kingswood

Hello - just wanted to clear up a bit of the confusion surrounding Kingswood / TreeHouse Training name. Richard retired last December. Kingswood is now run as a collective by Tony Lucas, Michele Holmes, Jim Chatton in Sevenoaks, Kent and Andy Green in Surrey. All the same trainers/office staff/sites etc. We have a new Barn in Sevenoaks, just off the A21 and still offer all of the same courses, including 4-week combination start up course, along with some exciting new courses: PTI, BTI +F, UA, PA and First Aid (EFAW & +F). We apologise for any confusion caused regarding the TreeHouse name (purely legal reasons), but we are one in the same. Kingswood / TreeHouse. www.kingswoodtraining.com We look forward to hearing from you all soon! Thanks The Kingswood TreeHouse Team

The VTIO article Ben refers to above gives some really useful, in-depth information for those who want to really understand the forces invloved in various rigging scenarios. Kingswood.

Hi I have tried to attach the article Paul is referring to although I admit to knowing much less about computers than rigging. If it isn't attached I could email it to someone else to attach if it would help. This thread is covering a hugely complex subject, but here are some very basic rules: 1. Know the Minimum Breaking Load (MBL) of your rope, and divide it by 10 to get the Safe Working Load (SWL). 2. All other parts of the system must have a Higher SWL, in the configuration that they are used. 3. This means that top anchor points must have TWICE the SWL of the rope, even when there is no shockload. 4. Use log mass charts and species conversion factors to get an accurate weight for the log. 5. Current wisdom suggests that you should allow for 30% inaccuracy in this figure. 6. If you can't pre-tension the rope to prevent a shockload, you must let the load run on the capstan. 7. Letting the load run is essential when topping down a stem, because experiment has shown that the load imposed on the top anchor point can be 11 TIMES the weight of the log! 8. Any shockload in the system will massively reduce the weight of the log that can be safely removed. 9. More rope in the sytem is better. It is essential to understand whether the figures on your kit are kg or kn, and whether they are MBLs or SWLs. The ratios between the two (known as the safety factor) are 10:1 for ropes, 7:1 for slings and 5:1 for metal equipemnt. I don't know of any rope system in current use that could safely lower a 1 ton log, even without a shockload. This is not intended as a lesson in rigging - just a pointer to the way rigging should be approached. There is no subject in Tree Surgery where decent training is more crucial - this is not an ad - do it anywhere with a good reputation - just do it! Hope this helps. Kingswood Rigging for richard.pdf

Many thanks to our many loyal friends and visitors, a lot of whom come a very long way to meet up and shoot the breeze. Great to see you all again. Fantastic effort by Justin and his team in extremely difficult circumstances - thank you to everyone for their help in so many ways. This really is a team effort - your support is much appreciated. Richard

Hi Yes, we are looking at running another Loler Inspectors course in a couple of months, so call the office or email if it's of interest. Cheers Richard

I would like to let you know about a new forum that has been set up to facilitate discussions between instructors and assessors in the Land Based sector. The forum moderator is Paul Elcoat, and he will welcome applications to join from any Lantra instructor or Nptc Assessor. The forum is hosted on LinkedIn (World's Largest Professional Network | LinkedIn). If you are not familiar with it, LinkedIn is like a business version of Facebook. You will need to create a profile for yourself, which can be extremely basic, and then use the Group Search facility in the toolbar and search for 'Land Based Assessor'. You need to apply to Paul Elcoat to join. Please take a few minutes to do this - the more members there are in the forum, the more useful it will be to all concerned. It will, for the first time, give assessors and instructors a united voice when dealing with Nptc and Lantra. Please also pass this invitation on to all your Instructor/Assessor contacts - hopefully in this way awareness of the forum will spread rapdily and we will soon achieve a powerful lobby group. There are big changes planned in the near future, and this forum will allow our voice to be heard. Best regards Richard

Many, many thanks to all involved - too many to mention individually - for their great efforts in making this show by far the best yet. Thanks also to all our visitors, especially those who travelled many hundreds of miles to join us - Justin and I really appreciate your support. It was great to meet you all and put faces to names - we know that without you, we wouldn't have a show. Thanks also to our many loyal exhibitors - you are just as important - we hope you did good business. Congratulations to all of our competition winners, except Ritchie Rule who beat my score by one point in the axe-throwing! No seriously, well done mate. We are already making plans for an even bigger and better show next year - with so much support and goodwill we are confident it will grow and grow. Rich.

A quick word from your host! We have been busy preparing the site, and making all the arrangements necessary for another really successful show. Andy and I will run a Rigging talk / Demo around lunchtime on both days, carefully arranged near the bar so that you can get a pint, sit down and take it easy for half an hour. We look forward to seeing many old friends again and making a lot of new ones - all are very welcome, from newbies to old timers. We particularly enjoy meeting guys (and girls) that have trained here and have gone on to have succesful careers in this industry. Business is all about networking - what better place to do it than round a fire with a pint of beer? As far as we at Kingswood are concerned the opportunity to network and the social side of the show are at least as important as the lectures and products on sale. Most importantly, many thanks to Justin for his initiative in getting the show up and running, and getting it recognised as one of the important events in the Arb year. Justin and Eileen and the rest of the team at FR Jones work incredibly hard to make the show what it is - interesting, family friendly, successful and safe. If you value having a show in the South East, then please come and support it - the overall success of the show depends on you. We look forward to welcoming you all. Kingswood.

It is in any serious tree surgeons interest to get cs41, and there are several good reasons: 1. It will enable you to work faster and safer. 2. It will give you the confidence to take on jobs that others may hesitate to undertake. 3. It will help to ensure that if something goes wrong, your insurance will pay out. 4. It gives you increased credibility. Any good instructor will deliver an interesting course which goes well beyond the assessment criteria, and it does not have to involve a lot of maths. You should come away with a huge amount of practical ideas that will transform the way most people operate. In my opinion it is one of the easier nptc assessments. It requires you to remove 3 branches (1 tip tie, 1 butt tie, 1 cradled), and chog 4 pieces off a standing stem (2 by hand, 2 lowered). We usually run it as a 3 day course, and I think it probably offers the best value of any course we run. It is certainly our favourite course to teach because the feedback, even from experienced arborists, is always very positive. I am not flying the company flag here, there are several places where you will get an interesting and worthwhile course on this subject. Richard

We booked with Hoopoe Safaris in Arusha. I couldn't fault them - all the kit was in good condition, and they even supplied thick sleeping bags with liners and proper(ish) pillows! The food was always good (except the porridge), and the porters were outstanding - helpful and friendly without exception.

Yes, it's 5,895m which is about 19,400 feet. It was great fun, and strangely enough it wasn't the exertion that was the problem, but the intense cold. Minus 25C doesn't sound too bad, but the air is so thin you are forced to walk extremely slowly, so you don't generate any body heat. One day we walked for 5 hours without stopping, and averaged 1/4 of a mile an hour. It's actually more of a mental than a physical challenge - just keeping going when your body has really had enough.

As my 50th birthday present to myself I decided to have a go at climbing Kilimanjaro. It is the worlds highest free-standing mountain, and is over 2/3rds the height of Everest. It is also on the Equator, so it is blazingly hot at the bottom and bitingly cold at the top. I kept a photo journal of the trip, and have been talked into posting it on here as an article of general interest. I certainly recommend it - it was a brilliant experience - but don't underestimate it! Any comments, questions or general banter would be welcome. Richard. Kili Journal.docx

I echo the sentiments already expressed - it was very sad news indeed. It must be comforting for Ken and Tori that everyone is pulling together and not making uninformed judgements. If any good can come of this let it be that we remember that what our families want more than anything else is that we come home safe at night. Richard at Kingswood.

We have 1 place left on each of two courses starting very soon. Cs 38&39. Feb 28th - March 5th. Lantra climbing course. Discounted price of £540 + vat due to short notice. CS 41. March 7th - 9th. Non Lantra Dismantling course. Discounted price of £250 + vat. Prices includes free accommodation and kit hire if required. NPTC assessments can be arranged to follow on. Call 07973 226727 or email [email protected] or pm me. Thanks Richard.

I would be very happy for you all to use our site here on March 21st. As those who came to the show last year will know, we have a couple of excellent oaks for climbers of all abilities, as well as a few other interesting trees and a very splintery pole for spiking. I have no problem at all with novices joining in - we all have to start somewhere, and what better place than in the company of more experienced enthusiasts. I will not in any sense 'police' the event, but this is a training establishment where we obviously use 'best pratice', and all I ask is that our visitors respect this - ie. suitable helmets, loler compliant kit, and sensible behaviour (eg no free climbing!). As Justin has mentioned I would rather that the zip-line idea was experimented on somewhere other than here - the tension applied to a zip-line by a 100kg load is extremely high, which is why steel cables are used. I do not want to be seen as a party-pooper, but I am keen to retain my accident book in its unused state! I look forward to meeting you all on Sunday week. Rich.

I would like to echo Justins comments - thanks to all the exhibitors and visitors for taking the time to come and support us. The whole event had a great feel to it, and I have already had a lot of positive feedback. A big thank you also for keeping the noise down after midnight for the sake of the neighbours, and for leaving the site so clean and tidy. Your involvement and good behaviour was much appreciated. Justin, your great organising and effective promotion made the show a great success from a standing start - that's quite an achievement. Here's to a bigger and even better one next year! Richard

Thanks guys - I have the info I need now. It is useful to be able to compare various sources of info as they vary a bit. I was aware of the rigging research doc but didn't want to 'lift' info from it without permission. Look out for an article soon, and a pdf on our website soon after - I am sure it will provoke some discussion, which can only be good. Cheers Richard

Hi I am currently working on a rigging article and need some weight tables for green timber. I can find sites full of American species, but am struggling to find data for UK species. Can anyone point me in the right direction please? The article will include tables that show the volumes and weights of stems and branches so that we can rig safely with a bit less guesswork! It will appear as a free download on our website. Thanks Richard

Pity this thread is slowing down because it's a subject that affects us all. Cards on the table first I am a Lantra instructor and NPTC assessor. There are 2 points I would like to make here. Firstly, there has been a lot of criticism of the existing system, and I agree with some of it, but to some extent the basic problem is that people are expecting too much of it. When you first pass your driving test, you do not suddenly become an expert driver. All you have done is to achieve the baic skills that allow you to go out on the road and really start to learn. No employer in their right mind would give you a job as a professional driver straight away. The same is true of a chainsaw ticket, or a climbing ticket. All they can ever give you is the basic skills to stay safe while you really start to learn in a commercial environment. Employers are being unrealistic if they think that someone who has just passed these units is competent in the professional sense. We do a challenging and technical job which takes years to really master. Maybe 'Certificate of Comptence' is not a good name. Secondly, if you look at the causes of accidents in this industry, it is almost always the same. Either the person has done something they have been taught not to do (e.g cutting and holding, or using the saw one-handed in front of their face), or they have neglected to do something they have been taugt to do (e.g. use 2 anchor points when cutting, or keep a safe distance from energised cables). Instructors and assessors can and should maintain the highest standards but they have no control at all over how people actually work. Once the assessments are over, it is down to site supervision and the professionalism of the rest of the team. Maybe there should be rules about newly qualified operators working under an accredited foreman for a while. There are certainly ways that the existing certification system could be improved, but I think a lot of this industry's safety problems arise because of a lack of ongoing attention to these issues after the units have been achieved. I am not a fan of over-regulation - far from it - and I am not claiming to know how to do this, but I think this is the area that needs looking at.

When you are cutting lumps off a standing stem, keep a pocket full of short twigs with you. Insert them in the cut behind the saw and they will keep the cut open so you can cut straight through. When you push the lump off, they act as rollers and make it easy.

Thanks for the compliment - glad you are in work and enjoying it! Be safe.

As the owner of Kingswood Training I noticed this discussion with interest, and would like to comment as follows: I first took my tickets over 20 years ago, and I paid £100 per day for the training then. As a Lantra instructor and NPTC assessor I charge exactly the same figure now. This is a fairly standard rate which has not changed in 2 decades! However, unlike the training I received then, ours takes place in a high quality, purpose-built training centre which was staggeringly expensive to build. There are a couple of other reasons for cost variations - we have to charge vat, and many colleges which are 'not-for-profit' do not. Also, assessment costs, which are not set by us, do vary from area to area, although I have no idea why! We could keep our costs down in a number of ways, but we have no interest in cutting corners. We only ever teach 4 people at a time, we have top instructors (I insist that they have many years of industry experience, are Lantra qualified and are also all NPTC assessors), we register all our courses with Lantra, and we can also provide good quality saws, PPE, climbing equipment etc. In short, we provide the best possible training package that we can, and I am pleased to say that our results speak for themselves. In the past 6 months our pass rates for NPTC assessments are in the high 90's - about 97% I think. I apologise if this reads like an advert - it wasn't supposed to! I just wanted to point out that, as with most things in life, you get what you pay for. It is very heartening to read the many positive comments about us on this site, and I would like to close by wishing every future success to the many people who we have helped to get started in this great career. As Confucius really did say - 'Choose a job you love and you will never do a days work in your life'