Utility ROW programs

[Hammer]

Post up what you have going in your department or what you have seen work in your area and even if you have an idea of what you would try if you were the ROW guy.

We have alot of things going on here in Indiana. We are an REMC with about 3200 miles of line and 33k members.

2 years ago we done away with contractors and brought all ROW crews inhouse. It has been a long road to go but has brought many benifits along with it. Almost no complaints and the work looks great and the members like it as well.

We use a tree replacement program. The program is designed to use as a meand of removing trees within the ROW and replacing them with low/slow growing species. We have an onsite nursery that is kept stocked and members can choose what tree species they want as a replacement. Works wonders.

We are in the NWTF energy for wildlife program. We do about 250 to 500 food plots a year to help the wildlife that use the ROWs. We remove nonbenifical species and replace with good food source trees in it's place. Usually this is done on public lands. The NWTF viewes the site several times a year and we have access to the wildlife biologist to ask questions.

There is alot more going on here but want to get your input.

 

[treeblitzer]

What contractors did you have on site? Did you look into bringing in a new contractor or just didnt give it a thought

 

[JJackson]

Hammer, on our property we're trying to bring everything in house also, we have all the equipment but lack the bodies. We currently have 2 contractors that do most of the work and a couple of our own crews that do work in our division. I can't recall how many miles of line we have in the divison but we are responsible for all the distribution and any of the transmission that is located in Flagstaff. Our in house crews can easily out perform the contractors, we have the numbers to prove it. We provide more equipment and tools to get the job done more efficently, and certainly excell in training. The problem so far is finding qualifed foreman to meet our standards. The less experienced climbers can move up faster in the contractor ranks than they can with us. We demand a lot more. Our Lower level climbers can out work and climb some of the higher level contract climbers and even foremen.

We do have a tree replacement program but it is hardly as great as yours. We try to only offer vouchers on trees that we really need to remove. We offer only low growing species from a local nursery.

Our recent accomplishment in our division has been clearing all the distribution line at the Grand Canyon without to much trouble, I guess it took alot of work to set up but once the crews were there work kept on progessing. Some of the crew said they never wanted to see the Grand Canyon again. One of biggest challenges has been working with ferderal agencies, from national forest to forest and even from ranger district to district the all want things done differently. We're working towards smoothing out the process.

 

[Hammer]

[ QUOTE ]
What contractors did you have on site? Did you look into bringing in a new contractor or just didnt give it a thought

[/ QUOTE ]

Asplundh, Townsend, Trees Inc, and some smaller local companies. None wanted to make a commitment to quality. And we are not one to take low bid and expect top service. We were willing to work with the contractors but they could not get the quality people needed to do things properly. Equipment was down personell not showing up for work etc. As far as a new contractor, we tried that but still the same old song and dance.

 

[Hammer]

[ QUOTE ]
Hammer, on our property we're trying to bring everything in house also, we have all the equipment but lack the bodies. We currently have 2 contractors that do most of the work and a couple of our own crews that do work in our division. I can't recall how many miles of line we have in the divison but we are responsible for all the distribution and any of the transmission that is located in Flagstaff. Our in house crews can easily out perform the contractors, we have the numbers to prove it. We provide more equipment and tools to get the job done more efficently, and certainly excell in training. The problem so far is finding qualifed foreman to meet our standards. The less experienced climbers can move up faster in the contractor ranks than they can with us. We demand a lot more. Our Lower level climbers can out work and climb some of the higher level contract climbers and even foremen.

We do have a tree replacement program but it is hardly as great as yours. We try to only offer vouchers on trees that we really need to remove. We offer only low growing species from a local nursery.

Our recent accomplishment in our division has been clearing all the distribution line at the Grand Canyon without to much trouble, I guess it took alot of work to set up but once the crews were there work kept on progessing. Some of the crew said they never wanted to see the Grand Canyon again. One of biggest challenges has been working with ferderal agencies, from national forest to forest and even from ranger district to district the all want things done differently. We're working towards smoothing out the process.

[/ QUOTE ]

Are you talking about APS maybe? If so I talked with Michael Neal at a conference about what is going on in that area. We have 2 different systems (Non). That make a difference in the CPM in the end. We done this cold turkey so to say, no contractors at all. That eliminated the chance of us releasing someone and them going to work for the contractors on the same system and also having 2 standards on the same utility. The quality of people is not something that is gained overnight, it has been 2 years of dedication to hand pick and train people with good morals and work habits to take leadership positions. This process has take 2 years to get to where we are now and is not over, it is a constant job of tweaking the operation to best suit the needs.

We started out using a voucher system and noticed that we were not getting a good price on stock and that the nursery was giving trees out that were not on the approved list. That is why we went to the inhouse nursery system. We have our nursery licence and get stock at whosale price. The only problem is we tried to do a book with pictures and descriptions for the members to view in the field but the availibility changes and it was a PITA to keep current.

We do not have any line on the Feds but do have plenty of line on state ground but have formed a good relation with the property managers and can do just about what we want to do, they know our goal and know we will not do mor than is necessary. The Energy for wildlife program helps in this area also. If you are interested in the program contact Jay Jordan Energy for Wildlife Coordinator National Wild Turkey Federation. 803-637-3106. He is a real down to earth guy and can give you some insight as to some other benifits of the program. They also promote the use of herbicides.

 

[JJackson]

Yes I am with APS, it nice to hear that you're having things come together even though it has been a struggle. I dont worry about losing our crew to the contractors, it's the new people that join. We're having some luck but finding qualifed foremen that meet APS standards has been difficult, the cost of living up in our division (Northeast) has also been a problem, we have some of the highest rent in the state and housing prices also.

I do like your nursery program, I am not to sure that we could do it, we would need at least 2 seperate facilities one for the areas above 5000ft and one for below 5000ft. In Nashville, one of my co-workers and I did like an idea that was presented (from virgina?) about working with an arboretum to set up poles and lines and plant compatible and non compatible species under the lines to show the public what works and what does not. We have not discussed it further since coming back, but your original post reminded me about it.

We don't have a great population of Mariam's turkeys around here, there are some but elk is the king as far as wildlife goes. I would like to see the company spend some more time on alternate uses for ROWs, when I worked in Nova Scotia one thing we had was xmas tree farms in the ROW's.

Thanks for the hope and happy holidays.

 

[Hammer]

The benifit of Being with the NWTF is they encourage the open areas created my utility clearing. We also re-seed the mowed areas with a timothy grass seed which is another food source for wildlife. Pheasants forever is another group that is utility friendly that may be worth some research.I see they do not have a local chapter near you but might be worth a try.

The contractors IMO have done damage to the industry that will take years to overcome. The economy is pretty good here and quite a diverse group of young men that are really taking an interest in Arborculture and ROW maintaince. We currently have 2 ISA arborists on staff me and my boss but just sent 4 guys to take the exam, all 4 almost passed. Which is not bad concidering the length of time theyt have been in the industry and limited study time. I think they will all pass on the re-take.

 

[treebear]

In the utilities we offer our sevices the story´s a bit different; the throw out the inhouse staff and outsouces to contractors. Reasons are that inhouse staff are not given any high status and therefore don´t attract the right people and lineclearance is generally thought of as something one does when nothing better turns up. The utilities too don´t ask for quality work and I sometimes feel like a fly in the soup when asking them to. They don´t see the point.
I am an utility arborist leading a company who tries to perform quality work but the thing is; we can´t give more than we´re paid to.
Merry Xmas or Happy Holiday as you say in the states.

Svein
www.hogstogrydding.no