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Create Detailed and Specific Estimates
Accurate estimates are the founda- tion of successful job execution. Sales teams must scope and price work as precisely as possible, so crews know exactly what to do. “You have to figure out how to get the scope of the job into the crew’s mind,” said consultant Dane Buell, who brings more than 45 years of experience to the industry. “Normally jobs underper- form or overperform. Both are bad be- cause it means we have not effectively conveyed the vision we had when we documented it.” Sean Lewett, general manager of JL Tree Service in Fairfax, Virginia, em- phasized that detailed estimates elim- inate confusion. “If they have a detailed estimate that explains exactly what we are doing, there should not be any issues,” he stat- ed. “There should not be any miscues. There should not be any questions.” Lewett trains estimators to specify ex- actly what level of pruning, removal, or treatment is required. “We need to put ‘over two inches on deadwood’ if that is what we are do- ing,” he shared. “If you’re cutting the dead tips, charge more money because it takes more time to go out to the ends of the canopy.” He also encouraged estimators to get physically close to the trees they are quoting. “A tree looks a lot bigger when you put your hands on it than when you are sit- ting in your truck,” he said. “I am al- ways saying, touch the tree.” Test the Effectiveness of Estimator-to-Crew Communication Buell believes in testing how well his instructions translate to the field. 3
Mobile apps ultimately enable quicker estimating, sharper job comprehension, more consistent execution, and a noticeable reduction in errors.
Leadership sets the tone, and that mindset carries through to crew lead- ers, who reinforce and implement the company’s safety expectations. “Crew leads are making sure that the ropes and the equipment they’re using are tested, doing the safety checks,” Rinaldi added. “They are di- recting things so that the property does not get damaged. That is how you exceed clients’ expectations and keep your crew safe.” This culture is strengthened through tools designed to keep safety top-of- mind. ArborNote , for example, in- cludes a bilingual English-Spanish digital Job Safety Assessment (JSA) form that crews review before each job. Created in collaboration with Ar- borNote users, the JSA won the Safety Innovation Award at the 2025 Arbor-
EXPO™ Arbor AWARDS™. It not only guides crews through job-specific hazards but also creates an electronic safety record that can support insur- ance claims. “Safety in this industry is so import- ant,” said Hank Ortiz, CEO and founder of ArborNote. “It is at the heart of ev- erything these guys do every day.” Ortiz notes that the JSA is effective pre- cisely because it helps crews anticipate what changes from job to job. “What you experience in the morning is not necessarily what you experi- ence in the afternoon,” he explained. “If you’re in a bucket truck all day, you have to remember the wind. Yesterday it may not have mattered, but today it might. That sort of thing.”
54 | Winter 2026 ArborTIMES ™
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