“THIS ADDITION TO THE FLEET HAS SERIOUSLY IMPROVED PRODUCTIVITY AND SAFETY ON LARGER CONTRACTS”
ANOTHER WAY For James Greenwood’s company, biomass has been a saving grace in turbulent market conditions, and the recent purchase of a Volvo excavator with Dragonbite tree shear has ensured his team can meet growing demand for this energy source, as Paul Argent reports
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eafy Surrey, home to Cobhambased James Greenwood, the owner of Greenwood’s Tree Contractors (GTC), may seem to be an ideal location for weathering the recent Covid-19 storm, but as James points out, it has been a difficult time for the company. Whilst many of his private clients have decided to cut back on their requirements for his services, one area that has kept the company extremely busy is biomass. Whilst always producing a quality residual product from their clearance services, a
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AUTUMN 2020 FORESTRY MACHINERY
recent increase in capacity has helped the Greenwood team develop their biomass potential and start supplying some of the larger dealers in this lucrative market. The supply of biomass has meant that during the recent crisis the Greenwood team was afforded key-worker status, as the wood chippings and waste products that continue to pile up are converted into renewable energy, fed into the National Grid to help keep the UK powered. We caught up with James at the familyowned yard he shares with a range of other businesses on the outskirts of Chobham.
There’s no signage pointing the way to the immaculate yard, workshops and shed the company occupies, just an instruction to look out for the undertakers! The GTC business lies within a large estate dominated by father Alan’s funeral care business, a man with an interesting past within the muck shifting, demolition and now funeral care business. “It’s quite a range,” admitted James. “Dad has always been slightly ahead of the game when it comes to business.” James has a grounding in the tree game and, despite a career as a Men’s Health fitness model, the
