kevinjohnsonmbe

It's a crazy world! Just heard about a bloke that drove a 56 plate cabstar type truck from SE London to SE Cornwall on Saturday, broke down twice en-route, to collect 3 dumpies of logs from the Crocadon closing down sale at £7 per bag, to be dropped in Coventry! Logs: can't rightly figure why anyone would willingly want the hassle and moans of doing it commercially. So much time, effort and sweat to do it right and what seems like so little return or appreciation. Hats off to the "good guys" that have jumped in to defend their professional and moral reputations. If you buy cheap, you get cheap!

It's a whole different topic, but I genuinely can't understand why government departments don't "talk" to each other... If there is a housing shortage, education, health and social care crises, How does adding more people to the equation help? (I'm not buying the "they're paying taxes" line BTW!)

Housing minister targets 1 million new homes by 2020.... So there's a conflict waiting in the wings! https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/housing-minister-targets-1-million-new-homes-by-2020/8689157.fullarticle

Kind of 50/50 on the sentiments you express there.... Some might be reasonable to expect, some perhaps not quite so reasonable. Nature doesn't really deal in perfect uniformity and consistency, you might be better with:

Yes, I guess so, was just musing that's all.... The whole pricing thing is so subjective.

Good question... No reason perhaps why it shouldn't?

I wasn't necessarily meaning that the detail of the on-costs would be communicated to the customer... Rather that they might be considered in the pricing calc. Appreciate you'd have to have a fairly firm start date from the get-go.

Operational scale must make it less of an issue though? Mog, big cheaper, an extra ton or 2 of chip wouldn't make a great deal of difference I'm guessing (unless it was the final ton that meant another run.) At the moment, I'm sick of Winter work - cold & wet through, filthy kit, wet gear, washing machine on every night, but grateful for the early finishes. Looking forward Summer, then I'll be sick of sweating, flies, dehydration and long days....

And "other factors" that have been discussed before.... There are SO MANY smart ass ways I could answer that Mr E! The point I was musing was that the task would be fundamentally different from Summer to Winter. The complexity / time to undertake the task and the volume of materiel to be removed would be measurably different. Surely these factors should be included in pricing calc's? If you'd quoted for X cube of poo from my tank, but I actually gave you 2X I'd expect to pay for all extra poo! Sh1t happens!! :lol: Granted, Winter work is often cold, wet and miserable with shorter daylight hours when compared to Summer. But Summer can be too hot too. The original question was just theoretical... but I wondered how others might have considered the situation - if at all. For my part, when quoting around this time of year I tend to enquire what the likely timeframe for completion is and inform that if done before coming into leaf it's likely to be more cost effective and then add a line in the written quote to allow for green waste as per weight in ticket.

Given your location.... Surely you only have the option of 1??

Just musing whilst walking the dog, looking at the early signs of life flushing back into the trees and thinking about tasks that are confirmed on price but not yet firmed up into the diary. Does anyone have or use any calc's / formula for price adjusting according to leaf density, or do folks tend to just "cuff it", or just carry the potential additional cost / complexity when quotes are done in Winter season but the job carries forward to Spring / Summer? Given that it is so much quicker and easier to work and move around in a barren tree, that timber is lighter and that a considerable additional volume by weight of chip may need to be taken away from a tree in full leaf, be interesting to hear how people approach this. Not scientific but just for example: A £1000 job quoted in Jan 1-30 April add 2% = £1020 1-31 May add 5% = £1071 1-30 Jun add 5% = £1124.55 1-31 Jul add 5% = £1180.78 1-31 Aug add 2% = £1204.39 Maybe those percentages are too low? Any thoughts??

Format swot!! I went back to edit my format after seeing yours.... But I'd missed the 30 min limit for editing:blushing:

In for a penny......: (format hasn't come across perfectly but...) Country: England I hope it is acceptable to slightly modify the questions / responses since the format appears to provide only for responses on the basis of “practicing” or “consulting.” The issue, I think, this could present is that it presumes (a) that the 2 are mutually exclusive and (b) I’d consider “practicing” to be the operational role which might be the person with the chainsaw who may, or may not, be an inexperienced employee who would expect to be guided by a predetermined task specification. In the hope that it doesn’t unsettle the feedback data collection, I would like to present my responses on the basis that “practicing” is person with the chainsaw and that “consulting” ought to include the company owner level. 1. Does your country have a recognised definition of a veteran tree? If so, please provide below (to understand variation across partner organisations). As defined by the Ancient Tree Forum: What are ancient, veteran and other trees of special interest | Ancient Tree Forum 2. What are the three most common places veteran trees can be found in your country (region – SW UK)? 1. Agricultural land 2. Private / public owned estate grounds 3. Private woodland 3. What are the three most common problems/conflicts which arise in relation to veteran trees in your country? 1. Conflict with commercial agricultural practice in close vicinity to tree 2. Lack of funding and awareness in private / public owned estate grounds 3. Lack of awareness / importance of the early identification of trees at the semi / mature / over mature age class to facilitate protection and transitioning to future notable / veteran / ancient trees.   4. What are the three most important things someone who works on veteran trees needs to know (knowledge)? For example: Practicing Level (Tree Surgeon/ Forester /Contractor) 1. I’m not sure a ‘knowledge level’ is appropriate at the practicing (operator) level since it might be expected that the operator is working to a specification provided by either the tree owner or via the contracted company management structure. It’s possible that attempting to establish a training burden at the operator level could act as a financial disincentive to employers. Consulting Level (Tree inspector/ Forestry inspector/ Advisor/ Company owner or manager) 1. Given that we, today, are the mechanism for ensuring availability of veteran trees of the future, the most important factor must be the ability to recognise the potential for current semi / mature trees, and the environment they exist within, to be identified, recorded and afforded due protection through the ensuing decades / centuries. 2. Passion 3. A well thumbed copy of Ancient and other veteran trees: further guidance on management 5. What are the three most important things someone who works on veteran trees should be able to do (skills)? For example: Practicing Level (Tree Surgeon/ Forester /Contractor) 1. 2. 3. Consulting Level (Tree inspector/ Forester/ Advisor/ Company owner or manager) 1. See 6B 6. Should there be any minimum conditions of entry to the accreditation scheme? A) Number of years’ practical experience Practicing Level (Tree Surgeon/ Forester /Contractor) Yes/No If Yes, check most appropriate (double click on box) 0-2 years 0 2-5 years 0 5-10 years 0 10+ years 0 Consulting Level (Tree inspector/ Forester/ Advisor/ Company owner or manager) Yes/No If Yes, check most appropriate (double click on box) 0-2 years  2-5 years 0 5-10 years 0 10+ years 0 B) Qualifications Practicing Level (Tree Surgeon/Contractor) Yes/No Consulting Level (Tree inspector/ Advisor/ Company owner or manager) Yes/No LANTRA PTI – this would provide a broad general understanding and be a suitable springboard to further reading. My concern would be that setting specific academic / experience / qualification ‘bars’ to accreditation could result in exclusion

Any value in us each copying our individual surveys onto the thread as Treeseer has done above David? Might help (or not) get the thoughts going for more people to fill in the sheet and return and might also generate discussion which could be condensed and sent into the relevant coordinator?

They've "got their own vans and tools", but maybe not their own images?

Trick question....? It didn't work like that. National governments are obliged to adopt EU Directives into national legislation at risk of being taken to EU Courts and having complaints / appeals upheld against them..... So, no, there may not be an EU law in UK legislation, but that's because UK government had to adopt national compliance with EU directives....

Good luck mate!

Barstewrd! That looks like £800+ min in repairs plus claim penalty on renewal if you can't get liability (plus all the hassle, admin and time to get things sorted.) Hope you get 'em to fess up and sort it. Because the 'ker that hit mine didn't, they are now facing prosecution and recovery of uninsured losses. Best of luck!

Ian, it's an awesome piece of work! Here's the problem you might have. Dogs are such personal characters that it is close to, if not impossible to capture all of the character, personality, spirit of mans' best friend in an art form wether that be 2 dimensional (picture / painting) or 3 dimensional (carving / model.) There's just too much in the original package for it to be realistically captured in an inanimate form. With the best will in the world, my wife commissioned models and pictures of my previous dogs.... I can't bear them (a) because it hurts and (b) because they aren't really good enough. Pains me to say it, and I haven't ever told her. Your skills are awesome mate and I'd have a "generic" GSD from you any day, I wouldn't ask you to carve from a picture of a passed dog though, it just wouldn't be fair on either of us. I hope your customer isn't as much of a soft head as I am and you'll be fine! PS - best only refer to it as an Alsatian if that's what the customer calls it, otherwise best say it's a German Sheperd Dog - believe it or not, some get quite touchy about such things.

Done it, trickier than I initially thought it might be. Making some assumptions.... I'm guessing the aim is to try and establish qualifying criteria for potential accreditation levels. The main problem I had with that is a worry that setting experience / qualification / academic requirements could dissuade or disqualify those with an interest or passion. ATF for example, doesn't necessarily require quals but relies heavily upon volunteers that are "interested" or in the tree world (least ways thats how it seems in Cornwall.) I could see it being a shame if people were put off due to perceived ineligibility - but also recognise the benefit of having a cadre of suitably accredited operators...

Very well put 👍🏻 It appears that the backlash is well established and (fingers crossed) we may yet see a reappraisal. An example of those within the Westminster bubble trying to fix a problem that (predominantly) exists within similar bubbles but potentially missing the broader impact upon the "normal" working person.

Update: Claim filed online @ https://www.gov.uk/make-money-claim-online £70 fee, quite straight forward process. "Notice of Issue" received from County Court Business Centre. The respondent has until 25 Mar 17 to reply. Respondent's options: (1) Pay in full (2) File an acknowledgement of Service (this provides 28 days from date of service to file a defence) (3) Dispute the whole claim (I have to wait for receipt of the defence case) (4) Admit that all the money is owed (I have to wait for admission form and ask Court to make a judgement) (5) Admit that part of the money is owed (I have to wait for receipt of the defence case and decide what to do next) (6) Not reply at all (I ask the Court to make a judgement) Stat's detailed in post 42 increase with each action / reaction that occurs so running total increases with each administrative task.... Next update at or around 25 Mar 17. I'll post details of the outcome (wether it's favourable or not) so that anyone suffering a similar set of circumstances might be able to follow the process and recoup lost pennies, or, if it all goes pair shaped, know not to bother!

You're quite right there Mr E! I hadn't considered sick & mat/paternity pay. Is holiday pay in the same category or is that a part of the salary package rather than a statutory right? Good spot!

Should we get excited about equalising NI for employed V self employed? Where the "gain" is equal shouldn't the "pain" be equal? If self employed get the same "benefit" as employed, why should they not pay the same in? Don't get me wrong, I loathe gifting ANY of my hard earned to central government because I don't believe they are treating it with the respect it deserves (that includes the Tories but Lab / Lib Dem would be worse.) The bad thing here is the apparent broken manifesto promise not to raise NI and the likely negative effect on future votes. Maybe Hammond doesn't give a hoot for loosing votes whilst Lab / Lib Dem are so far out of contention?