Article provided in collaboration with A•Plus Tree Service
Jeremy Tibbets is one of those rare individuals with a vision for seeing both the forest … and the trees. His recognition of the collective role individual trees serve in the shaping an urban forest is what motivated this San Francisco-based arborist to pioneer an innovative tree care service.
“Every tree is unique and it’s important to recognize all of the variables that affect their health, shape and appearance,” says Tibbets. “A well-cared-for urban forest enhances property values, and can reduce summer cooling bills. So, in a roundabout way, money actually does grow on trees.”
In 2001, after repeated encouragement from an admired great-uncle who had operated a successful tree care company, Tibbets founded A•PlusTree Service. Soon after, he was introduced to an equipment sales specialist with Vermeer who provided Tibbets with support and valuable counsel. “I learned a lot about the business and tree care equipment from him,” Tibbets recalls. “He was very knowledgeable and offered objective counsel; especially with equipment decisions. I’ve been Vermeer-loyal ever since.”
Tibbets has also grown more confident about the success of his new venture.
“I remember both the excitement and anxiety of my first equipment purchase,” Tibbets recalls. “Later, as my business grew, I added a Vermeer BC1800XL chipper model. It was a big investment at the time, but the fact that I needed another chipper with more capacity told me things were going pretty well.”
After working with commercial clients in the urban forest for a few years, it became apparent to Tibbets that few if any tools existed for long-term planning. So he teamed up with Sarah Hon, a UC Berkeley educated graphic designer who had experience with GIS technology, and together the two developed an innovative web-based tree care management tool called ArborPLUS.
ArborPLUS is a Web-based program that provides arborists, property managers and contractors with a birds-eye satellite view of their urban forests, and historical data for every tree on the property. Information specific to each tree — GIS coordinates, photos, species, height, general health and any special notes of importance — are input to a comprehensive database that helps Tibbets’ customers develop long-range forestry management plans. The program is also useful in projecting long-range budgets and preparing RFPs; while for Tibbets, ArborPLUS is helping project future workloads and plan for new equipment purchases more accurately.
“ArborPLUS helps move customers from the reactive mindset of ‘I need some trimming done’ to a more proactive, long-range management process,” says Tibbets. “Ultimately, the program saves them money, while improving the overall condition of their forests.”
In the decade since founding A•Plus Tree Service, Tibbets’ company has grown exponentially. From one visionary founder and one chipper to a workforce of more than 40 certified arborists, an extensive fleet of Vermeer chippers, stump cutters and mini skid steers… and a unique vision for how individual trees shape the personality of entire urban forests, Jeremy Tibbets is leading a progression with a promise to not only better the tree care industry, but revolutionize it — one tree at a time.
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