably there are other tree jobs that are done from a MEWP that could be done more effectively from a rope and harness but legislation now dictates that if a MEWP can be used then it should be...

[monkeybusiness]

I'm saying that modern utility arboriculture couldn't be done without MEWPs. I don't believe anyone has it physically harder today than 20 years ago, but I know for certain that the job is far more rigorously monitored than it has ever been.

 

I find it very amusing that the modern generation feel their lot is so much harder than the generation before maybe we just moaned less and just got on

 

That looks like one of Mr McCain's finest to me, maybe I'm too sensitive though!

[skyhuck]

I'm saying that modern utility arboriculture couldn't be done without MEWPs. I don't believe anyone has it physically harder today than 20 years ago, but I know for certain that the job is far more rigorously monitored than it has ever been.

 

I find it very amusing that the modern generation feel their lot is so much harder than the generation before maybe we just moaned less and just got on

 

That looks like one of Mr McCain's finest to me, maybe I'm too sensitive though!

 

Did you see the ( and ) it was very much tonge in cheek:biggrin:

 

You say your now too fat, thats what happens when you start using MEWP's:sneaky2:

[monkeybusiness]

You're right, 200kg basket weight limits are looking like they might become a problem!

[Mark Bolam]

It's funny how the people who are so against the use of MEWPS are the ones who have used them least? (Huck and Stevie mainly).

 

Do you include the use of Manitous, Matbros, JCBs with cages etc.?

 

We have an 87' ash to take down over expensive targets, we need a MEWP.

 

Before you start Huck yes I climbed it to about 60'. It is FUBAR'd from about 50'.

Rich Rule totally agreed, and it's the first time in our professional relationship that we have needed a MEWP for safety reasons.

[Taupotreeman]

We often use a MEWP for our street trees. We have streets full of 25m Pin Oaks which are crammed full of epi. They only need crown lifting but many are over roofs, street lights, fences etc. climbing them we were knocking out two or three, at a push, a day. With a MEWP we can deal to around 15 or more. I also agree with Monkeybusiness. Most of the line clearance, at least on streets, roads and highways, in NZ, Oz and, as far as I know, the US is done by MEWP or EPV. everything here is live line and most jobs would involve "sticking" out anything in contact so that it's out of the minimum approach distance before climbing. On some jobs this takes for ever and a day. A truck mounted EPV, chip bin beneath, makes the job so much easier and quicker. Most of our utility procedures require the use of EPV's over climbing.

 

 

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[Gray git]

I love getting a Mewp in on big stems that need rigging or ringing down as standing onspikes with a big saw hurts my knees too much these days and ima is much quicker to set the ropes and much safer as you can swing out of the way and let ground staff pull the chunk off.

The thing people struggle with when using Mewp is not getting one that can reach everything from a safe set-up point so take risks cutting larger than normal bits.

Anyone who hates then hasn't done much Highways statutory clearance work as miles of lifting every tree to just a bit more than a polesaw can reach is tedious and a genie rough terrain boom makes life so much more efficient.

Climbing still has its place and always will, crown thins and cleans in particular and dismantling with limited drop zones will always be the place to have a good swing about.

[j r hartly]

We cut back a large beech tree from lines and end weighted over a cafe and a garage. It was over a short cut route aswell. My boss climbed it and I was in a bucket. By the time he'd got to the end of his second limb, I'd finished the rest of the tree. It was a tricky climb for him large limbs to deal with. We were done by 11 am. Power back on and still fresh for the next job. Mewp's are always worth considering, if price allows;-)

 

trees, waves and cakes!!:-)

[Dean Lofthouse]

I own my own mewp, it has 11m outreach, it is sat in the barn most of the time, I use it for myself probably twice a year.

I do sit here laughing to myself at the anti mewp mob ( most of which do use other big machinery to make their job easier) dissing the mewp with, as Mark says, little or no experience of them.

I have thousands of hours mewp use under my belt and can make a mewp dance. Experience is key here, positioning of the machine is most important along with outreach.

On avenues of trees it'd possible to work on 8 trees from the same position or do a 60ft run without moving trimming 30ft high conifers. You can disc down large stems without struggling on spikes.

We all have machinery to aid our work, whether is be cranes, telehandlers, chippers, loaders, muck barrows or whatever, the only reason mewps get a bad press is because people seem to associate mewps with crap climbers.

Just because you occasionally use a mewp doesn't mean you are crap at climbing or don't have the gahoonies to climb dead trees. I've climbed and taken down some dodgy trees this last few month simply because I couldn't be arsed getting the mewp out

I sometimes wonder if the old boys who used to burn brash had the same attitude toward chippers when they first started appearing, " no... You can stick that lump of scrap where the sun don't shine boy.... It'll never be as fast as burning... You expect me to tow that lump o Shiite everywhere with me... It'll only slow me down and use more juice

Edited November 17, 2013 by Dean Lofthouse

[Hedge hunter]

Yep i was thinking the same thing.,

 

Your supposed to brick it when you start the job not when you've done 50% of it .

 

 

Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.

 

it was a multi stem beech and when the climber got to one of the main stems around the back of the tree he decided it would probably go out of control and snap the lowering point off due to decay,he did a good job on about half the job as the mewp would not have reached all the tree.after a few lumps had hit the deck i asked the climber if he was ok with the level of decay and he declined.saying it was mushy and rotten at 70ft.we then decided to fetch the mewp......

 

its a good day when we all go home.