where is that trailer...?
To some of you this article will prove worthless. I [peter donegan]hope it proves of benefit. I wrote this for the farmers journal in 2006 but as is life in the editorial world sometimes it just doesnt enter the publication. I thought it was a great article and an email from my editor some time after confirmed that too. I should put it to some benefit I suppose.
Enjoy
peter
Two months ago I purchased a ride on lawnmower, but it has never been used on any contract. I tried to buy a trailer to go with it but I couldn’t be sold one. Eventually I did buy one and it was such a nice feeling to hand over such a large amount of money for such a simple and well-built invention. The tailgate allowed us to drive up onto the back straight away but what happened to my latest acquisition? It evaporated, into thin air. I parked it at the back of the house and when I got up the next day, you guessed it in one – it was not there anymore! Magic? Mystery? I don’t think so.
When through my research for this article I put ‘trailers – stolen’ into a web search to my surprise the ‘theft of a 40-foot white box trailer and tractor unit, which was stolen from outside Irish Ferries at Dublin Port at the weekend’ was one of the headlines. Through my own sources two firms had informed me that they could not supply me with trailers of any size or form as their place of business had been cleared out of almost forty trailers within two weeks between them. It’s possible that this rapid transpiration of steel framed attachments was becoming somewhat of an epidemic. It seems the only way to prevent the theft is to make yours the most difficult to steal. Sources in the UK tell us that Trailers are being stolen to order. Logically, the obvious primary steps include installing a hitch lock, a wheel clamp and a driveway security post, but my opinion it that this is only a deterrent and that we need to go one stage further.
In the UK for any size of trailer (or anything of value to you) a system know as Thiefbeaters which involves applying a unique comprehensive identification including electronic transponders and microdots to hidden and visible locations on the trailer has been put in place. Each trailer is meticulously identified in up to 50 locations by various techniques and each location of the unique TB number is recorded. A record of the entire ID is kept along with six digital photographs. Furthermore, a registration document is produced complete with two colour photographs of each trailer they have identified.
With a 24-hour database service, this allows any police force to make necessary enquiries. A prospective purchaser of a trailer with a Thiefbeaters marking can also enquire to ensure the trailer is not reported stolen prior to any purchase. The estimated cost of which is approximately Three hundred euro.
John Friel of BDF Trailers estimates that “at least four trailers a day are taken in this country” of these John also points out that “most of the ones stolen in the south go north and vice versa”. John who with his wife Kathleen manages a business in North County Dublin also added that at present there is no company that install this tracking system in Ireland” that he is aware of.
Stolen trailers are almost impossible to recover with the main problem being that they are notoriously difficult to secure and may often have to be left unattended for long periods. It is recommend by some English insurance companies that trailers be fitted with a stolen vehicle recovery system such as ‘tracker’Tracking systems work via an electronic homing device which, when activated, emits a silent signal to dedicated equipment fitted in police cars and helicopters of every force in the UK. There are two different versions available: TRACKER Retrieve where the owner discovers the theft and TRACKER Monitor which will alert TRACKER HQ directly of any unauthorised movement, allowing them to quickly contact the owner and begin tracing. In January 2002 one UK insurance company reported their first theft of a trailer fitted with Tracker. The trailer valued at £30,000 and only 4 weeks old was recovered completely undamaged. Recorded CCTV pictures showed that the thieves entered the locked compound at 9.00pm and left with the trailer 45 minutes later. A Police aeroplane the following morning, 40 minutes after the theft had been reported, detected the Tracker signal. This trailer has since been stolen and recovered again by Tracker, 200 miles from home.So where does this leave me. I had a trailer. I now have no trailer. If I buy another trailer I could end up right back where I started. There used to be a time when a trailer could be left in a driveway or on a premise until the next time you needed it. It now appears this is something that can no more happen.
the vanashing trailer act
/0 Comments/in All Posts, Media /by Peter Doneganwhere is that trailer...?
To some of you this article will prove worthless. I [peter donegan]hope it proves of benefit. I wrote this for the farmers journal in 2006 but as is life in the editorial world sometimes it just doesnt enter the publication. I thought it was a great article and an email from my editor some time after confirmed that too. I should put it to some benefit I suppose.
Enjoy
peter
Two months ago I purchased a ride on lawnmower, but it has never been used on any contract. I tried to buy a trailer to go with it but I couldn’t be sold one. Eventually I did buy one and it was such a nice feeling to hand over such a large amount of money for such a simple and well-built invention. The tailgate allowed us to drive up onto the back straight away but what happened to my latest acquisition? It evaporated, into thin air. I parked it at the back of the house and when I got up the next day, you guessed it in one – it was not there anymore! Magic? Mystery? I don’t think so.
When through my research for this article I put ‘trailers – stolen’ into a web search to my surprise the ‘theft of a 40-foot white box trailer and tractor unit, which was stolen from outside Irish Ferries at Dublin Port at the weekend’ was one of the headlines. Through my own sources two firms had informed me that they could not supply me with trailers of any size or form as their place of business had been cleared out of almost forty trailers within two weeks between them. It’s possible that this rapid transpiration of steel framed attachments was becoming somewhat of an epidemic. It seems the only way to prevent the theft is to make yours the most difficult to steal. Sources in the UK tell us that Trailers are being stolen to order. Logically, the obvious primary steps include installing a hitch lock, a wheel clamp and a driveway security post, but my opinion it that this is only a deterrent and that we need to go one stage further.
In the UK for any size of trailer (or anything of value to you) a system know as Thiefbeaters which involves applying a unique comprehensive identification including electronic transponders and microdots to hidden and visible locations on the trailer has been put in place. Each trailer is meticulously identified in up to 50 locations by various techniques and each location of the unique TB number is recorded. A record of the entire ID is kept along with six digital photographs. Furthermore, a registration document is produced complete with two colour photographs of each trailer they have identified.
With a 24-hour database service, this allows any police force to make necessary enquiries. A prospective purchaser of a trailer with a Thiefbeaters marking can also enquire to ensure the trailer is not reported stolen prior to any purchase. The estimated cost of which is approximately Three hundred euro.
John Friel of BDF Trailers estimates that “at least four trailers a day are taken in this country” of these John also points out that “most of the ones stolen in the south go north and vice versa”. John who with his wife Kathleen manages a business in North County Dublin also added that at present there is no company that install this tracking system in Ireland” that he is aware of.
Stolen trailers are almost impossible to recover with the main problem being that they are notoriously difficult to secure and may often have to be left unattended for long periods. It is recommend by some English insurance companies that trailers be fitted with a stolen vehicle recovery system such as ‘tracker’Tracking systems work via an electronic homing device which, when activated, emits a silent signal to dedicated equipment fitted in police cars and helicopters of every force in the UK. There are two different versions available: TRACKER Retrieve where the owner discovers the theft and TRACKER Monitor which will alert TRACKER HQ directly of any unauthorised movement, allowing them to quickly contact the owner and begin tracing. In January 2002 one UK insurance company reported their first theft of a trailer fitted with Tracker. The trailer valued at £30,000 and only 4 weeks old was recovered completely undamaged. Recorded CCTV pictures showed that the thieves entered the locked compound at 9.00pm and left with the trailer 45 minutes later. A Police aeroplane the following morning, 40 minutes after the theft had been reported, detected the Tracker signal. This trailer has since been stolen and recovered again by Tracker, 200 miles from home.So where does this leave me. I had a trailer. I now have no trailer. If I buy another trailer I could end up right back where I started. There used to be a time when a trailer could be left in a driveway or on a premise until the next time you needed it. It now appears this is something that can no more happen.
irish entrepreneur magazine
/2 Comments/in All Posts, Media /by Peter Donegansilver medal winning 'no rubber-soul'
I just received a copy of the irish entrepreneur magazine [july/ august issue] with a delightful picture of our garden on page 58 from bloom in the park. The pictures for this were taken by Maura Hickey who on the wednesday before the June Bank Holiday event took an absolute smashing picture for the Irish Examiner newspaper. Funnily enough one of the first ever publications I featured in was entitled ‘getting dirty’ in The irish entrepreneur way back in March 2004. It can be really difficult at times to get PR especially for bulding a garden so to Maree Morrissey of the Irish Magazine a great big thanks!
To those of you who will see the picture I know it’s not what a garden designer should look like [?] but it is a good picture and one I know Ms. Hickey is quite proud of. This was also VIP night for Bord Bia the organisers of the event so hence the black tie theme – just in case you start to believe we build every garden dressed like that!
enjoy
peter
recent article in the farmers journal
/0 Comments/in All Posts, Media /by Peter Donegangood planting schemes are so important
The farmers journal article that I published recently caused some mild upset, rumour has it! Who’d a thought it? The guy who somewhat irregularly but regularly enough sits on the inside backpage would get a claim to fame. I know I’ve been on irish television before thanks to athena media who really made a unique minded dubliner look or a least feel a little more accepted into irish [horticultural] society!
The point of the article was that if you are going to move to old style farming country that you build a house and [here’s the important bit] either blend it into the landscape or do not touch the surrounding landscape. In a word take the existing ecosystem into consideration and try not to meddle with the balance of nature. Its seems a more mature but also new genre will move in with the big machine pull out the hedgegrows and build brand new walls and a pentagon esque style house. I personally have no problem with that but when it’s surrounded by farmland – it’s not, always, so pretty. I design gardens and some of them are a little different, but depending on the area and the surrounds depends on the fianl planting sheme of the more integral pieces of what make up a complete design.
My article go live for selfbuild.ie Ireland magazine but I’m not too sure for all from the farmers journal. Anyhow for those of you who want to hear of some farming controversy please pardon my sense of humour and enjoy below.
Slán
peter
I spent most of my not so far distant youth living in the ‘country’ and as most of you know by now where I live is still, pretty much, farmland. There is however great movement in the old town and houses are popping up just about everywhere. Speaking to a farming neighbour of mine recently, we were conversing on the topic of buildings that look so out of place within their rural setting, kids being driven to school in super jeeps, rather than walking – the usual groan over a pint. It was mentioned that he had had a recent complaint about the smell from the farm and was asked to do something about it! Conversation turned to fast cars stuck behind tractors and the frustration ‘they’ must have in their lives! We came up with the solution that ‘they’ should live on a motorway. Although the dream may have been to live in the ‘countryside’ it seems changing Ireland has changed more than I realised. No disrespect intended to any person agus Tá Fáilte Romhat go dtí Baile Bachaile. The biggest change in my eyes has to be land reclamation. The house must be bigger and so must the drains I am sure. But the hedge-grow is being removed and rather than being replaced with native species large walls take their place. Planning may have a role to play in all of this but with or without those county council departments as your say so, nature depends greatly on nature. If you are new moving to the old, please replenish and replace as nature intended or as it was before you got here. Planting season for whips and trees is almost upon us, it isn’t that expensive and if you ask nicely I’ll even tell you what to plant and when to suit your home. Get back to your roots – plant a hedge this October and as always – enjoy!
Building a garden in South Africa
/4 Comments/in All Posts, Smile /by Peter Donegangarden of hope site...
Part of november will see myself and 45 others and some colleagues of mine] travel to south africa to build a garden with the Niall Mellon trust.
NB: just to clarify – the garden was designed and the build fully organised by Dominic Loughran, his garden of hope team & The Niall Mellon Township Trust.
The sponsorship for this will be paid by Peter Donegan Landscaping Ltd. Turns out the boss ain’t so bad after all. Further information is available here.
UPDATE:
The garden of hope project team have set up a weblog. If you’d like to donate tools or anything you think might be useful, make yourself famous. [when I say donate tools I dont mean in the Irish sense and post over people you don’t like]. Whilst the sponsorship/ costs for my trip have been paid by the boss I am informed that people can still give away their hard earned dollars free of charge. If your loaded and reading this you probably don’t have a shovel or know how to get it started so go ahead make yourself feel better.
My original post, on my website said 25 people, this one says 45 – I’m reliably informed it’s over 60 people involved. To those of you who have given a few bob on my behalf – It’s so much appreciated, [check comment from Dominic below] I’m very proud. The pic above is the site we will develop in one week.
Slan go foill agus go raibh míle maith agaibh.
peter
no rubber – soul [m’anam gan rubar]
/2 Comments/in All Posts, Donegan Gardens, Landscaping Dublin /by Peter DoneganPeter Donegans garden design ‘No Rubber- Soul’ won silver in the large garden category in the inaugural year of Bloom in the Phoenix Park Friday 1st June 2007. During the 20 day deadline over 1,500 plants; 50 square metres of rolled lawn; 4 tonne of recycled compost; 5 tonnes of recycled bark chippings; 6 tonnes of recycled tree stumps one 1965 morris minor and an outdoor flat screen television.
Despite the rainfall over the bank holiday weekend over 50,000 people still flocked to see the unsponsored garden. No decking, no paving, no additives or preservatives…. Imagine sitting within two thirds of a 1965 Morris Minor, watching the television, smokes plumes through the front grill of your car and you sit back and watch nature and plant life grow around you. This is the garden that has no rubber but lots of soul. Built from 100% recycled and/ or recyclable products. Take a trip back to 1965 when men used shovels and gardens had soul.
Built to commemorate the many Irish men with initially, great intentions who promise to restore and rebuild projects but sometimes are never fully completed; it has been slightly adapted to via audio visual equipment to become an entertainment area of sorts and it should give the appearance that whilst unwillingly forgotten, the life of the garden continued to flourish around it.