Inventory & Maps

Inventories and maps are a fundamental part of effective Tree Management.

  • It is normal practice to start a Tree Management programme with a comprehensive baseline survey. As part of a this survey you would identify and plot all trees on your property(s), and you may possibly include some nearby trees which could potentially affect your property. OTISS maintains a geographic information system (GIS) based database of your trees.
  • OTISS stores details on location, species, size, description and all the other information you need for tree management and tree safety. See the full listing of  tree survey/inspection data stored by OTISS for each tree.
  • If you have existing spreadsheets, databases, KMLs or shapefiles with relevant tree or inspection data, we may be able to load these into OTISS. Please contact us for more information on what can be done.
  • In the future, OTISS you will also be able to store photos and other documents relating to each tree.
  • Your trees can be divided into separate sites or risk zones. Site details (access, contact, key holders, etc.) can be setup for each site/zone.

The inventory can be viewed and updated from any Web browser. The spreadsheet page allows you to search and sort your data using multiple criteria. For
example:

    • “show me all trees on a particular site that need work doing on them”,
    • “show me all trees that are overdue for their next inspection”,
    • “list all the oak trees and order them by age class”.

Reports can be created containing coloured charts, graphs and tables (examples below). You can create your own charts and reports by downloading the data into an Excel spreadsheet.

Maps

The trees can also displayed using online maps and coloured icons.

  • The standard pan and zoom features allow your to move around the map.
  • Clicking on a tree allows you to view or update the tree’s details.
  • The map view is a very easy way of adding new trees. Simply click on the map and enter the information you have available. Trees can be re-positioned by simply dragging them to a new location.
  • OTISS currently uses Google Maps to display the trees (this may change in the future). We are also looking at using Ordnance Survey and Open Street Map.
  • In the future, you will be able to upload your own maps, detailed site plans and aerial photos.

Sharing the workload

You will probably want members of your staff, your agent or independent Arboricultural Consultants to work with you to manage your trees.

  • Each user must register with OTISS. They will have their own login-name and password. All access to OTISS requires a security login.
  • You can authorise other OTISS users to view and/or update your data – on a site-by-site basis.
  • Each user is assigned the appropriate access rights. For example
    • Some members of your staff will require unlimited access to all aspects of the data.
    • But some staff may only require read-only access.
    • You may assign an independent consultant to carry out a specific survey at one of your sites. They can see (but not modify) previous inspection details for the tree, and they can add new inspections. Once the survey is completed, they lose all access.
    • You may work closely with an agent or Arboricultural Consultant to jointly manage the trees.

Excel Spreadsheets

OTISS allows you to download all the tree inspection data in Excel spreadsheets. In this way you can use OTISS to collect and collate tree inspection data, but then perform your own specialised analysis and reporting.

CAD/DXF drawings

High quality maps and printouts can be prepared using your own CAD application to combine your maps and site plans with the CAD/DXF files (provided by OTISS). The trees can be exported as a CAD/DXF file. This file is intended to be opened by a CAD application and merged with your existing background maps, site plans and other information. More information of the Tree Survey CAD/DXF drawings.

Sample PDF Reports

OTISS provides a range of PDF reports containing coloured charts, graphs and tables (examples below). You can create your own charts and reports by downloading the data into an Excel spreadsheet.

Reports can be created for individual sites or for the entire stock of trees. The Summary report is ideal for management committees, boards of directors and governors.

  • Site Summary Report provides an overview of the condition, species and health of the trees – with charts and tables.
  • Site Detailed Report provides a detailed listing of the trees, together with each trees’ most recent inspection information.

Each year some of the trees will need inspecting. A survey is created in OTISS and the trees are inspected by one of your staff or by an independent consultant. The inspector will update the online records for each tree, noting any new defects or items of concern. The results of the survey can be seen on the following reports.

As part of a tree inspection, the inspector may make recommendations for maintenance or safety work. Sometimes they will recommend that a more detailed inspection be carried out by an Arboricultural Consultant. All these recommendations appear on the Work Schedules. These are invaluable for planning work programmes and getting competitive quotes.

In the future, you will be able to generate a detailed report for an individual tree. This provides a complete audit trail of all the inspections (including dates, surveyor name, etc.) and all management work carried out on the tree.