In 2024 the world looks very different than it did, and changes are necessary to be able to keep up with demands from customers and employee's needs.
When it comes to debris management, it seems to always be an afterthought because there is not a lot of money in it unless you get very smart. The devil is in the details, and just getting a job done is not good enough anymore. Finding every single second to save with less travel time and fewer steps for team members is huge, and owners get so bogged down with surviving the day they forget to stay focused on the amount of money they are leaving on the table.
For example, before teams even leave the shop, they need to be told exactly what tools to use because in my experience the teams will grab what they like best and not always what's best for the job. This is where a great team leader who is trusted comes in. Those 10 minutes here and there get lost very quickly, and it may seem simple, but I watch it all the time with landscape companies. This time is lost and never comes back ever, so always stay ahead of the crews from the moment they clock in.
Once the crews get on-site, they need to not only be shown what to do but how to go about these tasks and what the timeline is going to be. Communicating with your teams and helping them better understand that load time, travel time, on-site time, load time again, travel time again and offloading time is huge and costly. I love spending time with my people better educating them on what that time looks like and what that costs the company and how that affects the bottom dollar of the entire company.
The on-site time and the practices performed on-site should always be challenged. Trying different tools and equipment is crucial to your success. For example, for decades, the landscape industry has used backpack blowers, but lately, different counties are now outlawing them because of noise. The next option would be leaf plows, which have been around a long time as well and work in different scenarios. For the last number of years, we have seen many people beginning to use mower baggers and tools like carts because one person can clean faster than three people all while giving the turf a nice final haircut. Being able to fill the bagger, then empty the bagger into the cart and keep going for around 15 loads and then dumping the debris in the woods or throwing the debris into the truck is far easier than trying to push or blow leaves in the windiest time of the year. This is much easier than carrying a heavy backpack blower for hours on end or pushing but not really pushing leaves in the wind. This method has been proven over and over again.
Another key thing that teams love to do is dump leaves before the truck is really full. Crews would drive a mile, and all the leaves would compress, and the truck or trailer would now only be half full. This means the company is losing money. Be sure to train your teams to drive a load of leaf debris around for a little while to compact the load to get maximum capacity without going over the Department of Transportation limits of your license.
Lastly, I want to talk about safety. There are a number of things that teams need to look out for to stay safe and be able to enjoy a day of work. First thing is to wear ear protection. Second, leaves are extremely flammable and I have seen many mowers, truck and trailer burn to the ground because the teams did not blow off their equipment while working not letting debris build up on the equipment and before loading the equipment into truck or trailer. These are avoidable things that a little training will help keep you and your teams safe and hyper profitable.
In closing, don't stop learning and challenging yourself, your thoughts, your ideas and your people. At first it will be painful, but change always is, and a lot of times, it's for the best, that's how we grow and thrive.
