Remembering Bob Felix

As we approach the 20^th anniversary of his passing, we remember Bob Felix, an icon in the tree care industry and beloved friend, family member, and arborist. After his passing on September 23, 1996, the Tree Care Industry Association (then known as the National Arborist Association, or NAA), published a special commemorative edition of The Reporter to honor Bob’s memory.  

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Tree Care Industry Association Launches Public Accident Database

The Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA), a trade association of more than 2,300 commercial tree care firms and affiliated companies, has been compiling, analyzing and disseminating data on accidents involving tree care since 2009. Recently, TCIA began publishing all reported incidents in a new public database, “Accidents in the U.S.

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De-Icing Salt Can Harm Landscape Plants

Each winter, vast quantities of de-icing salt are applied to state and municipal roads to keep them safe for commuters, and salt is spread near houses to avoid pedestrian injuries. This is necessary for safety, but did you know excessive salt can cause widespread damage to trees – possibly leading to permanent decline and even death?

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More Arborists Catch the Holiday-Décor Spirit

Editor’s Note: This blog post was adapted from an article authored by Rob Sample, and was featured as the cover story in the December 2015 edition of TCI Magazine. Click here to read the full article.

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Get Your Holiday Tree Home Safely

Nothing says “It’s the holidays!” like tying a tree to the top of your car and driving it around town before placing it in a bucket of water in your living room for a couple of months. Ah, Christmas!

Here are a few tips on selecting, securing and setting up a Christmas tree in your home:

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Snow and Woody Plants

Editor's Note: This article informs homeowners of the benefits and possible damage caused to trees by snow. Tree care companies: Don't forget to share this with your customers!

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Home Inspections Outside the House

Imagine purchasing a nice new home, only to have a large old oak tree fall on your roof a few weeks later. Or imagine learning that an old poplar tree is plagued with dangerous root rot, and will cost $6,000 to be removed.

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Apps for Arborists

Editor’s Note: These recommendations were provided by TCI EXPO 2015 speaker Brandon Gallagher Watson of Rainbow Treecare Scientific Advancements. 

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Working with Biochar

Editor's Note: Content for this blog was provided by TCI EXPO 2015 speaker Michael Wittman of The Blue Sky Enterprise, Inc.

Biochar (shown under microscope, right) is a type of charcoal made from biomass – that is, plant or plant-based material such as grass clippings or wood chips – burned in little to no oxygen.

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What Are You Worth? The Talk, Telling and Selling of Tree Care

Editor’s Note: This post is based on a January 2015 TCI Magazine article authored by TCI EXPO 2015 speaker Jeffery Ling, Registered Consulting Arborist (RCA).

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Three Strategies Tree Care Company Owners Can Use to Control Workers' Compensation Costs

Editor’s Note: This article was authored by TCI EXPO 2015 speaker, Rick Weden. To view TCIA’s insurance resources and articles, click here.

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Three Inbound Marketing Resources for Your Tree Care Business

Too often, business owners purchase flyers, postcards, and radio ads, but see little to no return on their investment. While this kind of paid, traditional advertising is still an effective way to raise brand awareness, business owners may see better, more quantifiable results if they dedicate resources to inbound marketing.

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http://lawnfrogslandscapes.com/blog/tips-on-surviving-the-drought/ - Landscape Tips On Surviving The Drought - Best Acworth Lawn Care

http://lawnfrogslandscapes.com/blog/tips-on-surviving-the-drought/ - Landscape Tips On Surviving The Drought - Best Acworth Lawn Care

During the summer months heat often coincides with drought. When this happens, your lawn may turn brown in lieu of the lovely green that many cherish. Of course brown doesn’t necessarily mean that the lawn is dead, however, it is rather unsightly. It’s from the drought that is called summer dormancy. Read our blog to prevent any damage to your Acworth, GA Lawn.

Lawn Frogs Landscaping

6294 McCollum Way

Acworth GA 30102

(770) 842-5416

Injured Arborist Seeks Help Post-Amputation

Editor's Note: The following appeal was sent to TCIA in late August by Victoria Monson of TCIA member company C.O. Arborists, Inc., in Pasadena, California. TCIA decided the best way we can help is to share the story with our members, TCI Magazine, and TCIA Blog readers.

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The taskmaster

Multitasking. That’s been the aspiration of the American worker for the last decade as technology has been delivering more and more information to us faster and faster. The problem is that multitasking is not the panacea everyone hoped it would be. In fact, attempts to multitask actually reduce productivity and effectiveness. That’s what current science is finding.

In early 2010, Stanford University released a study that concluded in part that people just don’t multitask very well. But we don’t even need to look to science to know this is true. Just ask yourself whether you’ve ever been in someone else’s office trying to have a conversation with them while they checked their e-mail. How effective and productive was the experience? Not very, right?

The reason we don’t multitask well is founded more on an economic theory called a switch cost than anything else. A switch cost is the cost (in this case, time) of switching between processes. That’s because every time you switch between things – one task to another – it takes a moment to come up to speed on the new task before you can be productive. Thus, as you can see, the more switches that occur, the higher the cost in lost time.

Do one thing at a time.

Even though this is extremely difficult to do in the modern work environment, turning off new message alerts and working behind closed doors for short periods of time greatly assists you in reducing the interruptions that litter your day. Now with a little quieter space, give yourself a leg up by trying to work on only one thing at a time, in order to eliminate any switch costs that you’re adding to your day.

Limiting yourself to doing one thing at a time is the best gift you can give yourself. When you focus on that one thing, you will accomplish it more efficiently, and the result will be better.

Identify today’s one thing.

There are any number of days in a week, month, year where you feel more like the Ping-Pong ball than the paddle. It’s all you can do just to keep your head above water. The suggestions in this article will help, but the tide can rise to tsunami levels at times, and even the best of efforts can’t get you ahead of the game.

A great way to squeeze a small sense of accomplishment and command out of the worst of days and weeks is to select the one thing you’re going to get done today. Then no matter how bad the day gets, you commit to getting that one thing done. The result will be evidence of forward movement on that day, along with a greater feeling of being in control of at least part of your day.

Spread priorities out.

“This is an ASAP!” “I need this NOW!” “Urgent, Highest Priority!” These are just some of the so-called deadlines that get thrown at you throughout the day. The fundamental problem presented here is that these deadlines lack specificity and clarity. Having searched long and hard, it can be stated without doubt that “ASAP” does not appear on any calendar published today.

This is what I call the “ASAP problem,” and it, and its cousins “Urgent” and “Now,” have become the default mechanism for establishing deadlines in the modern work environment. The reality is that most things aren’t that urgent. In fact, in almost every instance, when you deliver this project ASAP, it will likely languish on the desk you deliver it to for days, even weeks. So it really wasn’t that important.

Seek specific deadlines – dates and times – and spread them out over the course of the future accordingly. It’s easier to do this with work over which you have control and harder for work being assigned to you.

Whenever you next receive something that needs to be done ASAP, simply respond with a positive statement about the work and a query about whether “Tuesday at 3” would work. You’ll find that by placing a specific date and time on the deadline, the work giver will begin conversing in the same fashion.

By establishing specific deadlines and then spreading those out over the course of the near future, you regain command of your workload. That way, when someone next approaches you with an ASAP, you can clearly, and with a high degree of confidence, respond to them with a specific deadline option and begin the negotiation process to fit it into your day while also responding to their needs.

Conduct regular core dumps.

You have a lot of stuff in your head, and you are always thinking about it. Getting focused (and productive) is largely a function of quieting down your physical and mental space as much as possible. The idea behind a core dump is to take all the things popping up in your head and commit them to some form of record – a to-do list, an electronic task-management system, or something similar.

Once your mind knows that these items have been captured, it can let go of them and turn its full attention to what needs doing right now. Core dumps can be conducted anytime and anywhere. Whenever you find yourself repeating a series of things in your head, it’s a good time to take a brief moment and core-dump that list into a permanent record.

You’ll be surprised by how freeing this little behavior is. The weight of the world will lift from your shoulders, and you’ll be able to better focus on the “right now.”

Use full screens.

The use of multiple monitors at work has become common. In fact, one of my clients had five monitors on his desk and purported to work with all of them open all the time. Even those of us without the budget or authority to command multiple monitors on our desk will have multiple windows open at any one time.

Either way, this is a distraction-rich environment. Every time something changes on one monitor or window, your eye will be naturally drawn to it. This causes a distraction, however slight, that eats into your focus and productivity.

The sole exception to this rule – full screens on one monitor and eliminating the use of multiple monitors – is when you are aggregating information from multiple sources into a single source. Think of this exception as the “term paper” exception. When writing a term paper, the various source documents are researched and assembled. Then once writing has begun, those source materials are stacked up around you as you write. Using multiple monitors or partial windows on a single monitor is effective for this sort of effort.

Do one more (little) thing. The final tip for getting more command over tasks is to do one little thing at the very end of the day. Get in the habit of buttoning everything up and getting ready to go home and, before leaving the office, to do one more little thing – return a call, respond to a short email, put a file folder away.

Given that we work approximately 240 days a year, you can get 240 more little things done each year. Imagine if you got 240 more little things done this year than last year. That’s a lot of little things.

Following these tips will keep you focused and more productive. The cake will be that moment at the end of the day when you get just one more little thing done. You’ll leave the office feeling good about what you’ve accomplished.

The author is a time management coach. You can learn more about him at quietspacing.com.

http://lawnfrogslandscapes.com/blog/5-facts-you-might-not-know-about-pruning-ornamental-grasses-native-to-georgia/ - Landscaping in Roswell Gives 5 Facts On Pruning Ornamental Grasses

http://lawnfrogslandscapes.com/blog/5-facts-you-might-not-know-about-pruning-ornamental-grasses-native-to-georgia/ - Landscaping in Roswell Gives 5 Facts On Pruning Ornamental Grasses

5 facts you might not know about pruning ornamental grasses might change your mind! This is especially true for larger grasses, like pampas grass, that can get extremely dense and tall. This can lead to unpleasant, and even dangerous, pruning experiences.  To learn more lawn care tips please follow our blog.

Roswell GA Landscaping

Roswell GA Lawn Care

Lawn Frogs Landscaping

6294 McCollum Way

Acworth GA 30102

(770) 842-5416

http://lawnfrogslandscapes.com/blog/time-to-aerate-bermuda/ - Tips on Acworth, GA Bermuda Turf Aerating - Best Acworth Lawn Care

http://lawnfrogslandscapes.com/blog/time-to-aerate-bermuda/ - Tips on Acworth, GA Bermuda Turf Aerating - Best Acworth Lawn Care

The best time to aerate is when the Bermuda grass is growing rapidly during summer.

It is possible to aerate Bermuda grass twice a year on very compact soils. After aeration, you need to apply some fertilizer and water to make sure the turf recovers fast.

Each type of grass has different aeration seasons. The bottom line is that all types of grasses should be aerated before the grass begins to grow more rapidly. September and October are the best months to aerate fescue grass as most of the productive growth of fescue grass is during the fall.

Late April is the best time to aerate Bermuda, Centipedegrass, and Zoysiagrass. This is because they almost are growing rapidly and they have completed the green up process.

Lawn Frogs Landscaping

6294 McCollum Way

Acworth GA 30102

(770) 842-5416

Finish strong

Jim Huston

Just about all of my clients and all market segments are seeing growth that they haven’t seen since 2007. It looks like the recent recession is finally subsiding. It’s understandable that you and your team are a bit burned out but it’s imperative that you finish on a good note. Here are a few reasons why. The break-even point (BEP). Around September is when a company usually hits its BEP. This means you’ve accumulated enough gross profit margin dollars to equal your general and administrative (G&A) overhead costs for the year. Once you’ve reached your BEP, any amount you bill above your direct costs (field labor, labor burden, materials, subcontractors, field trucks and equipment) goes right to your bottom line (net profit margin). Let me give you an example. A full-service landscape company has a $1 million sales budget for 2015. It’s budgeted G&A overhead costs for the year total $250,000 (25 percent). Its average GPM (sales minus direct costs) is 35 percent. To calculate this company’s BEP, you divide its G&A overhead costs by its average GPM. G&A overhead costs ÷ average company GPM $250,000 ÷ .35 = $714,286 This company should hit its BEP once it has billed a little over $700,000. You want to track this dollar amount and the date that you hit it from year to year. The fourth quarter press. Here’s what exceeding your budget can do for your bottom line. Our example company has a budgeted net profit margin of 10 percent or $100,000. It’s such a banner year, that if the owner and staff maintain their focus and really press to the end of the fourth quarter, it’s possible they could achieve from $1.1 million-$1.2 million in sales. Because the company GPM averages 35 percent and because it has reached its BEP, an extra $100,000 in revenue adds $35,000 to its bottom line. In other words, because all of this company’s G&A overhead is paid for, the GPM now becomes the net profit margin. Budgeted net profit margin $100,000/10% ($100,000 NPM ÷ $1 million sales = .1 or 10%) Potential GPM / net profit margin with additional $100,000 in sales $35,000/12.3% ($135,000 NPM ÷ 1,100,000 sales = .1227 or 12.3%) Potential GPM / net profit margin with additional $200,000 in sales $70,000/14.2% ($170,000 NPM ÷ 1,200,000 sales = .1417 or 14.2%) This company could almost double its projected net profit margin with an additional $200,000 in sales. Formatting the profit and loss (P&L) statement. It is very important that you format your P&L statement properly. If you do, you can easily track accumulated GPM for the year. This will allow you to identify your BEP amount and when you achieve it. If sales are more than $500,000 for the year, I recommend you do this for each of your divisions (installation, maintenance, snow and ice, etc.). Here’s how it should look. Sales revenue $1,000,000/100% Materials $235,000/23.5% Field labor $250,000/25% Field labor burden $50,000 /5% Subcontractors $10,000/1% Equipment & trucks (owned) $100,000/10% Rental equipment $5,000/.5% Total $650,000/65% GPM $350,000/35% G&A overhead $250,000/25% NPM $100,000/10% The finish line. These last three months of the year are the most important ones of all. Once you hit your BEP and sales goal for the year, you add two to three times the amount of net profit margin for every additional revenue dollar that you bill. Then you can take some well-deserved time off. Jim Huston runs J.R. Huston Consulting, a green industry consulting firm. www.jrhuston.biz; jhuston@giemedia.com

NJLCA builds outdoor classroom

WALDWICK, N.J. - The New Jersey Landscape Contractors Association (NJLCA) has just completed its 2015 Day of Service (DOS) project at The Forum School, located in Waldwick, N.J. The Forum School is a private, non-profit, non- sectarian day school for students with Autism and other neurological dysfunctions. A ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 2 from 1:30-2:30 p.m.

Each year, members of the NJLCA volunteer their time and donate equipment and materials for their Day of Service project to help children in local communities. This year, The Forum School was chosen for the NJLCA DOS project. The inspiration for the project came from Danielle Goldstein, an occupational therapy assistant major at Eastwick College, and daughter of Rich Goldstein, Treasurer of the NJLCA. The school requested a sensory garden to help teachers educate students about the different senses, using plant material with different colors, textures and scents and garden structures including a pondless water fountain and colorful "talk-tube" for sound. The NJLCA took it one step further and built an entire outdoor classroom, including built-in seating and raised planters.

NJLCA Executive Director Jody Shilan, who designed the project, said, "Our members really enjoy working together and giving back to local communities. These projects truly are a labor of love and I am always so impressed with the generosity of our association members."

"When we first saw the plans, we expected a nice, colorful perennial garden for our students and teachers," said Brian Detlefsen, Principal of The Forum School. "However, now that the project is complete, we are amazed at how beautiful the outdoor classroom is. We can't wait to start using it."

ServiceMaster announces three promotions

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – ServiceMaster Global Holdings has announced several executive moves designed to help the company pursue new growth opportunities and advance the use of digital and mobile technologies to improve service to the five million customers it serves each year.

Mark Barry has been promoted to chief marketing and strategy officer. Barry joined ServiceMaster in 2012 as president of its American Home Shield home warranty business and has been serving as group president leading both AHS and the company’s Franchise Services Group. In his new role, Barry will oversee company strategy, including competitive intelligence, insights and analytics, as well as all marketing, pricing and business development.

“Mark has done an outstanding job helping AHS achieve strong revenue and earnings growth, while introducing a number of improvements in the company’s digital and service capabilities,” said Rob Gillette, ServiceMaster’s chief executive officer. He noted that under Barry’s leadership, AHS has grown its customer base nearly 15 percent – to 1.5 million, including the 2014 acquisition of Wisconsin-based HSA Home Warranty.

“By applying many of the same successful strategies Mark has introduced at AHS,” said Gillette, “we believe there’s a significant opportunity for ServiceMaster to grow by meeting the rising demand for expert help in protecting and maintaining homes and businesses in an increasingly `do-it-for-me’ world.”

Replacing Mark as AHS president is Tim Haynes, who has served as ServiceMaster’s senior vice president and chief information officer since 2014 and played an instrumental role in driving many of the technology initiatives that have helped fuel AHS’s growth. Haynes joined ServiceMaster in 2012 as vice president of IT, supporting AHS after spending several years in global roles at Nissan and GMAC.

“Tim’s broad knowledge in strategic business and technology planning, global IT systems and project management has helped us begin to leverage technology as an enabler of growth in all of our businesses,” said Gillette.

Jamie Smith will replace Haynes as ServiceMaster CIO. He joined AHS as vice president of IT in 2014 after nearly 20 years of experience, including various IT leadership roles at Nissan, IBM and PriceWaterhouseCoopers.

“Jamie brings a combination of IT and business experience, with a deep understanding of call center technology, sales, finance and a strong marketing background,” said Gillette. “His expertise will ensure the continued growth of our digital channels and improvement in our customer experience across all of our businesses.”

Early Fall Color Could Be Sign of Tree Distress

Editor's Note: This article informs homeowners of possible causes/consequences of premature color change in tree leaves. Tree care companies: Don't forget to share this with your customers!

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Growing experiences

During winters, when the cold is quite bitter in Wisconsin, Liza Lightfoot escorts students on mission-focused travel excursions to her home country of South Africa, giving young people an opportunity to make an indelible impression in urban and rural impoverished communities.

Travel Learners LLC is the business, and Lightfoot helps plan entire trips, or the pieces-parts like accommodations, transport, outings and guidance on where to go (and where not to go.)

The landscape-related work Lightfoot organizes includes building food gardens and playgrounds with student groups from University of Wisconsin and California Polytechnic University. “We do projects that support vulnerable children in South Africa,” Lightfoot says of the business she started in 2007.

“I’m at this stage in my life where I’ve been doing my [landscape] business for a long time, and suddenly I realized I needed other sources of stimulation in my life, so this has been a great project for that,” Lightfoot says.

Group size is generally 10 to 12 students, and trips last 10 days to three weeks depending on the project. Lightfoot leads groups studying landscape architecture as she did, and global health students focused on agro-ecology. “I love being part of the student groups. I learn a lot from them and it has been a lot of fun,” Lightfoot says.

Travel Learners LLC organizes trips primarily to Johannesburg – a neighborhood called Alexander Township – and the Eastern Cape region, a rural province of South Africa.

Last year, one student group won an American Society of Landscape Architects award for a playground project they designed and built in Johannesburg during a Travel Learners excursion.

Meanwhile, at her home business, Lightfoot allows employees to really take the reins while she manages Travel Learners in the cold season. The arrangement has been beneficial for Lightfoot, fulfilling her desire to change directions a bit, and for her core business Avant Gardening and Landscaping, which has become even more sustainable.

“I think it’s good for people to run the business while I’m gone and make decisions on their own without me,” she says. “If it was all me and all about me, the business would not be where we are today.”

Company preps for Pope's visit

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Sept. 23, Pope Francis is scheduled to say an outdoor mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, the largest Roman Catholic Church in the United States. Chapel Valley is responsible for the site’s ongoing landscape management (20 plus years) and for the additional landscaping that will be performed in honor of the Pope’s visit.

The event is taking place on the east portico of the basilica, and is expected to attract over 30,000 attendees. In order to accommodate the visitors, Chapel Valley must be on site for 18 days to create and maintain a 3.6-acre outdoor space. It will take both maintenance and construction teams to fulfill the landscape requirements.

During this time trees, shrubs, and flowers will be removed and put in a holding area to make room for the stage. Once the event is finished, the plants are expected to be put back exactly as they were prior to the normal mass held every Sunday.

While the stage is being installed, an enhancement crew will be on site to take care of any pruning or plant material requirements. In addition, the crew will prune mature trees to improve sight views.

There will also be a water truck on-site as some of the irrigation zones will be turned off to protect any electrical equipment used on stage. All turf area and plants around the stage and jumbo screen will be hand-watered in lieu of the standard irrigation.

“From tree transplanting, regular maintenance, to watering – the grounds need to be a show case site even throughout all the foot traffic and construction. Pressure is on from the Basilica but we are prepared with a great staff in place,” says Danny Wenner, Chapel Valley’s property manager, who has been attending weekly meetings for two months in preparation of the Pope’s visit.

Appreciating your peers

Sometimes the smallest gestures can have the biggest impact.

Like the gift of coconut bread and jam, which were given to ArtistTree Landscape Maintenance and Design as a unique way of thanks. The company had been asked to help transplant fruit trees that were being removed from the future site of a sales center. The landscape chairman serving on the HOA board didn’t want to see the trees destroyed, so he asked ArtisTree to transplant them around the community.

“To thank us, he and his wife made us the homemade bread and jam,” says Debra Morrow, vice president of marketing for ArtisTree. “When they presented it to our account executive, the bread was still warm.”

Get involved ArtisTree is hoping other companies will jump on the program and start making people around the country aware of it. Interested companies can contact ArtisTree and say they want to put the image of Orlando on the website. And when it comes to Thank A Landscaper, it’s not about beating the competition, but working together, because every company is different and has its own niche, Morrow says.

The bread and jam were made from the trees and Morrow called it “one of the kindest gestures we ever received.”

This gesture was the thought process behind ArtisTree’s new program, “Thank A Landscaper,” which was launched in the spring. It gives people the chance to thank any person or group of people that has had a significant impact on their experience with the green industry.

“There are times where, when we perform work for clients, sometimes we feel invisible, and I don’t think we’re unlike many of our competitors,” says Morrow. “We’re supposed to be invisible. We want to go quietly into neighborhoods and transform their properties and maintain them well, but it would be nice to be acknowledged.”

The company decided to start an initiative to thank landscapers for the work they do. A photograph taken of Orlando Otano Ramon, one of ArtisTree’s crew members, was turned into an artistic card by Randy Padorr-Black of Randy Padorr-Black Design, and given out to people to raise awareness to the program.

The website (www.thankalandscaper.com) was launched and includes a tab where people can go on and thank any individual or company that has helped shape their awareness of the industry. You can select any option from parent to residential maintenance company to environmentalist. People can choose between pre-written thank you’s, or opt to write their own. The thank you is then posted on the home page of the website for everyone to see.

“If people have a more positive perception of landscapers, whether degreed or not, designers or not, manufacturers or not, we can all go down the river together and benefit from the positive perception,” Morrow says.

WorkWave unveils route planning solution

NEPTUNE, N.J. – WorkWave has unveiled WorkWave Fleet, its mobile-first flexible route planning solution. WorkWave Fleet helps field service and transportation and logistics businesses save time and costs while increasing capacity by better managing their mobile workforce with unique mobile capabilities.

“WorkWave Fleet allows for automating the dispatching and monitoring process to help keep our service levels high, with less overhead. Real-time dispatching gives us the flexibility we need to manage a dynamic environment,” said Ryan Walter, co-founder of The Compost Crew, a Maryland-based organization aimed at collecting organic materials from local communities to be composted and used to replenish soil.

Typical productivity improvements for businesses that adopt WorkWave Fleet include:

• 20 percent reduction in drive time

• 30 percent reduction in mileage

• 25 percent reduction in overall costs

• 22 percent increase in capacity

“WorkWave continues to help its clients by saving them time and costs, while increasing capacity and on-time performance with the rollout of WorkWave Fleet,” said Chris Sullens, president and CEO of WorkWave. “Our new cloud-based application is designed to be simple to use and deploy, making it ideal for small to medium sized fleets, yet powerful enough to be used by enterprise clients. It enables businesses to easily make competitive commitments to customers while boosting responsiveness to last minute requests thanks to advanced functionality that raises the bar for mobile workforce productivity and instantly delivers savings, ROI and allows our clients to delight their customers.”

In addition to WorkWave Fleet’s core flexible route planning capabilities, the new solution also features:

• What-if scenarios: drag-and-drop functionality visualizes how changes impact performance to enable rapid scheduling and smarter planning

• Mobile execution: automatically updates progress from drivers, logs arrival and departure times and allows for rescheduling requests

• Intra-day planning: reschedule in real-time to avoid problems, update customers with courtesy calls, integrate with your system to provide ETAs via text or dispatch another vehicle

• Dramatic improvements to user interface, schedule management and path to ROI

• Rapid deploy: a design and user interface that allows customers to learn the application in hours and deploy almost instantly after purchasing with no expensive and time consuming professional services

• Robust API: connect directly to your own ERP, WMS, CRM or customer database to receive real-time updates within your own system and automate import/export operations and changes seamlessly

WorkWave plans additional enhancements to WorkWave Fleet in 2015, including full integration with WorkWave GPS, its cloud-based telematics solution that tracks vehicle location, monitors drive behavior, and provides instant events-based alerts from any device. WorkWave Fleet already boasts a wide range of performance enhancements over its predecessor, including more robust reporting and automation for office and field workers, as well as a dynamic new user interface.

For more information on WorkWave Fleet, visit www.workwave.com/fleet.

Hunter introduces courses in Spanish

SAN MARCOS, Calif. – Hunter announces that its Technician Level training courses are now available in Spanish. The online training provides basic knowledge about the Hunter product line, including simple adjustments and programming. Courses are designed for installation and maintenance professionals, specifiers and distributors.

"We developed our Spanish training courses in response to our customers' requests. The Technician Level courses help answer the most frequently asked product questions, so irrigation professionals can provide better service to their customers," said Phil Robisch, product technical resource manager at Hunter.

Customers can take just one course to get the information they need, or enroll in the Product Specialist Program to expand their education.

Two other training levels are offered in English:

- Hunter Specialist: in-depth knowledge on a particular product, installation, and programming knowledge

- Hunter Expert: thorough training and knowledge on a certain product category

Learn more: training.hunterindustries.com

Safety Above Begins With Safety Below

Editor's Note: This article was authored by TCIA associate member Teupen USA.

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http://lawnfrogslandscapes.com/blog/lawn-care-and-landscaping-professionals-are-still-hard-at-work/ - Lawn Care And Landscaping Professionals Are Still Hard At Work - Lawn Frogs Landscaping

http://lawnfrogslandscapes.com/blog/lawn-care-and-landscaping-professionals-are-still-hard-at-work/ - Lawn Care And Landscaping Professionals Are Still Hard At Work - Lawn Frogs Landscaping

I know when the winter months are just beginning to warm up once again and spring’s bringing in the promise of a new year. It is hard to think about your landscaping chores when so much is going on with the season’s change, but you really want to hire a professional landscaping company before the full spring season kicks off.

I know we all have plenty to do, but hiring professionals like those of us at Lawn Frogs Landscaping in Roswell, Georgia, will save you a lot of time and hassle down the line. We can get you looking right from the very beginning.

Roswell GA Landscaping

Roswell GA Lawn Care

Lawn Frogs Landscaping

6294 McCollum Way

Acworth GA 30102

(770) 842-5416

Build a fight-ready fleet

This is particularly true for snow and ice removal companies. Equipment failure can lead to catastrophic results for your bottom line. The secret is simple: Be prepared by standardizing your fleet. Planning during the summer is the key to guaranteeing not only a successful winter but diminished headaches and maximized profits.

Strategic partners.

Think of your local dealerships as strategic partners in the endeavor to acquire equipment. Before purchasing ask yourself: Does the manufacturer of the equipment I am purchasing have replacement parts available locally? Do they sell and repair these parts locally? Do they have the ability to respond to my needs?

The best piece of equipment is only the best if you have a local dealer with a responsive service department that stocks all the parts you’ll need. This partner must also have flexible hours to assist with recovery when unexpected breakdowns occur during snow and ice events. Always do your due diligence in this area and take the time to nurture these relationships. Keeping close ties and current accounts with your local dealership will ensure a quick response when you need it most.

To buy or to lease?

Never assume you have to own all of your equipment outright to be successful through the season. In fact, I recommend leasing any piece of equipment that will be used less than 200 hours per season. It’s been my experience, in considering the cost of leasing and the cost of acquisition in an overhead recovery model, that it’s cheaper to lease this equipment as it keeps your overhead recovery rate lower.

When making this decision, it is important to consider cash flow and tax implications for the year. Leasing allows you the option to buy the equipment at the end of the lease term. Leasing usually has lower monthly payments, which will increase cash flow and allow for newer equipment still under warranty. This is particularly useful if a breakdown should occur as you will avoid repair costs.

Another advantage to leasing is that the expense of the lease can be realized that tax year as a deduction. According to the Section 179 deduction for the year, part or all of, up to $25,000, your business equipment costs can be deducted. Consult your CPA before making a vehicle or loader purchase to ensure it’s the right choice for cash flow and tax purposes. Your CPA will also be able to confirm the status and limits of the Section 179 tax deduction rules for the current tax year.

Standardize your fleet.

First, find your niche market by standardizing the size and types of properties you service. Then purchase or lease the right size equipment for the properties you are bidding on.

Your niche may be two or three different types of properties but they should all share similar processes and operations for work performed. Now you can standardize your equipment. Acquire the same types of plows, salters, trucks, loaders, sidewalk clearing and de-icing equipment that you’ll need to perform work during snow and ice events. By standardizing equipment, you can easily follow suit with your training, maintenance and repair processes, making your business much more manageable during storms.

Once you have standardized your fleet, employee training can be systematized. Onboarding of staff becomes more practicable because all employees are trained on the same equipment. They learn how to use it and how to repair it. Repairs become routine as parts are interchangeable and standard tools can be used. Companies can also maintain stockpiles of backup equipment to combat downtime when a breakdown occurs.

The ratio I use is one back-up plow for every five trucks and one back-up truck for every 10 plow trucks. This also makes pre-, mid- and post-season maintenance predictable as all employees have the skills, tools and training needed.

Any snow and ice removal professional knows the wear and tear on equipment is considerable. I have found that the sweet spot for replacing trucks/plows is every five to six years, especially if they are operating year-round. It is important to set up a standard replacement plan for your equipment and make sure you remember to include these costs in your overhead recovery model.

Equipping your operation the right way can mean big results for your bottom line. Pre-plan and make smart decisions that will assist you in meeting your goals. Equipment standardization allows for employee proficiency in operation, efficiency among crews, predictable preventative maintenance and big returns on investment for your company.

The author is owner of Callahan Lawn Care and Property Maintenance. He has been in the snow business for more than 15 years. He can be reached at mcallahan@giemedia.com.

WorkWave makes two acquisitions

NEPTUNE, N.J. – WorkWave has announced the acquisition of RefGo, a consumer review platform, and ContactUs.com, a provider of online marketing tools for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). With the addition of these two key pieces of functionality, WorkWave expands its addressable market to over $45 billion.

“The three biggest pain points our clients face today are improving productivity in the field, growing revenues cost effectively, and improving customer service and retention in a scalable way,” said Chris Sullens, CEO of WorkWave. “Through heavy investment in product development and several strategic acquisitions, WorkWave now offers the most powerful, cloud-based platform for improving fleet productivity in the industries we serve. While we plan to continue to invest heavily to enhance our mobility offerings, we will be aggressively adding features to the platform to help our clients solve the revenue growth and retention puzzle. Consumer reviews and marketing automation are critical elements in solving this puzzle.”

As part of these transactions, Malcolm Lewis, CEO of RefGo, and Nayt Grochowski, CTO of RefGo, have joined the WorkWave team and will be responsible for driving product development and go to market strategies for the consumer reviews and marketing automation segment of the business. RefGo has been rebranded as ContactUs Reviews and becomes part of WorkWave Marketing’s ContactUs suite of SMB marketing solutions.

“The beauty of our reviews product is that it provides insight into customer perception and service levels while helping clients increase lead volume and quality,” said Lewis. “Nayt and I are very excited to join the WorkWave team to help accelerate the development of the first true end-to-end solution to help clients grow and optimize their businesses.”

By integrating the existing products from ContactUs and RefGo into its field service software platforms, WorkWave provides an end-to-end solution for field service providers, connecting clients’ lead generation and service fulfillment functions in a way that enables them to determine the true ROI of their marketing efforts and better optimize these efforts going forward.

“This is an exciting and innovative development for the industry and our clients,” said Sullens. “The on-demand, ‘Uber of x’ gold rush is exciting for end users but not very helpful for the type of high quality providers that use the WorkWave platform. Most of these models will fall short for many reasons, mainly because they lack tight integration with the back end systems of their many service providers. Our approach of providing intuitive, ‘on demand-type’ tools that tightly connect the lead generation and service fulfillment functions allows clients on our platform to provide an Uber-type experience while capturing the full value of each customer they add. This holistic, provider-friendly approach empowers field service businesses and allows both the service providers and end users to win rather than have one group win at the other’s expense as is the case in many of these new models.”

For more information on ContactUs Reviews, visit www.contactus.com/reviews, and for more information on ContactUs.com, visit www.contactus.com.

http://lawnfrogslandscapes.com/blog/roses-in-roswell-landscapes/ - Roswell Landscaping Can Prune Your Roses - Lawn Frogs Landscaping

http://lawnfrogslandscapes.com/blog/roses-in-roswell-landscapes/ - Roswell Landscaping Can Prune Your Roses - Lawn Frogs Landscaping

Rose bushes can provide years of dedicated service. They look beautiful and smell fantastic. However, many people neglect pruning their roses. Why? Because they don’t know how.

When you take the time to correctly prune your roses, you open them up to receive more air and sunlight. This will encourage your roses to provide you with more blooms. It also improves the shape and can trim out any lanky branches that can grab at you as you walk by.

Rose Pruning

Roswell GA Landscaping

Roswell GA Lawn Care

Lawn Frogs Landscaping

6294 McCollum Way

Acworth GA 30102

(770) 842-5416

AmericanHort to host NextLevel event in Florida

In a continuing effort to help the horticulture industry’s business owners, managers, and emerging leaders raise the bar for themselves and their companies, AmericanHort invites high-level professionals to attend NextLevel, January 18-20, 2016 in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

NextLevel offers owners, managers, and emerging leaders a fresh perspective of their business. While it’s all too easy on a day-to-day basis to get caught up in administrative tasks, NextLevel is an opportunity to focus on company culture, vision, marketing strategy, succession planning and more.

Renowned business experts are slated for the event, including keynote speaker Brian Kight, who will provide leadership strategies to improve company culture. Kight is nationally recognized for his work in college championship football and his ability to apply frameworks to some of the most pervasive business challenges. Because of these frameworks, professionals all over the world have become better at recognizing and responding to critical moments – and ultimately produce better outcomes at home and at work.

Education tracks will include leadership, marketing, family business, and human resources. “Hubs” help attendees take what they have learned in sessions to develop strategies directly related to the horticulture industry and their industry segment. These Hubs include: Advance My Career, Balance Life and Business, Establish My Legacy, and Build My Bottom Line. Hubs are the perfect opportunity to collaborate with other industry professionals to gain different perspectives and insights that help create a well-rounded business strategy for success.

To learn more about and register for 2016 NextLevel conference, please visit YourNextLevel.org.

Saluting Branches: A National Day of Arborist Service

Editor’s Note: This day of service will be held September 23, 2015. For more information, please visit www.salutingbranches.org.

U.S. military members make a commitment to protect our people and the freedoms our country holds dear, and many make the ultimate sacrifice of giving their lives in service to our country.

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New England GROWS announces agenda

BOSTON, Mass. – Green industry exposition and educational conference New England GROWS has announced the agenda for the next annual GROWS conference to be held on its new dates: December 2-4, 2015 in Boston.

At GROWS, the brightest minds in horticulture, landscape and tree care come together to share their insights and advice with green industry colleagues. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of cutting edge science and techniques in design, technology, consumer trends and business best practices. From new plant introductions and disease management strategies to lean management and eco-friendly landscapes, New England GROWS covers a wide range of topics.

Acclaimed authors, influential environmentalists and successful entrepreneurs are among the speakers at the conference. Educational highlights include:

Michael Dirr, PhD, an authority on woody plants and the award-winning author of several popular books, will speak "In Praise of Noble Trees" and on "A Cornucopia of New Flowering Trees & Shrubs: Selection, Use & Culture." Dr. Dirr will autograph his books at the show, as well.

In "The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty & Biodiversity," Rick Darke will explore how an understanding of biodiversity can be put to practical use in residential gardens and community landscapes.

Kate Kennen, RLA, will tackle "Phyto Landscapes: Using Plants to Clean Up Polluted Water, Soil & Air," and share how phytoremediation plantings can be used to enhance environmental conditions on roadsides, in communities and brownfields.

Professor John Ball, PhD, of South Dakota University, will address the all-important issue of safety for tree care, landscaping and nursery professionals in "Safety Starts at the Top." He'll explain The Haddon Matrix approach to reducing risk.

In all, conference participants can choose from more than 30 educational sessions over the course of three days. Continuing Education Credit from a gamut of professional organizations is available at many sessions.

The GROWS exposition is packed with 500 of today's leading industry suppliers, ready to make deals, including special GROWS-only offers from select vendors. Green industry professionals can check out the latest solutions, view demos, and get hands-on access to the tools, plants and technology they need to grow their business.

In addition to in-depth conference sessions, interactive educational opportunities are available throughout the show on the expo floor. Attendees can pick up quick information hits at 15-minute Sprint Sessions; watch a raised, permeable patio take shape right before their eyes; challenge themselves at the plant ID contest; or try their hand at a chainsaw teardown competition.

Registration options start at $29 for all three days of the show and early registrants realize the most savings. For the complete agenda or to register, visit NewEnglandGrows.org. The GROWS mobile app is available on iTunes or Google Play.

Hourly rates that make sense

Jim Huston

A mistake many contractors make is to charge the same man-hour rate for maintenance and construction work. Their maintenance rates could be more competitive and their construction ones could contain more profit. CPAs often help clients calculate average rates without understanding some of the subtle reasons why they shouldn’t be the same. Your construction hourly rate should be 20-25 percent higher than your maintenance hourly rate. I’ll calculate hourly rates for both a two-man maintenance crew and a three-man construction crew using a one-day scenario. You can calculate your rates by substituting your costs in these scenarios. Maintenance man-hour rate. We have two people earning an hourly wage of $15 and $11. The crew average wage (CAW) calculates to $13. This crew works a 50-hour week. The labor burden (FICA, FUTA, SUTA, WCI, GLI, vacations, holidays, PTO and medical insurance) is 20 percent. General and administrative (G&A) overhead for the maintenance division is $10 per man-hour. The cost per hour (CPH) for the ¾-ton crew truck and trailer is $14. The ride-on mower runs 5 hours per day at a CPH of $12. The 48-inch walk-behind mower also runs for 5 hours per day at a CPH of $6. Edgers, trimmers, blowers, etc., run a total of 4 hours per day at a CPH of $4.50 each. Crew average wage (CAW): $13 The overtime factor (OTF) is 10 percent: $1.30 The risk factor (RF) is 10 percent: $1.30 Subtotal: $15.60 Add the 20 percent labor burden: $3.12 Subtotal: $18.72 Add the crew truck and trailer ($112 ÷ 20 Mhrs):$5.60 Add the average equipment cost per man-hour ($108 ÷ 20): $5.40 Subtotal: $29.72 Add the G&A OPH: $10 Break-even point (BEP): $39.72 Add 10% net profit margin (NPM) (BEP ÷ (1-.1)): $4.41 The portal-to-portal man-hour rate is: $44.13 Residential construction man-hour rate. We have three people earning an hourly wage of $20, $16 and $12. The CAW calculates to $16. The crew works a 50 hour week. Labor burden is 25 percent. G&A overhead for the maintenance division is $16 per man-hour. The CPH for the ¾-ton crew truck without a trailer is $12. CAW: $16 OTF is 10 percent: $1.60 RF is 10 percent: $1.60 Subtotal: $19.20 Add the 25 percent labor burden: $4.80 Subtotal: $24 Add the crew truck and trailer ($96 ÷ 30 Mhrs): $3.20 Subtotal: $27.20 Add the G&A OPH: $16 BEP: $43.20 Add 20% NPM (BEP ÷ (1-.2)):$10.80 The portal-to-portal man-hour rate is: $54 Analysis. Most of the calculations are self-explanatory, with four exceptions. First, add a 10 percent risk factor because things don’t always go as planned. Second, the labor burden for a maintenance crew is usually a little lower than that for a construction crew. Third, the G&A overhead cost per man-hour for a maintenance crew is usually 30-50 percent lower than that for a construction crew. This is because construction work requires more management than maintenance work. Finally, in a normal market, a residential construction crew should add a 20 percent NPM (this is a 25 percent markup) to its BEP, while a maintenance crew usually operates at a 10 percent NPM. Conclusion. The pricing for our construction crew is $10 more per man-hour than the maintenance crew. That’s almost a 23 percent difference. Too many contractors, who use an average man-hour rate overprice maintenance accounts while underpricing construction. This means they could be more competitive bidding maintenance work, while making more money on construction projects. And who couldn’t use more money? Jim Huston runs J.R. Huston Consulting, a green industry consulting firm. www.jrhuston.biz; jhuston@giemedia.com

Lambert Landscape hires sales manager

DALLAS, Texas – Lambert Landscape Company has announced that Ron K. Brown, award-winning business developer and sales leader, has joined the Lambert’s team as sales manager.

Effective immediately, Brown will assume responsibility for strategic growth across all the firm’s service lines, including landscape architecture, construction, gardens services and tree care.

“Ron’s positive attitude, energy and a solid track record will enhance our mission to deliver the finest quality landscape services in the market,” said Paul Fields, president and director of design. “His work ethic, determination to succeed and his attention to detail are qualities that accelerated our decision to bring Ron into our team.”

Brown has been actively involved in all areas of sales and marketing, including establishing new revenue streams, expanding market share, and elevating brand recognition. Formerly, Brown served as director of business development for America Civil Constructors in Irving, was a high-performing business developer for ValleyCrest in Dallas, was vice president of North Texas Sales for Acequia in Austin and director of sales and marketing for Site Planning Site Development in Arlington. He is a licensed realtor in the State of Texas.

Pesticide Applicators University date set

AUBURN, Ala. – The Alabama Cooperative Extension System and the Alabama Green Industry Training Center will host the Pesticide Applicator University, a comprehensive continuing education program for people who have commercial applicator permits, Oct. 19 and 20 at the Opelika Grand National Hotel and Conference Center in Opelika, Ala.

Dr. Sonja Thomas, coordinator of Alabama Extension’s Pesticide Safety Education Program, said this conference is a new twist on training.

“This is the first time for Alabama Extension to offer this training in this type of format,” said Thomas. “It will be very much hands-on. Instructors will be primarily Auburn University faculty and Alabama Extension specialists, but there will be some industry professionals teaching as well.”

“The conference will be very beneficial to individuals new to the pest control field and will also be a great refresher course for veteran applicators.”

The Pesticide Applicators University will target a number of applicator categories including aquatic, household pest control, ornamental and turf pest control, public health and wood destroying organisms. Continuing education points have been approved for participants from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

“Participants can learn about insect identification, product selection and management, Integrated Pest Management and calibration.”

Registration is open online at www.aces.edu/go/576. Early registration, available until Sept. 8, is $99. The registration fee after that increases to $125. The fee covers educational materials and meals. For more information, visit the Pesticide University website at http://www.aces.edu/anr/pesticidemgt/university/.

Profile Products names winner

BUFFALO GROVE, Ill. – On August 27, Profile Products announced Erosion Control Services in Virginia Beach, as the winner of a 300-Gallon Bowie Hydro-Mulcher from Bowie Industries – a prize valued at over $11,000. Erosion Control Services entered the giveaway as part of Profile’s 2015 Early Order & Matching Truck Program.

Profile’s Early Order & Matching Truck Program provides incentives for distributors who order a minimum of two truckloads of qualifying products, including ProMatrix, Seed Aide® CoverGrow, Tornado Tack ST-1000 as well as Wood, Wood with Tack and Blend with Tack hydraulic mulches. The program allows distributors to take advantage of early order discounts and matching truckloads. Many of them extend those offers on to their own customers.

“It’s our distributors and their customers, like Justin Munden of Erosion Control Services, who play an integral role in the planning and development of specifications, and the proper installation of our many engineered solutions,” said Adam Dibble, CESSWI senior marketing manager and erosion control brand manager for Profile Products. “Our Early Order & Matching Truck Program is our way to thank our distributors for their hard work. Every year we see high participation, which shows how much they value the program.”

Munden ordered his products through distributor, Landscape Supply, which operates five branches in Virginia. “Our distributor, Landscape Supply, is a strong partner in helping our business become more successful. Programs and incentives like this, coupled with the product knowledge and support from Landscape Supply, are critical in our fast-paced industry.”

Dan Fick, Profile Products regional sales manager, who was present during the delivery of the prize to Erosion Control Services, said, “Erosion Control Services is a phenomenal hydroseeding company who do business the right way. They don’t cut corners and they stand behind their work. It’s exciting to see them win, and I look forward to seeing them put the Bowie Machine to work!”

In 2015, Profile included a contractor rebate of $10 per ton and the chance to win the Bowie 300-Gallon Hydroseeder. Every ton purchased counted as one entry in the giveaway. The Bowie Hydro-Mulcher was designed and built specifically for Profile’s Early Order & Matching Truck Program. “We’re so excited to work with such a respected brand and have Bowie Industries selected to build the hydroseeder for this year’s promotion,” said Dean Myers, co-owner of Bowie Industries. “We documented every step of the production process and can’t wait to present Justin with the machine.”

Based on the success of this year’s program, Profile will renew the promotion in Fall 2015 and grow participation around the country. Distributors can learn more about the program by contacting Profile Customer Service at (800) 366-1180 or orders@profileproducts.com.

Your Best Pruning Tips

Last week, @VoiceofTreeCare co-hosted a Twitter chat with @CoronaTools, where participants discussed the latest content from TCIA’s new homeowner website, TreeCareTips.org.

This Twitter hang-out, better known as #treechat, is a weekly online conversation that connects tree care professionals and industry leaders to chat and learn about tree care related topics

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Highly qualified

Heavy equipment requires highly skilled operators to avoid costly accidents, so Mike Callahan requires six months to a year of experience for all of his drivers. Operators at Callahan’s Lawn Care in Rochester, N.Y., go through a rigorous training process that starts with a video training system followed by tests where trainees must answer nine out of the 10 questions correctly before moving on to the next video.

Scott Wilson, owner of Scott Wilson of Wilson’s Landscaping & Lawn Service in Swansea, Ill., also requires skilled technicians, and makes sure that his guys are versed in more than one aspect so that operators can plow and salt as well, sometimes at the same time. Everyone can use a snow plow truck, a dump truck, a skid steer and a loader. “There’s a cost to that; you pay a little more but the better thing is you retain them and retention is a big thing our industry,” he says.

For the past five years, he has had the same snow staff, but training never stops. He conducts an annual refresher training on the operations of each piece of equipment and making sure they’re maintaining the standards required.

Once they’re trained in the office, operators at Callahan’s complete field training. “The most difficult part about training with snow removal is there’s no way of really pre-training someone in the conditions until you have your first snow event,” he says.

He also stays overstaffed so that rookie drivers can ride along or practice in an open parking lot with a veteran. “They’ll go through the whole procedure and basically don’t leave until they feel comfortable.”

Wilson makes sure his technicians are on established routes so that they don’t get out of sync. And for added safety, he takes his operators out to properties in good weather so that they can see potential pitfalls. They also flag every corner of the lot.

“That saves us on repair costs if we hit and break up some concrete or something,” he says. “But knock on wood, we’ve been doing very good in that department.”