The ISA Canopy Partner program is a collaborative initiative that brings together industry leaders to support ISA’s mission to promote the professionalism of arboriculture, inform the public about tree benefits, and provides a global network of arborists, urban foresters and people who care for trees.
We met with Bob Shuman, the Vice President – Environmental Solutions Product Group at Vermeer, an ISA Gold Canopy Partner, to discuss their views on the industry and how they see it changing in the coming years.
What are some industry trends Vermeer has noticed and are actively working towards?
Safety within the industry. We see both customers and organizations such as ISA really trying to focus here and make the industry safer for all of it’s employees.
Labor challenges are not something we see going away. Climbers are harder to find combined with work force demographics that are not favorable long term.
Overall, how does Vermeer see the industry growing in the next few years?
We see the residential and general commercial being relatively flat; decreased interest rates combined with political stability could increase consumer confidence which would help in this space.
We expect utility line clearing to bounce back as power outages because of tree strikes continue to increase across much of the USA.
What does Vermeer want ISA's members and credential holders to know about your organization?
Vermeer strives to be a leader when it comes to industry safety. We have allowed our chipper feed stop patents to be used royalty free by any manufacturer in the industry for example; we believe elevating the industry’s safety standards benefits everyone.
The partnership between Vermeer and our independent dealership network is something we believe is a differentiator when it comes to customer support. This helps drive a more consistent experience as a crew travels, and ensures someone locally is invested in your success.
What is Vermeer planning to focus on in the coming years?
Striving to make tough work easier for those who do it. Whether it’s dragging brush or working with equipment, we strive to make the tough a bit easier so employees can go home to their families with more energy than they otherwise would.
Continue to ensure we have the manufacturing capacity to support the industry in growth cycles. We know that as the climate changes trees continue to grow at a faster pace which means the industry is not likely to shrink over the long term.
Building robust equipment that works for our customers. We want our customers to focus on their jobs and not worry about the operational performance of their machinery.
What are some ways Vermeer is investing in the industry?
Giving back to the industry and allowing other companies to use IP such as the lower feed stop is an example where we are investing within R&D for the benefit of the industry.
Many of our locations around the world allow the space to be used for conferences, training and meetings. It is pretty common to see a local chapter or customer using one of our offices for this purpose. This allows a quiet environment for important work to happen, and also allows our teams to engage and learn more about the challenges being faced on the jobsite and in their businesses.