Ground Communication Problems

[Paul@Arborworks]

Just trying to figure out what the best opitions is for communication with your ground guys. On smaller trees its not an issue i simply yell down and i have easy visibilty of my groundie. Thought on larger jobs 60 ft and up i find its very difficult(have to yell a few times) to get their attention/let them know how somthing is tied on for rigging. Im just wondering if its worth it or if there is any climb friendly radios that arnt too much of a pain to use. Tried regular CB radios they're to much of a pain to use and work at the same time.Also kinda random question how often do you sharpen your spurs? personally i like mine pretty sharp so i do it probaly once every 20 removals. Curious to know if thats alot in comparison to other people.

 

[superjunior]

I just picked up a set of very small 2 way radios for crane removals. They're made by cobra and have a call feature. Small enough to clip on to your shirt pocket or whatever, haven't used them yet but I'm hoping they'll do the trick. I'm so sick of screaming from the tree..

I sharpen my spikes about two or three times a season, I should probably do it more often though

 

[chief116]

Work out some hand signals with your groundies, rolling index finger followed by 2 or 3 fingers for take 2/3 wraps on the portawrap, the simpler the better. The first day i set foot on a jobsite, the climber told me i should be looking up every 2 seconds and went thru the signals and attachment knots with me. If your guys don't look up, carry a rape whistle with you. But in all honesty, if they aren't watching your every move, you havent done a good job training them.

On jobs where we are going to be spread out, we'll carry 2 way radios, just radio shack throwaways so we can keep in contact. Came in handy when one of our morons rolled our takeuchi over.

 

[mattfr12]

I just picked up a set of very small 2 way radios for crane removals. They're made by cobra and have a call feature. Small enough to clip on to your shirt pocket or whatever, haven't used them yet but I'm hoping they'll do the trick. I'm so sick of screaming from the tree..

I sharpen my spikes about two or three times a season, I should probably do it more often though

the ear tech ones like marquis use are sweet their pricey but you will use them all the time. 3 radios is perfect 2 flag men and the bucket op or climber.

or you can go the cheap route with still works like the motorola talk a bouts but its hard to hear i think the voice clarity is just terrible to be able to not have to repeat yourself five times with all the noise going on.

 

[formationrx]

critical issue...

we have hand signs worked out for most everything..... i ll use a radio if the tree is really tall and thick.... when you yell you can #### up big time... one of us may not get it or we get it and apply it wrong... and that is all it takes.... once i cut the top out of a huge white pine after my ground man said the rope was on the brake and he was ready... well... he was not ready and he went up that tree about 20 ft and barely missed the top on its way down. the top crashed and barely missed a wooden fence.... i ll never forget that.... always double or triple check everyone is aware whats happening...

 

[no tree to big]

well I work for a co. where the climbers are from south of the border and all the groundies are white haha suposed to be the other way around! since I dont speak spanish or understand half of the spanglish we have a pretty complex signal system every siginal is damn near the same though so I'm pretty much on my own :help: but it seems like it would be my prefered method

 

[tree md]

I have 4 Motorola Talk a bouts that work but as has been mentioned, not the clearest to listen on.

Communication is key to safety.

I have told this story before but we have a new crowd who a lot of are doing crane work now so I will mention it again:

The first owner that I worked for with a crane (the first one to teach me crane work) was killed by his crane due to lack of communication. It happened about a week after I went to work for another service. He was bad about hiring cheap illegals who spoke little or no English. He had lowered a piece that his illegal climber had rigged and got his cable stretched out somehow. He was really bad about getting in really tight to lines. When he got his cable stretched out he was hollering at the illegals to not take the choker off because he could see the cable was going to swing back into the line. Being that he was really bad at cussing and yelling at his help the workers probably thought that he was yelling at them to hurry up. They took the choker off allowing the cable to swing into the line, instantly welding it and electrifying the crane. It killed my old boss instantly and killed his best friend and coworker of 42 years when he touched the cab of the crane to try and shut it down. Took the power company 8 hours to power everything down. The boom truck and the homeowner's house burnt to the ground.

 

[superjunior]

That's an eye opener. Thanks for sharing MD

 

[2treeornot2tree]

wow, cant believe it didnt throw a breaker or fuse on the power line.

 

[Shaun Bowler]

In my opinion..
If you can not communicate with your groundsmen, you should leave your place of employment.
I have worked all over the Southwest.
You will run into groups/clans of Mexicans.
Great workers.
Nevertheless, they will sabotage good climbers, collectivey to protect their positions within the company.
Any "White Guy- that has ever worked with a Mexican Crew will agree.
Once you are accepted everything goes well-sort of.

 

[sgreanbeans]

In my opinion..
If you can not communicate with your groundsmen, you should leave your place of employment.
I have worked all over the Southwest.
You will run into groups/clans of Mexicans.
Great workers.
Nevertheless, they will sabotage good climbers, collectivey to protect their positions within the company.
Any "White Guy- that has ever worked with a Mexican Crew will agree.
Once you are accepted everything goes well-sort of.

That is the truff, I worked for a guy in SD, had alot of illegals, caught them drinking on the job, canned them, the owner said no, had them back, next day all my gear was stolen off the truck.
Went with another company,bigger group of illegals, oh crap here we go again, notta, those guys were had it together, best damn workers EVER!
Ya gota learn landscape spanglish

 

[Vendetti]

Eartec is the way to go. You save time and money in the long run. Go to eartec.com and check them out.

 

[Paul@Arborworks]

Thanks for the responses guy, right now im looking at the throat mics that vermeer offers they seem to be pretty handy. As for my ground guys theyre great we do have alot of hand signals and like i said we use cb radios when i cannot see or hear them .I just find it very time consuming to stop and signal or yell at my ground guys or to pull the CB out of my pocket to communicate. Not that i cut into saftey to do jobs faster. I just find it would be alot easier if i could just work and talk to my ground crew and still do my job quickly. MD im sorry to hear that sounds terrible. We dont really use to many cranes but we do alot of work around lines as we have the loacal utility line clearing contract.

 

[squad143]

I use the Peltor Pro Comm headsets.

Love them. They are pricey, but keep your eye on ebay. They can be found occasionally at a bargin price.

 

[superjunior]

I use the Peltor Pro Comm headsets.

Love them. They are pricey, but keep your eye on ebay. They can be found occasionally at a bargin price.

I wonder if those would fit on a kask. Are the peltor muffs a universal fit for most hard hats and are they voice activated or do you hit a button?

 

[treemandan]

Just trying to figure out what the best opitions is for communication with your ground guys. On smaller trees its not an issue i simply yell down and i have easy visibilty of my groundie. Thought on larger jobs 60 ft and up i find its very difficult(have to yell a few times) to get their attention/let them know how somthing is tied on for rigging. Im just wondering if its worth it or if there is any climb friendly radios that arnt too much of a pain to use. Tried regular CB radios they're to much of a pain to use and work at the same time.Also kinda random question how often do you sharpen your spurs? personally i like mine pretty sharp so i do it probaly once every 20 removals. Curious to know if thats alot in comparison to other people.

I think you either have people who are green or don't give a ####. Its hard to find people who stay a step ahead but that is what you need.
Forget the radio, it'll cause more consternation, break eventually and end up in the box of exspensive useless ideas. You need to have weekly meeting where you tell them what you want and they listen... or else.

For instance: tell them that they have to look at you every 10 seconds. No joke. In driving school they say you are suppose to check your mirrors like every 7 seconds. This stuff matters.

 

[squad143]

I wonder if those would fit on a kask. Are the peltor muffs a universal fit for most hard hats and are they voice activated or do you hit a button?

The Peltor communication headsets have the same mounting system as the Peltor hearing protection. I have seen pictures of the Kask helmet with Peltor ear muffs on them.

Australian Tree Climbing Gear And Rope Access Equipment :: Tree Climbing Equipment :: Helmets :: Kask Helmet Kits :: Kask Helmet w/ Peltor H7 Ear Muffs & Clear Visor

You can adjust the headset to work as voice activated or push to talk (PTT).

 

[squad143]

You can review these threads as well.

http://www.arboristsite.com/commercial-tree-care-climbing/71463.htm

http://www.arboristsite.com/commercial-tree-care-climbing/137198.htm

One nice advantage is that they run off of FRS band. When I'm pruning for a view (of the lake) I gan give the customer a handset and they can stand on their deck (sometimes a distance aways) and converse with me without shouting.

 

[conlan]

Everyone should have a whistle

The whistle is something both climbers and groundsmen should have pinned to their shirts. They are a great way to get someones attention. Obviously it can't compare to a radio headset, but I found getting someones attention is the hardest part of any communication. As long as the traffic noise isn't too loud, I can usually screem a few instruction once I have gotten their attention with my whislte.

 

[Paul@Arborworks]

Thanks again for the responses, gonna try a colaboration of both mics and getting my ground crew to pay more attention we might have a small hydro contract coming up ill try both of em out then i suppose.