Q&A with Aerial Lift Specialist Dave Webb Jr.

Written by Mick Kelly

As more and more tree care companies transition from climbing to working out of aerial lifts, the need to talk about safe ownership and operation of these pieces of equipment has become evident. Many times we hear from companies that they don’t know their aerial lift should be inspected annually and/or where or how to get the inspection done. 

At ArboRisk, we wanted to give you some basic information and provide a resource to help you out, so I sat down with Dave Webb Jr. of Wellbuilt Equipment to talk a little bit more about his background and knowledge of aerial lifts. His family has been in the aerial lift business for over 30 years – so they know a thing or two about what you should be looking for with your lifts!

Tell us a bit about yourself and your background in the lift industry.

My name is Dave Webb Jr. and I work at Wellbuilt Equipment. We’re a family owned and operated full service aerial lift company based out of Crete, IL. My dad started our company in 1987 in our back yard with just a couple of lifts. Since then we have grown to over 500 machines in our rental fleet and a staff of almost 30 people. 

I’m a second-generation aerial lift mechanic. I started working at Wellbuilt when I was 12 and became a mechanic when I was 18. I’m over 20 years into the industry and about 16 as a mechanic. Despite being in the management team here, I still work on equipment every day. I love getting dirty and fixing equipment, and hope to continue that path as long as possible. 

Explain the process of the annual inspection and why it’s so important?

First off, annual inspections are important to keep tabs on not only common wear and tear items but also long-term maintenance items and breakages that may occur on equipment. Many of our customers bring in their equipment quarterly for inspection and maintenance, but most are on a yearly rotation. 

The process of an inspection at our shop is very in depth. From top to bottom we touch everything on the machine. This includes checking electrical connections, torque checking every nut, bolt, hose, pin, mount, you name it, load testing, performing preventative maintenance and ensuring all proper decals and placards are in place. 

For more information regarding inspections, click here to visit our website!

How and where can you become a certified lift operator?

You can become a certified lift operator through an IPAF location (such as ourselves) or other independent aerial lift companies. We require that whomever is performing the training is familiar with the brand and model of the machine they are using to certify operators/users.

Do you have a brand and model of lift you recommend?

We sell two brands that we have partnerships here in the US with – CTE and Palazzani (Spimerica). Both have an industry leading 2 year warranty and excellent service and support. 

We try not to pick favorites as no brand truly checks all the boxes when it comes to design and customer service. We work on every brand of spider lift out there as well as over 60 brands of aerial lifts and other equipment. Brands and models vary heavily in features and cost, we try not to force a particular brand on a customer, but rather point them in the direction that best suits their needs. 

For more information on aerial lifts or inspections, visit Wellbuilt Equipment’s website here: https://www.wellbuiltequipment.com/. 

If you need further assistance with safety, please reach out to a member of our ArboRisk team. We have many resources that can help you with this, in addition to our Thrive Safety Package, which gives you one-on-one help creating the safety culture that you desire.

Management’s Role in Safety

Written by Margaret Hebert and Eric Petersen, CIC

We often hear that safety starts at the top, however, what does that actually mean? In this article we’re going to dig into the role that management plays in instituting a culture of safety within a tree care company. 

When building a safety and health program, many companies turn to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for guidance. Sure enough, OSHA lists Management Leadership as the first of its seven core elements and for good reason. 

Management of an organization, the business owner(s), managers, supervisors, etc., provides the leadership, vision, and resources needed to implement an effective safety program. Being at the top of the organization, management must embrace and communicate a few basic principles:

• Make worker safety a core organizational value.
• Provide sufficient resources to implement and maintain the safety program once it is developed.
• Visibly demonstrate and communicate their safety commitment to workers.
• Set an example through their own actions.

According to OSHA, management leadership of a safety program can be broken down into four action items.

Item 1:  Communicate your commitment to a safety program.  A clear, written policy helps you communicate that safety and health are primary organization values – as important as productivity, profitability, service quality, and customer satisfaction. After all, without safety, none of these other things can happen.  

Item 2:  Define program goals.  By establishing specific goals and objectives, management sets expectations for everyone on their team and for the program overall. The goals and objectives should focus on specific actions that will improve workplace safety and health. Establish realistic, measurable goals for improving safety and emphasize preventing injury and illness rather than focusing on incident rates.  

Item 3:  Allocate Resources. Management has the authority to provide the resources needed to implement the safety program, pursue program goals, and address program shortcomings when they are identified. To do this effectively, management must integrate safety and health into the planning and budgeting process. Estimating the resources needed to establish and implement the program and allowing time in workers’ schedules for them to fully participate in the program are two critical components to an effective safety program. Remember to include all of the following when considering what safety resources your company needs: capital equipment and supplies, staff time, training, PPE and Safety Data Sheets.

Item 4:  Expect performance.  Management leads the program effort by establishing roles and responsibilities and providing an open, positive environment that encourages communication about safety and health. They will identify a front line person or persons (even a safety committee) to be responsible for safety performance. That person or committee charged with safety responsibility will need to make plans, coordinate activities, and track progress. Providing positive recognition for meeting or exceeding safety goals aimed at preventing injury and illness (e.g. reporting close calls or near misses, attending training, conducting inspections) is also a crucial management function. 

In case you are wondering what OSHA’s seven core elements of safety and health programs, they are as follows:

1. Management Leadership
2. Worker Participation
3. Hazard Identification and Assessment
4. Hazard Prevention and Control
5. Education and Training
6. Program Evaluation and Improvement
7. Communication

If you have any questions on what role your management team should be playing in your safety culture, please reach out to a member of our ArboRisk team. We have many resources that can help you with this, in addition to our Thrive Safety Package, which gives you one-on-one help creating the safety culture that you desire.