English - Komatsu Forest

Transcription

INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE No 4 • 2007
18
SUCCESS
for French family
Future forests
Where will forests be harvested?
A look at current forestry trends.
READ MORE
VALMET 350.1
4
Now even better
• 445 FXL with new undercarriage • Success for Valmet in important timber test 16
• Vibrations in forest machines 22 • Customers are the key 29 • Broadband onboard 31
komatsuforest.com
Q UA L I TY LEAVES A LA STING IMPRESSION
We know the forest.
We also know the challenges facing
modern-day wood harvesting.
We know that quality machinery
demands tyres that live up to the task.
We have developed and manufactured
forestry tyres for several decades.
We strongly believe that investing
in quality is the sensible choice.
Nordic Tyres (UK) Ltd
Unit 2
Sydney Place
Lockerbie, Dumfries & Galloway
DG 11 2JA
tel +44 (0)1576 203 020
fax +44 (0)1576 203 029
Nokian Tyres Inc.
339 Mason Rd. La Vergne
TN 37086 Nashville USA
Tel. 1 615 287 0600
Fax 1 615 287 0610
www.nokiantires.com
Nokian Forest King F
Tyres 4 U
165 -171 Milton St.
PO BOX 233
N.S.W. 2131 Ashfield
Tel: 61 (02) 9799 9133
Fax: 61 (02) 9799 3211
www.tyres4u.com.au
Nokian Forest Rider
Nokian Forest King TRS L-2
Nokian Heavy Tyres Ltd
P.O.Box 20, FI-37101 Nokia
Tel. +358 10 401 7000, fax +358 10 401 7318
www.nokiantyres.com/heavytyres
A Great Year
T
he year 2007 has been positive in many ways, for me
as the new CEO of Komatsu Forest and for the company.We’re experiencing an economic boom
in all markets except North America.The
challenge for us, as well as for our colleagues in the industry, has not been to
sell enough machines, but rather to meet
the enormous demand.We’ve used every
means available to meet customers’ needs
for new machines and we’re well on the
way to increasing production capacity.
Greater production capacity is a prerequisite for long-term growth, as all analyses indicate that demand for raw materials in the forest industry will remain
high.From our position as one of the leading forest machine manufacturers, we
can look forward to at least another four
or five good years.Other industries reliant
on raw materials will enjoy an economic
boom until 2015, although there may be
small downturns.
Consequently, Komatsu Forest will
continue its intensive product development efforts.In terms of volume, Europe
and North America are currently important markets for our business, though
Russia, South America, Asia and China
will make strong headway over the coming years. Our ambition is to meet the
needs of each market.
Throughout 2008, we’ll implement a
number of targeted initiatives.These will
include the continuation of our quality
assurance work, further improvements to
product support services, and as already
mentioned, increased production capacity.
We’ll also continue our environmental program to produce fuel-efficient
machines with reduced environmental
impact.The environment is one of Komatsu Forest’s core values, and we hope that
by refining harvesting methods we can
contribute to more environmentally aware
logging.
With the resources we’re now investing, I’m convinced that 2008 has the right
criteria to be as successful as 2007 – if not
more so. r
CONTENTS
Even better 350.1
4
France – Europe’s third
largest timber producer
6
New proactive organization
7
Control at every stage
8
The Dubuis Family
chooses Valmet
10
445FXL features new
undercarriage
12
Market news
14
Five forestry trends
18
Increased logging in the future
20
New MaxiL
21
ProSelect – new saw bars and saw
chains to choose from
25
Toshio Miyake
Chief Executive Officer,
Komatsu Forest
Thinning a hot topic
26
Customers are the key
29
Optimized transport saves
money and the environment
30
Forest machines need broadband 31
Popular website
32
INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE
Publisher: Roland Lundqvist
[email protected]
Editor: Anders Pauser
[email protected]
Address: Just Forest, Komatsu Forest AB,
Box 7124, SE-907 04 Umeå, Sweden
Contact: Telephone +46 90 70 93 00,
fax +46 90 12 04 60
Internet: www.komatsuforest.com
Production: AB Nordreportern
Writers: Gunnar Andersson, Anders Pauser, Erik
Säfvenberg Photographers: Anders Pauser , Erik
Säfvenberg, Gunnar Andersson
Layout and original: Fredrik Lundell
Printed by: Ågrens Tryckeri, Örnsköldsvik, Sweden
Paper: Gotic Silk 130 gram
Circulation: 47,000
Languages: Swedish, Finnish, English, German,
French, Portuguese, Spanish, and Russian
The content may be quoted if the source is cited.
komatsuforest.com
JUST FOREST NO 4
• 2007
3
VALMET 350.1
Even better 350.1
The best-selling Valmet 350.1 has been upgraded yet again, with
new features that include refined length measurement, a new feed
roller type, and an improved delimbing knife design.
C
ontinual improvements are an
important part
of quality assurance at Komatsu Forest. The pursuit of further refinements and
improvements to the company’s products is central to customer satisfaction. In the case
of the Valmet 350.1 harvesting
head, this has meant a series of
upgrades. The most recent were
implemented at the beginning
of 2007, and now it’s time again.
Extensive improvements make
Valmet’s 350.1, used on the Valmet 901 and 911 harvesters,
even stronger, more reliable, and
more effective
“The new features and
improvements are the natural
outcome of the continual, systematic quality assurance and
product development work,”
says Gunnar Nilsson, product
manager for harvesting heads at
New rotator design
4
JUST FOREST NO 4 • 2007
Komatsu Forest.
All Valmet harvesting heads
are based on a proven basic
design, which has been repeatedly refined over the years. The Valmet 350.1 is well established and
popular in many markets, but
is most popular in Scandinavia,
where it’s mainly used for thinning and lighter final logging.
This harvesting head’s compact
short frame makes it nimble yet
provides the optimum strengthto-weight ratio.
The upgraded Valmet 350.1
has an improved rotator, a new
tilt link design, relocated tilt cylinders, a redesigned valve block
mount, and improved hose routing. The delimbing knives have
a modified shape and the head is
available with a new, extra delimbing knife mounted in the frame.
What’s more, the saw motor
hood and saw box are altered for
improved performance. r
New tilt link
VALMET 350.1
New feature overview:
New rotator design
Newly developed tilt link
New measuring wheel type
Improved roller motor hose routing
New saw unit
Extras strong valve block mount
Modified saw motor hood seal
New feed roller option
New knife design
Extra frame-mounted delimbing knife option
Repositioned tilt cylinders
Altered saw box design, more space for trunk
New measuring wheel type
New feed roller hose routing
New, stronger saw unit (360.2)
New delimbing
knife design
5
France
Europe’s third largest Forest
With an annual timber harvest
of some 45 million cubic meters
France has the third largest
forest industry in Europe. The
past decade has seen widespread mechanization.
I
n total, France has 37 million acres (15 million
hectares) of forest. Of this
land, 25 million acres (10
million hectares) are owned by
about ten million people while
the remainder is state-owned forest. France has three major forest regions, in the northeast, the
central highlands, and the southwest. Deciduous forest accounts
for 60 percent and coniferous
6
forest for the other 40 percent. Of
all harvesting, 70 percent is thinning and the other 30 percent
final logging, with the work conducted by the 1,400 forwarders,
600 harvesters, and 1,450 skidders currently operating in the
French forests.
FOREST MACHINE sales volumes
have remained relatively constant
in recent years, with about 100
harvesters, 150 forwarders, and
60 skidders sold each year. Komatsu Forest is currently the one of
the largest forest machine supplier in the French market.
FRANCE IS A relatively mature forest machine market, even if
mechanization is not yet on a par
with Scandinavia. Mechanization
is currently at about 55 percent.
The highest degree of mechaniza-
tion, at 80 percent, is seen in the
coniferous forests of southwest
France. Due to the large amount
of deciduous forest, mechanization will never reach as high a
level as in Scandinavia and there are still almost 10,000 handcutters at work in France. There is,
however, potential for increased
mechanization, primarily in the
coniferous forests of central and
northeastern France. r
Jean-Pierre Carrère, the ownes of Cema.
New proactive organization
On July 1, Komatsu
Forest introduced a new
forest machine sales
organization in the
French market. With
the help of two dealers,
sales are expected to
increase.
F
rench sales fall under
Komatsu Forest’s European distribution center and the French sales organization is headed by Marketing
Manager Régis Jutier. All in all,
four people work at Komatsu Forest’s office in France, located in
Aubergenville just outside Paris.
Aside from the marketing manager, the organization also has a
service and spare parts manager
Primo Fasolo.
Sales in the field, along with
service and spare parts supply, are managed by two dealerships, Matfor Service in northern
France and Cema in the southern
part of the country.
Matfor Service is owned by
major dealer Payen and is headquartered in Molsheim, near
Strasbourg. The company serves
its Valmet customers with three
service workshops and three traveling sales staff.
IN THE SOUTH, Cema has five
workshops and, if we include
owner Jean-Pierre Carrère, three
sales staff. Cema is headquartered in Egleton, some 60 miles
(100 km) southwest of ClermontFerrand. Cema has previous
extensive experience of Valmet
machines. r
Valmet man in powerful position
Komatsu Forest’s
marketing manager in
France, Régis Jutier, is
chairman of ASCODIF,
the French trade association for forest machine
Manufacturers and
distributors. In this role,
he is involved in many
issues important to the
industry and acts as an
intermediary to state
agencies.
A
SCODIF currently has
27 members, including
the major forest machine
manufacturers and distributors
active in the French market. Juti-
er was elected president of the
association in 2005 with a threeyear mandate period.
“We act as a link between the
members and the two ministries responsible for our industry,” says Jutier. “We lobby for
improvements in forestry education and even work with labor
market issues and legislation.”
of too low quality.
ASCODIF is also involved
in discussions on subsidies
for machine purchases fund-
ed by the EU, an issue that Jutier
believes very important.
Finally, ASCODIF arranges
forest machine trade shows. r
AN IMPORTANT AREA with
which ASCODIF works is the
pricing of used machines, mainly by trying to create universal
pricelists. Next year the association intends to review the education system, as there are many
forestry schools with programs
7
Ent. Chadelat is the largest forestry contractor in France.Owner Gilles Chadelat’s
successful business model is based on retaining control over every stage of the
harvesting process. And 15 Valmet forest machines are the most important part of
this process.
Control over every stage
G
illes’ career in the
forest machine
industry has gone
well ever since he
first sat behind the controls of a
skidder more than 30 years ago.
Today he heads the largest forest machine company in France,
with 65 employees and five fields
of operation. The largest division is forest machine contracting, which represents 70 percent of operations and has 15 Valmet machines (including a Timbco 425) and three skidders in its
lineup. The company harvests
150,000 cubic meters a year.
In addition to this, Gilles’
company has 14 trucks, a workshop, a sawmill, and road construction machines for the 1516 miles (about 25 km) of road it
lays each year. He even buys forestland to harvest.
“Retaining control over every
stage of the harvesting process
makes customer negotiations
much easier. Put simply, size is
an advantage and makes it easier
to keep prices up,” says Gilles.
WE MET Gilles in a clearing
in the densely forested central mountain area of France
near Claviéres. The company
has bought a large plot of state-
Gilles Chadelat, one of France’s
most successful forest machine
contractors.
8
owned forest here that is currently being thinned by one of
the company’s two new Valmet
911.3s. This is the initial thinning of 17 year-old forest with
tree diameters of 8-10 inches (2025 cm), with the timber going
straight to the sawmill. In total,
operator Jerome Amouroux harvests about 1,750-1,800 trees, or
100 cubic meters of timber, each
day in single shifts, which is the
only shift system used in France.
“I’ve been operating the
machine for three months and
the Valmet 911.3 is a pleasure to
use with good comfort. I like the
auto-leveling, especially onhilly
ground where inclines often
exceed 20 degrees,” he says.“
Considering the steep terrain,
fuel consumption is good at 2-
2/3 US gallons (ten liters) an
hour. And I like the Maxi system,
which increases efficiency.”
Owner Gilles appreciates the
30-35 percent increase in produc-
tivity that the new Valmet 911.3
delivers compared to the older
Valmet 911.1 in the company’s
lineup. He now has another Valmet 911.3 on order for delivery
this fall.
ENT. CHADELAT’S strategy is
to replace a couple of machines
a year, and in the future Gilles
Chadelat believes he’ll be able to
do the same work with fewer har-
vesters as productivity increases
continually.
His company, which has
grown gradually, has had Valmet machines since he bought
his first Valmet 901 in 1990. His
decision to continue to invest in
Valmet machines is based on the
strong relations he’s established
with the dealers and the well
functioning service. Moreover,
Chadelat and the operators like
the good visibility and productivity offered by Valmet machines.
“Everyone here is aware of the
strengths of each machine,” says
Gilles. “It’s important to know
your machines and our technicians and our operators really
like Valmet.”
Gilles himself enjoys his
work, even if the French market is a tough environment and
the industry offers small margins. He’s evidently pleased that
Jerome Amouroux has been operating his new Valmet 911.3 for
three months and is very pleased with the comfort, the visibility, and
the Maxi system.
his business concept has worked
so well,and he’s particularly satisfied with his effective organization for transporting machines
in the relatively limited region in
FACTS
which the company works. Having reliable machines that can
always be moved to where the
work is encourages Gilles to face
the future with confidence. r
Chadelat’s lineup
Among the harvesters are three Valmet 911.1s, three Valmet 921s,
and two Valmet 911.3s. The forwarders include a Valmet 890.1, a Valmet 860.1, a Valmet 840, and two Valmet 860s. A new Valmet 911.3
and a new Valmet 860.3 are on order.
9
From the 1960s to the present day. The forest machine of yesteryear was a ’fardier’, today it’s a Valmet 941. Jean Pierre Dubuis, who founded
the company, is seen here together with his son Didier, who runs operations today.
The Dubuis family
choose Valmet
An investment in the market’s most powerful harvester, the Valmet 941,
has given Didier Dubuis’ company Dubuis new possibilities in thick
deciduous stands. The company is one of France’s oldest forest machine
companies and has been partially mechanized since the 1960s.
10
A Valmet 941 is a very effective machine on poplar plantations.
W
e met Didier
Dubuis in the
middle of a poplar plantation
west of Brives where the company’s Valmet is effectively harvesting the huge trees. At the edge of
the stand, just by chance, is an
old ’fardier’, a type of winched
lifting truck. Such devices were
coupled to farm tractors and
used to load and transport logs.
Didier’s father Jean Pierre had
such a machine when he founded the company in 1962. Today
his father is retired, but still
helps out on occasion and turned
up when Just Forest visited.
“I started working for the
company in 1987,” Didier told
us. “We bought out first Valmet
machine in 1998, a Valmet 860,
and since then we’ve stuck with
Valmet.”
Today the company harvests
60,000 cubic meters and forwards 75,000 cubic meters of
timber a year, some of this on
assignment for other contrac-
tors. In total, Didier has nine
employees operating three Valmet harvesters - a 911, a 921.1,
and a 941. Dubuis also has four
Valmet forwarders, two 840.2s,
an 860.1, and an 860.3.A very
pleased Didier has another Valmet 860.3 on order.
When we discussed the lineup, Didier couldn’t help but mention the advantages of the Valmet
941, a powerhouse than can harvest effectively even in steep terrain. The machine is used to harvest hardwood too, even if such
harvesting pays less and places
great demands on the machine.
In the poplar stand being harvested when we visited, the trees
had diameters of 16-18 inches
(40-45 cm), though this posed no
problems.
“In a poplar stand like this,
the thick branches are always
tough, but the machine does a
good job,” commented operator
Laurent Plaisse. “It’s a truly powerful machine that copes with
all types of tree. I like to use the
machine on slopes and the way
the rotating cab always keeps the
head in front is a real advantage.”
Didier is a strong supporter of
the Valmet machines with which
his personnel are so happy. He
said that service has been excellent since the company invested
in the first Valmet 860 machine.
“I bought it because it read so
good on paper,” Didier explained.
“And the Valmet 941 proved to
be just in good in reality, and so
it’s continued. The Valmet 941
is a good example of a machine
that really lives up to its specifications.” r
Laurent Plaisse appreciates the Valmet 941 for its power and efficiency even in steep terrain.
11
445 FXL with
new chassis
The new Valmet 445 FXL offers Komatsu Forest’s customers a machine well
equipped for demanding forest conditions. The 445 FXL has a Komatsu
designed and built forestry track system and final drives, with longer tracks
and a redesigned car body.
The new Valmet
445FXL is fitted with
brand new track units
from Komatsu.
12
The new tracks are designed and developed solely for the forest, with very sturdy
and thoroughly tested components.
T
he Valmet 445 FXL is
the second feller-buncher model supplied with
a Komatsu designed and built
forestry track system. Previously, the larger Valmet 475 FXL
received a thorough upgrade,
including a new track system.
The new Valmet 445 FXL
features a number of improvements to increase productivity
and reliability. Most important is
the specially designed track system and increased track chain
pitch, increased to 9 inches (228
mm). Machine mobility and stability have been improved by fitting sturdier tracks and track
shoes. Further, the 445 FXL
incorporates Komatsu designed
and built forestry final drives.
Each track has its own independent closed loop track drive, separate from the boom circuit,
allowing for simultaneous operation of the tracks and boom
functions. The closed loop track
drives also provide hydrostatic
braking on slopes and allow for
energy recovery when stopping.
This system is standard on most
Valmet tracked machines and
ensures maximum productivity.
“The track unit has been
designed and developed solely for the forest, with very sturdy and well tested components,”
explains product manager Yasu
Tanaka. “Among other things,
we’ve seen increased reliability with the new Komatsu forestry
final drive.”
THE 445 FXL car body has been
redesigned to improve reliability with today’s heavy felling
demands. Four-way cab leveling is achieved using two cylinders, with a maximum forward
tilt of 27 degrees increasing the
machine’s stability on steep slopes while reducing operator fatigue. The 445 FXL booms have
also been upgraded to meet the
demands of today’s harvesting
attachments.
The Valmet 445 FXL is a very
fuel efficient machine and is
equipped with a Cummins Tier
3-compliant 8.3-liter QSC engine
that produces 300 horsepower. The engine control system
and calibration provide rapid yet
smooth response.
THE COOLING system has
been improved with larger fin
spacing, which reduces debris
buildup and simplifies cleaning.
Together with the reversing fan,
this keeps the machine running
cool day after day.
The 445 FXL has a new
optional pump gear box oil cooler
available. This new option cools
the pump gear box oil increasing
seal life for both the gear box and
the hydraulic pumps.
INFO
The Valmet 445 FXL is service
friendly with centralized grease
points and easily accessible daily service points. A roomy, quiet
and comfortable cab with excellent visibility and ergonomically positioned controls maximizes operator efficiency. “With the
new Valmet 445 FXL, we can
offer the market a highly productive machine with the market’s
best undercarriage,” comments
Yasu. “This is a machine that will
provide the reliability and performance our customers have come
to expect from Komatsu.” r
Valmet 445 FXL
WEIGHT WITHOUT HEAD:
67,000 lb (30,390 kg)
ENGINE:
Cummins QSC Tier 3, 8.3 liters
POWER:
300 HP at 2,000 rpm
TORQUE:
1,000 lb-ft (1,356 Nm) @ 1,500 RPM
FUEL TANK CAPACITY:
185 gallons (700 liters)
MACHINE WIDTH: 10’ 4” (3,140 mm), 600 mm single grouser shoes
MAX. SPEED:
3.3 mph (5.3 km/h)
TRACTIVE EFFORT:
74,315 lb (33,710 kg)
TRACK
length 15’8” ft (4,871 mm), 600 mm or 700 mm track shoes
GROUND PRESSURE:
8.74 psi with 600 mm, 7.62 psi with 700 mm
MAX. REACH:
21’ 5” (6,530 mm), 4-Bar Power Link Stick Boom
CAB LEVELING:
Front 27°, back 5°, side ±20°
13
The 32,000 square feet (3,000 square meters) of the
forest machine center in Finland are now in full use.
No less than 650 people from various countries
attended the Grand Opening Ceremony of the new
forest machine center.
Forest machine center inauguration
THE 32,000 SQUARE feet (3,000 square
meters) of the forest machine center in Pirkkala outside Tampere, Finland are now in
full use. More than 650 guests from Finland,
the rest of Scandinavia, the Baltic States, and
Russia attended the inauguration, listening to speakers that included Toshio Miyake,
CEO of Komatsu Forest, and Timo Ylänen,
Timo Ylänen, new CEO of
Komatsu Forest Oy.
CEO of Komatsu Forest Oy, as well as music
from Finnish pop singer Laura Voutilainen.
The forest machine center is an operations
hub for Komatsu Forest in Finland. r
New CEO in Finland
TIMO YLÄNEN is the new CEO of Komatsu Forest Oy from October
1. He is 44 years old, has broad international experience of the forest
machine industry, and joins Komatsu Forest from John Deere, where
he headed the company’s forest machine sales to European dealers.
“The opportunity to work with Valmet and its high quality, high
potential forest machines is an exciting challenge,” says Timo. r
Distributors meeting in Riga
THE ANNUAL meeting of the
European distributors of Valmet
machines was held in the Latvian capital Riga. Representatives
from 19 dealers gathered in Riga
to discuss market issues, strategies, and activities in the European market. The meeting also saw
Berndt Rauser bestow an award
on the European dealer of the
14
year. This year’s Golden Bogie
went to Cesar Sanchez of Spanish importer HITRAF. r
The European distributors meeting in Riga attracted no fewer
than 19 distributors from around
Europe.
Key customers
choose Valmet
THIRTY FOREST machines have now been
delivered under the three major contracts
Komatsu Forest’s German sales company Komatsu Forest GmbH won in Germany and Austria. A customer buying almost
a dozen machines is not an everyday occurrence in the German market, and in these
cases Komatsu Forest GmbH’s high-quality service helped tip the balance in Komat-
su’s favor when the deals were made. The
three customers are the Austrian forestry company ÖBf AG, which is partly stateowed, the Bavarian state forestry company
BaySF, and a large sawmill in eastern Germany. ÖBf AG, for example, bought seven forwarders and four harvesters while
the sawmill in eastern Germany bought a
number of Valmet 941 harvesters. r
“I’m convinced key customers see the advantages of
our all-inclusive concept,
which combines productive
machines and quality service,” says Jürgen Munz, CEO
of Komatsu Forest Gmbh.
“So we’ll most probably see
similarly large deals in the
future.”
Valmet in focus at Spanish forestry
convention
FOR THE SEVENTH time, the
The Valmet 941 with a 370E head proved its productivity to curious
onlookers at Asturforesta in Spain.
Spanish Asturforesta forestry convention was held near the
town of Tineo in northern Spain,
near the border with France and
Portugal. Valmet was in focus
at the convention, which is held
every second year, with its well
attended demos held under realistic conditions. The demos
attracted large crowds wanting
to see, among other machines,
the Valmet 840.3, the Valmet 941,
and the Valmet 911.3 X3M. Many
visitors were also drawn to the
exhibition tent, where attractions
included the Valmet Oryx simulator. The convention had 15,000
professional visitors and more
than 120 exhibitors. r
15
Valmet to the fore
Figur
1. Resultat
av längdmätning.
Ljusgrön
stapel anger andel
stockar
Best
length measurement
and
best crosscutting.
Valmet
left inom ± 2 cm. Mörkgrönthe
delcompetition
är den nivå maskinen
skulle
ha nått vid timber
perfekt kalibrering
behind in
an important
value test.(teoretisk maxnivå). Röd
linje anger medelnivå 2006 för de fem produktionsmaskinerna, grön linje skogsbrukets mål.
Machine system 1
Machine system 2
Machine system 3
Machine system 4
Valmet 941/370.2
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length measurement results. The bars represent the percentage of logs within ±0.78 inch (2 cm). The red
line shows the average level of the five machine systems in 2006. The green line is the Swedish forestry
industry’s goal.
E
very five years, the
Swedish forestry research foundation Skogforsk conducts an extensive timber value
test. This time, seven different
machine systems were compared
in areas such as length and diameter measurement, value crosscutting, and fixed length crosscutting. This is the third test conducted and Skogforsk concludes
that harvesters in general show
continual improvements in cap-
16
turing timber value.
Good length and diameter
measurements are a prerequisite for getting the most value out
of the timber. If machines measure correctly, crosscutting efficiency is higher. Komatsu Forest was represented by a Valmet 941 equipped with a Valmet 370.2 harvesting head and a
Valmet Maxi harvester computer. This proved to be a winning
combination in both measuring and crosscutting. The Valmet
machine system was the best in
its class at length measurement.
In the second test round, 93 percent of all logs fell within the correct length interval.
“Once we’d adjusted the inching speed, we performed much
better than our main competitors
in length measurement accuracy,” says Per Annemalm, Product
Manager at Komatsu Forest.
The researchers at Skogforsk
concluded with current measuring system designs. More exact
measurement will require new
techniques that use remote or
“touch-less” sensing.
According to the test, Valmet’s current diameter measuring is reliable and has been
refined and improved since the
previous test. The improvement
is due to factors that include better control, improved technology components, the new “regression analysis” calibration, and
stronger machines. Crosscutting efficiency indicates how
NEWS
New major plywood
factory in Siberia
The largest plywood
factory in Siberia and
the Far East is being
built in Krasnoyarsk in 2007.
The goal is to produce enough
plywood to consume 250,000
cubic meters from conifers
and 100,000 cubic meters from
birch annually. About 800 people will work at the production plant.
Only large tree harvesting permitted
Mozambique’s government has passed legislation that only permits certain tree species to be
logged and then only those
above a certain trunk diameter.
Prime Minister Luisa Diogo
told Agencia de Informacao de
Mocambique that the law guarantees new growth and sustainability while securing the
industry’s needs.
Forest protection
new source
of income
much value the harvester manages to generate from each tree
in relation to the optimal value
if you knew the tree length and
diameter in advance. The tests
show that crosscutting efficiency is generally good, and Valmet
was among the best machine
systems. The researchers also
reported that Valmet provided
very high crosscutting efficiency,
99.1 percent, and was once again
best of the bunch.
“It’s difficult to progress
much further with value crosscutting and it’s perhaps not even
profitable for forest owners as
the computer is forced to calculate even more alternatives,
which can limit machine productivity and thereby increase
harvesting costs,” Per explains.
What’s more, extracting
maximum value is not the only
aim. Delivering what sawmills
and industry need is important
too. With fixed length crosscutting, the harvester meets saw-
mill needs and the level of efficiency here indicates how well
the crosscut timber matches the
desired lengths. Each machine
system was tested with 800 logs
and the Valmet machine system
crosscut more than 90 percent of
the logs in the optimal manner,
as per the crosscutting instructions.
“We quickly achieved the
desired fixed length crosscutting and remained at that level
throughout the test,” says Per. r
Forest owners in Finland are being offered new opportunities to earn from their forests.
METSO, the program for biodiversity in the forests of southern Finland, has succeeded in
getting many forest owners to
consider alternatives to traditional timber production. Voluntary forest protection yields
economic benefits equally as
large as forestry while preserving the landscape in an undisturbed state for future generations. It takes about fifty years
before thinning provides any
real economic returns, and for
many forest owners leaving
things as they are is an alternative that provides a good conscience.
17
FIVE FORESTR
Where will forests be harvested in the future? International
forestry consultant Jonas Jacobsson lists five trends determining
where the industry will source its raw materials in the future.
A
bout a third of the earth’s
surface is forestland and the
northern evergreen belt has
made the USA, Canada, and Scandinavia important raw material producers for the forest industry. But change
could be in the cards. Jacobsson is
of the opinion that changes in forest ownership will influence where
in the world forests are harvested. He
lists five clear trends that influence
development in various ways.
According to Jacobsson, about
85 percent of the world’s forests are
state-owned. The most important and
influential trend today is increased
privatization of forest ownership.
This mostly entails sovereign states
selling off forestland, but also confiscated forest being returned to private
owners.
Jacobsson believes that the accelerated privatization trend will influence where forests are harvested in
the future.
“In the long term, an altered ownership structure will make new harvestable areas much more attractive prospects. When Russia and China open their borders more, they’ll
become major forestry countries,”
says Jacobsson.
Russia’s enormous forest resources are extremely important to the
future, and even if Russia’s timber
stock is low in terms of volume per
acre, there are a great many acres of
Russian forestland.
“If the legal position is cleared up
and new rules of the game are established, players may be willing to start
making the necessary investments
in infrastructure to gain access to
the sizeable timber resources,” says
Jacobsson. r
18
Conservationists
buying forests
While still quite uncommon,
some conservation organizations
buy forests to protect them from
harvesting. In the USA, for example, Nature Conservancy buys
land both at home and abroad.
Sale of corporate forests
It is increasingly common for major private forest
companies to sell off forests to institutional investors. The trend began in the USA about ten years
ago, mostly because forest is considered a safe
investment with a value that often swings contrary to stock market fluctuations.
This trend has even spread to Canada and
Scandinavia and, according to Jacobsson, will
most probably become increasingly common
throughout the world.
RY TRENDS
Return of confiscated forests
Another privatization trend now seen in several former
Eastern Bloc countries is the return of confiscated forest
properties to their former owners.
Planting of new forests
China already has large areas of newly planted forests,
though these can be protected as well as harvestable
forests. South America has large plantations and the
right conditions to plant even more new forests. There
is sufficient precipitation and plenty of areas that were
deforested long ago.
However, there are factors that can check such development. Competition for land is increasing, which
will cause prices to rise. This has already been seen in
Chile while in Brazil, for example, interest in sugar cane
plantations for ethanol production may lead to rising
land prices. In several parts of the world, it may be increasingly difficult to plant larger new forests. The east
coast of southern Africa is home to an area with sufficient rainfall, but there is no land left available, and in
Australia large parts of the continent are too dry.
Privatization of state-owned forests
One of the trends is for states to sell off forests to private interests. These may be plantations, such
as in Australia, or forest holdings, such as in Sweden. More important though, according to Jacobsson, are the privatization trends in Russia and China.
Russia is drawing up new contractual forms for long-term collaboration between the state and
private enterprise, which in the long run could lead to private ownership. Long-term contracts with
private enterprise are also up for discussion in Canada, and the authorities in China are assessing different privatization models.
19
Increased future logging
Logging volumes will
increase in the future,
mostly in Russia, Latin America, and China.
Forest growth currently exceeds increases in
logging in all non-tropical regions. This is the
conclusion of a report
from Finnish analysts
Pöyry.
T
he report on trends
in the forest industry
begins in 2004 and provides a clear picture of global forest resources and trends. Global harvests total 3.45 billion cubic
meters and of this 51 percent is
used for combustion and heating
while 49 percent goes to industry.
Of the timber used by industry,
995 million cubic meters go to
sawmills and 545 million cubic
meters to the paper industry.
Despite high logging volumes, absolute forest growth is
positive in all non-tropical areas.
This is especially true in Russia where the potential harvest
increase is very large. The worst
situation is seen in Oceania and
Africa, where very large timber
harvests for fuel needs cause a
collective drop in forest resources. An interesting observation is
that logging volumes in Canada
are on a par with growth, while in
the USA growth exceeds harvest.
The report from Pöyry concludes that timber needs in all
areas for industrial refinement
will increase until 2015. The
larger part of this increase is for
paper pulp and paneling. The
increase is estimated at 300 mil-
lion cubic meters, counting from
2000.
Global logging volumes too
are expected to keep increasing
until 2020. Logging will mostly increase in Latin America and
Russia. In order to meet this
demand, the total area of fastgrowing plantations must almost
tion has most momentum in Latin America, Eastern Europe, and
Southeast Asia. The degree of
mechanization will also be affected by local traditions, trees species, and terrain conditions.
The report was compiled by Dr.
Hubert Röder of Pöyry Forest
Industry Consulting. r
600000
Increase until 2020
500000
Logging volume 2004
400000
300000
200000
100000
0
Scandinavian Western
countries
Europe
Nordic countries
Russia
Russia
Western Europe excl. Nordic
600000
Eastern
Europe
North
America
North America
South
America
Oceania
Latin America
Eastern Europe excl. Russia
China
China
Oceania
Increased mechanization
• As logging volumes increase so does mechanization.
• The degree of mechanization is increasing most in Latin America, Eastern Europe, and Southeast Asia.
500000 • The degree of mechanization depends on local traditions, trees species, and terrain conditions.
• The degree of mechanization is already very high in Scandinavia and can only be increased if the authorities take initiatives to increase logging volumes.
400000 • Variations in mechanization between countries are great. For example, in Spain, Portugal, and Italy forest
machines are only used on plantations while private forest owners use handcutters.
• Many markets exhibit a great need for simple, low-priced forest machines. Operator training is an impor300000 tant issue.
200000
20
double between 2005 and 2020.
Plantation forests are expected to represent about 60 percent
of the increase in logging volume. In Latin America, almost
all increases in logging stem
from plantations. As logging volumes increase so does forestry mechanization. Mechaniza-
100000
MAY WE ASK…
…TIMO KORHONEN,
Head of Sales, Komatsu
Forest Oy, Finland.
New forwarder control
system integrates complete
supply chain
Production reporting for
the wood fiber supply
chain is now complete.
MaxiL is a new forwarder software application
that even shows where
log piles are located.
A NEW standard has pushed the
development of forwarder production reports. With the new
Valmet MaxiL application, forwarded volumes and assortments
can be associated with a particular landing, a selected destination
We’ve strengthened our market position in Finland the
past few years and expect
to continue to do so this
year and next year. In absolute terms, the Finnish market has grown the past two
and a half years, and due to
altered market conditions
we expect to see continued
growth next year as well.
How has the market
changed?
T
he forest industry’s supply chain of harvesters, forwarders, timber trucks, and sawmills needs
a detailed and uninterrupted
chain of production reports from
felling to sawing. Until recently, there was a gap in the production report chain, as forwarders have only been able to register and report the volume of each
assortment. That gap has now
been closed.
How are sales
in Finland?
MaxiL is a stand-alone application. All information about forwarded
timber is entered by the user. This includes details of landing coordinates together with forwarded volume, species, and assortment.
mill, or a geographic position.
“The user describes and registers the forwarded timber
according to species, assortment, and location,” explains Per
Annemalm, Product Manager at
Komatsu Forest.
With MaxiL, the forward-
er can use its .prl files to report
exact positions using the coordinates of each roadside landing.
This means more efficient handling every step of the way. Valmet MaxiL is an option that is
currently only available for the
Swedish market. r
Finland will import less Russian timber due to new import duties. This means a
need to increase logging in
Finland, which means an increased need for new machines. However, the additional harvest in Finland will
not only comprise final logging but even a great deal of
thinning. As a result, we’re
expecting further increases
in demand for smaller machines such as the Valmet
830.3, the Valmet 840.3, the
Valmet 911.3, and the Valmet 901.3.
You’re also
reorganizing?
We’ve opened a new Forest
Machine Center that will be
an important hub for our operations in Finland. This will
even enable us to concentrate all our efforts on the
Finnish market, which is a
plus for all our Finnish customers. And they’ll notice
the difference!
21
DRIVING TECHNIQUE
AND MACHINE
are important for low vibrations
Being tossed around in the seat is one of the most important work environment issues
for many forest machine operators. Moreover, an operator can play a decisive role in
minimizing the effects on the body by maintaining good working posture. We explain
what vibrations are and show how a machine with low full body vibrations makes operators more effective.
The operator’s driving technique greatly influences the
size of jarring movements.
This is why it’s important to
drive sensibly.
22
I
f a forest machine operator is to work effectively without tiring during a shift, the work environment must enable good posture and counter vibrations.
Good working posture has been
shown to be of great importance to how vibrations affect an
operator. Consequently, a well
designed cab that can be adjusted
to ensure good working posture
is important.
OPERATOR MOST
INFLUENTIAL
One of the single most influential factors in determining the
size of the vibrations generated
by a machine is the operator. A
smooth driving technique, cor-
rectly adjusted driver’s seat, and
good general health keep vibrations and their effects to a minimum. A fit and healthy operator can cope with vibrations better than an unfit individual, and a
person weighing 265 lbs (120 kg)
is more susceptible to vibrations
than an operator weighing 155
lbs (70 kg).
Minimizing full body vibrations and shaking improves the
work environment. Very little
engine vibrations are transferred
to the cab – shaking caused by
driving and loading has most
impact. Vertical vibrations have
little effect on the operator. Sideto-side and forward-back shakes
have the greatest impact and the
most important jars to avoid are
those under 10 Hz. Hz is a unit
for measuring vibrations per second. Very slow vibrations of frequencies less than 1 Hz can
cause motion sickness, which is
just like sea sickness or car sickness.
STABLE MACHINES
VIBRATE LESS
A generally stable machine helps
reduce vibrations. In the previous issue of Just Forest, we
looked at the principles behind
stability, and Valmet’s machines
are renowned for their stability.
Valmet harvesters are fitted
with a stabilizer, which means
the entire machine, including the
rear carriage and its weight, work
to maintain stability. Shakes and
jars are generally smaller on a
harvester as the machine is often
stationary while working, though
harvester systems also ensure
stability when driving shorter
distances. Forwarders are built to
be driven with large loads and so
driving speed and driving technique greatly affect the size, or
amplitude, of vibrations. The
articulated design of Valmet’s
forwarders, with a hydraulically
dampened steering swivel joint,
makes them stable and reduces full body shakes by producing smaller amplitudes. When a
harvester is processing logs and
when a forwarder is loading, the
machines are kept stable. Stable
machines are one of the key factors in keeping full body vibra-
A
C
B
Vibrations can be described as movement from a resting position
(A) across a certain distance to an endpoint (B), followed by movement in the opposite direction, passing the original resting position.
The movement continues to a second endpoint (C), where it stops
and reverses toward the resting position. The period of time (T)
is the time it takes for the swinging action to complete this entire
movement while the amplitude is the distance from A to C.
a
B
A
t
C
T
23
An ergonomically designed cab with a correctly adjusted seat reduces the effects of vibrations.
Reducing vibrations
Drive sensibly
tions low, and stable support for
the driver’s seat also helps reduce
vibrations. A seat with unstable
support can reinforce full body
vibrations.
ABOUT VIBRATIONS
Vibrations are usually divided
into two main types, full body
vibrations (shakes and jars) and
local vibrations, though here
we’ll focus on the full body type,
the main type of forest machine
vibration. Full body vibrations
occur when the structure on
which we sit or stand moves or
swings back and forward like a
pendulum, and this motion can
be described using physical measures.
The first measure is ampli-
tude, the size of the vibration.
Amplitude is expressed in millimeters, though in a forest
machine the amplitude can be up
to one meter (almost 40 inches).
The other measure is frequency, which describes how often the
vibration occurs in a unit of time.
Frequency is expressed in Hz,
or vibrations per second. Other characteristics contributing to
the effect are the total time the
vibrations continue, the direction
of the vibrations, and the type of
vibration. Vibration types are
divided into different groups. On
the one hand we have predictable vibrations, and on the other we have random vibrations,
which are most common in forest machines. r
• Match your driving speed to the terrain.
• Drive carefully on sloping terrain as your driving
body posture can be adversely affected. Driving
on flat ground has less impact on body position.
• Drive smoothly and evenly. This also reduces fuel
consumption and machine wear.
• Work with smooth and fluid boom/crane movements.
Personal health and work environment
• Vary your working posture to avoid straining
joints and muscles.
• Adjust the seat and controls to match your height
and weight.
• Keep in good shape. This enables you to better
reduce the effects on your body.
• Take regular breaks.
Help from the machine
• Lower RPMs mean less vibration.
• Replace the seat if it’s old. A worn driver’s seat
and weak support actually reinforce vibrations
and make it difficult to correctly adjust the seat.
• Larger machines generally shake the body less
than small machines.
INFO
The effects of full body vibrations
When someone is subjected to full body vibrations, muscles contract. This affects everything from heart rate to
blood pressure and balance. It’s impossible to predict who will be more seriously affected by vibrations. Everyone
reacts differently to them.
24
ProSelect – new saw bars and
saw chains to choose from
Valmet’s ProSelect
product range is ever
widening. Several
different saw bars and
chains suitable for a
large variety of harvesting heads now join the
lineup.
V
almet’s ProSelect brand
now offers an even wider range of high-performance saw bars and saw chains.
The items specially designed
for Valmet machines have been
joined by new offerings. With its
solid experience as a head manufacturer, Valmet has a good
understanding of designing saw
bars and saw chains that perform
well and safely.
Valmet ProSelect saw bars
have a number of features to
ensure long, safe use and performance. The bars are optimized
for maximum stability, while a
special steel alloy ensures great
flexibility. A unique heat treatment makes the saw bar rigid
and robust and the mount has
holes instead of slots for a more
stable fitting and longer service
life. The optimized chain grooves
increase oil flow and ensure that
the chain runs steadily through
the grooves. Hardened metal
shims on the nose sprocket protect bearings and provide longer service life than regular nose
sprockets. The saw bar is available with three mount sizes, 10
mm, 15 mm, and 3/4 inches.
ProSelect saw chains are made
to match the saw bar to provide
optimal saw performance. The
saw chains are durable and easy
to maintain, designed to pro-
What you need, when you need it.
Expertise and experience. These are the most important building blocks of ProSelect, our unique
assortment of accessories and consumables for forestry machines. The chief purpose of ProSelect
is to provide you with the prerequisites for increased profitability. We do this through high quality,
availability and a complete assortment of products and services. Concrete benefits for our customers
range from minimized downtime to optimized performance and service life for your forestry machines.
vide long service life with long
intervals between sharpening,
achieved in part by sharpening
after fitting. The chains are made
from a special nickel-steel alloy
with hard chromium plating to
provide additional durability and
improved saw characteristics.
What’s more, the factory-fitted
and pre-lubricated rivets further
extend service life. The chains
are available in 1.6 and 2 gauge
and for 3/4 inch saw bars. r
Forests in the USA and Canada run a high risk of wildfire. To reduce the risk of wildfire, some 190 million acres (77 million hectares)
of forest have been identified as in need of thinning or clearing.
THINNING
– a hot topic
Interest in thinning and biomass fuels is increasing in North America and Europe, but
for somewhat different reasons. In the USA, wildfire risk reduction is high on the agenda, while in Canada the aim is to stop the spread of the mountain pine beetle. In Europe,
as well as in North America, demand for biomass fuel has increased the interest in
clearing and harvesting small diameter trees.
26
Thinning is usually conducted as a silvicultural measure, as well as to increase forest product harvests (primarily
pulpwood).
I
nterest in thinning is
increasing in much of
the world, but for different reasons. In Europe,
market demand for biomass fuel
is driving development while in
North America widespread forest
fires and the spread of the mountain pine beetle were early drivers of the trend.
In order to reduce the risk of
major wildfires, mostly in western USA, biomass harvesting is
to increase. The Healthy Forests
Initiative, signed by President
Bush in 2004, emphasizes the
need to reduce the proportion of
combustible material in the forest. President Bush has said, for
instance, that “By thinning out
our forests, we reduce the risk of
catastrophic fire” and “We need
to thin our forests in America”. A
full 190 million acres (77 million
hectares) of forestland have been
identified as at risk from wildfire
due to insufficient thinning.
ONE TECHNIQUE used to quick-
ly reduce risk is to make shaded
fuel breaks. These are areas where
smaller trees, deadwood, undergrowth, and brushwood are cleared while mature, healthy trees
that take longer to catch fire are
left standing. These areas give
firefighters more time to combat a
fire by slowing its progress. Much
thinning is currently conducted
by handcutters with chainsaws.
On the West Coast, west of the
Cascade Mountain Range, forestlands contain copious amounts
of combustible material, some
50 tons of biomass per acre (120
tons per hectare) and east of the
range, where the climate is drier,
about 30 tons of biomass per acre
(70 tons per hectare). Most of the
material from areas thinned and
cleared of undergrowth is currently piled high and burned during winter, when there’s less risk
of wildfire. Controlled fires are
also used to reduce the amount
of combustible material.
WHILE WILDFIRES ARE a main
reason for increased interest in
thinning in the USA, mountain
27
There’s a great deal of combustible material in the forests of
America, with as much as 50 tons of biomass per acre (120 tons
per hectare).
Canada produces enormous amounts of sawmill waste. So much
that it’s currently unprofitable to harvest biomass from the forests.
pine beetle infestation is the reason in Canada. Thinning damaged trees and rapidly removing
infested timber is important
in the fight to stop the beetle’s
spread.
THINNING IS EVEN increasing
in Europe, though mostly due to
increased demand for biomass
fuel and new harvesting methods are on the horizon. Antti
Asikainen, a professor at Finnish
forestry research institute Metla,
believes interest in small diameter timber harvested using multi-tree accumulators, as well as
the clearing of older stands, will
increase. Asikainen has a theory as to why the demand for biomass fuel has not been the driving force in North America.
“North America, and even
Russia, have much forest and get
as much bioenergy as they need
from sawmills without the need
to specifically harvest the forest
for biomass fuel,” he explains.
Don Gosnell at the Ministry of Forest and Range in British Columbia, Canada confirms
this idea and explains that most
sawmills use the waste from
sawing, such as sawdust, wood
28
chips, and even bark, to produce
heat and electricity as the material needs to be dealt with in some
way or other. However, according to Gosnell, electricity is so
cheap (about 3.5 cents per kilowatt hour) that it’s unprofitable
to produce electricity from waste
if it has to be transported to the
generating facility.
Asikainen, on the other
hand, sees development gathering momentum in Europe, with
more and more countries in Central Europe, including Italy and
Austria, and even Poland, harvesting round timber and forest
residues simultaneously. Wood
chips are generally produced at
landings, before transportation.
Asikainen also sees greater interest in Europe for stumps, which
have greater energy value than
other forest residues.
New assortments will be handled by existing machines parallel to
conventional harvesting.
ROLF BJÖRHEDEN heads a bio-
mass fuel project at Swedish
research institute Skogforsk and
believes development must be
toward increased optimization
and increased integration of biomass fuel management with
other forestry. Björheden believes biomass harvesting will be
integrated with other harvesting using existing machines, a
matter on which Asikainen also
agrees, adding that conventional
forest machines, with necessary adaptations for handling biomass, are the route to take for the
foreseeable future. r
Customers are the key
She has worked for the
company for 30 years
and knows operations
inside out. Christin
Davidsson is head of
quality assurance at
the factory in Umeå,
Sweden.
“Working with quality
issues with Komatsu as
our owner is very inspiring,” she says.
C
hristin Davidsson
has been head of
quality assurance
at the Umeå factory for about a year. She joined the
company 30 years ago and has
worked in many departments.
“It’s very exciting to work with
quality as Komatsu has extensive
experience and a proud tradition
of systematic quality assurance
stretching back to the 1960s,”
says Christin.
One of the driving forces in
Christin’s work is to make customers proud to own a Valmet
product. She has 27 department
colleagues to help achieve this.
“Our quality assurance work
gets support and commitment
from top management, and that
lends great importance to our
work.”
Christin’s position plays an
active role, very much in the here
and now.
“It’s important to create commitment and increase quality
awareness throughout the organization,” explains Christin. “I
want Komatsu Forest to be a worthy member of the Komatsu family in terms of quality assurance.”
Quality assurance demands
patience and perseverance. Christin possesses both qualities.
“It takes time to see the
results of our work, and in order
to succeed we must work at it
every day and never forget that
the customer’s product experience is our guide.” r
Christin Davidsson
About Christin
Davidsson
POSITION: Head of Quality Assurance
EMPLOYED SINCE: 1977
AGE: 47 years
LIVES: Umeå, Sweden
FAMILY: Two teenage daughters
BEST PART OF THE JOB: Teamwork in a global company with experiences and focus that
allow me to continually develop in my role.
LEISURE INTERESTS: Reading, traveling, walking, and different forms of exercise.
Three quick questions
1. What does the forest represent for you?
For me the forest is both a long-term work project and leisure time, something we must nurture for the future.
2. What does Komatsu represent for you?
A long-term perspective and quality with the customer in
mind.
3. Which is your favorite machine?
I’d probably have to say the Valmet 901, because it’s a
product that’s been around for a long time but that’s still
developing along with customer expectations.
29
Optimized transport saves
money and the environment
A logistics management
system for forest product transport developed
in Sweden can save up to
a fifth on transport costs.
This saving is achieved
by optimizing routes
so that trucks make the
shortest possible journey
and with as little distance
empty as possible.
T
ransport costs the forest
industry a great deal of
money. In Sweden alone,
each year transport costs the forest industry about SEK 4 billion
(USD 625 million), representing some 25 percent of the industry’s total costs. The forest industry is also Sweden’s largest shipper, and of the 340,000 miles
(550,000 km) of roads in Sweden,
more than half, some 190,000
miles (310,000 km), comprise
forest roads. These forest roads
are often in poor condition and
during spring, when the ground
thaws, restrictions can be placed
on their use for transport. Consequently, it is important that forest companies know which roads
can be used.
A few years back, a national forest road database was established, containing all forest roads
with information on everything
from gross weights and accessibility to speed limits. Using the
forest road database, the Swedish
forestry research institute Skogforsk has developed a method to
optimize forest transport routes
that has proven to make forest
transport up to 20 percent more
efficient. What’s more, the environment is also saved through
30
Bertil Liden, a logistics researcher at Skogforsk, explains that
a logistics manager cannot possibly memorize all the necessary
information. That’s why tools
are needed.
lower emissions.
The tool is called RuttOpt and
is an aid for planning the daily routes of a vehicle fleet, covering periods of up to seven days.
Using the road database and
advanced algorithms, it is possible to calculate the most efficient
route for each vehicle.
“Achieving this demands
knowledge of sawmill timber
needs, timber stocks, road conditions, and available vehicles. It’s
impossible for a logistics manager to memorize all this information,” says Bertil Lidén, a logistics
researcher at Skogforsk.
IF THE PROGRAM is to help
make the right decisions, the
input data must be correct. For
example, the reporting system
used by forwarders must function properly. Optimization
requires an accurate inventory
of the volumes and assortments
available at roadside landings.
Other input data processed by the
program includes sawmill needs
Optimizing transport in various ways enables greater savings.
Swedish Skogforsk has shown savings of up to 20 percent.
broken down into daily quotas
and every vehicle’s running costs
per hour and mile. If the system
is to function in an optimal man-
ner, the vehicles must cover large
areas to create a greater number of alternatives that cut empty
loads and increase efficiency. r
Transport trucks
run empty more
often in the USA
TRANSPORT HAS been receiving
attention in the USA, too. Preliminary results of a study conducted by WSRI, the Wood Supply Research Institute, in the
south of the USA shows that
timber trucks average about 40
miles (60 km) travel to a mill,
and average 45 percent of daily miles loaded. Moreover, early results indicate timber trucks
were only moving fully loaded
25 percent of the time that the
engine was running. The survey
data is being collected by equipping the trucks with GPS systems and scales with remote data
recording, and data on machine
movement is also being collected. Early study results show that
transport planning can increase
the proportion of fully loaded miles for better utilization of
resources. Other WSRI studies
address turnaround time at the
mill. www.wsri.org. r
010 101100010100
1
01011
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010
0100001
001 00
00 10
10 10
10 10
10 1
1
Forest machines
need broadband
The need to exchange
information between
the links of the forest
industry production chain is increasing rapidly. With integrated mobile broadband, forest machines
can play an even bigger
role.
I
ncreasingly more of the
world’s forestry is being
mechanized, and mostly with machines employing
the cut-to-length system. Mechanization with modern forest
machines also increases communication possibilities in the forest
industry fiber supply chain.
“Forest machines are really
mobile production units in the
fiber supply chain, and there’s
an increasing need to send and
receive information within that
chain,” says Per Annemalm,
Product Manager at Komatsu
Forest.
SUCH INFORMATION includes,
for example, production data
files, crosscutting instructions,
and GIS/GPS map files. Another
opportunity is real time communication with client business systems to report, for example, stock
levels, work remaining, hours
for payroll, or machine status. In
much of the world, however, poor
IT infrastructure prevents this
communication of which Komatsu Forest is a driving force.
The global forest industry has
varying mobile communication
110110
0010
10010
01001
00010
01 0
needs. One prerequisite is access
to telephones at all workplaces.
Access to e-mail and a reasonably
fast mobile Internet connection
are also necessary.
“There’s already a need for
voice communication throughout the world, important for such
things as increased safety in the
forest. But if the forest industry is
to take full advantage of information technology potential, access
to data transmission in mobile
environments is equally important,” says Per.
There are two major IT problems that must be resolved to
meet the needs of the global forest industry. The first is full coverage to make mobile broadband
possible and the second is sufficient transmission capacity.
There are several possible
technical solutions for mobile
broadband. The European GSM
technique is well established in
many countries, but has insufficient transmission capacity. The
3G UMTS technique offers high
capacity, but poorer coverage in
rural areas. In Finland, the forest
industry is focused on WIMAX,
which is a wireless network standard with broadband capacity,
while in Sweden a mobile broadband network is being established based on a development of
the American CDMA 2000 technology called CDMA 450. Satellite techniques provide great coverage, but limited transmission
capacity and a high price, and at
present there’s little to indicate
this will change. r
1
10
10
31
Popular website
T
Visitors seem to appreciate Komatsu Forest’s
website. Information
about Komatsu Forest
products and, above all
else, the product videos
are the most popular
content. This is seen in
a sneak preview of the
web survey conducted
this fall.
hroughout the fall, Komatsu Forest has conducted a web survey to see
what visitors think about the
website. What’s good and what
could be made better. To help us
make the website as good and as
interesting as possible for all our
visitors.
The survey was conducted over the Internet and all visitors were invited to participate.
At the time of writing, the survey
results were not fully analyzed,
though some clear trends could
already be seen in the prelimi-
nary results. One is that many
visitors are involved in the forest
industry and visit the website in
their work. Many visitors return
to the site several times a week
and most seem to find the
information they seek. The most
popular information is general
information about Komatsu Forest and our products, while the
product videos are of particular
interest. The overall rating of the
website would seem to be good
or possibly even very good.
More than half of the visitors
also visit the campaign site. r
Videos about Happy Loggers
Videos showing machines at work and satisfied customers explaining why they chose Valmet. There’s
something for everyone at Komatsu Forest’s Internet campaign site.
T
he campaign site has
information of great
interest to customers
and other interested parties. Video interviews with thirteen customers from around the world in
which they tell us what they think
about their machines, covering
productivity, safety, ergonomics,
quality, and much more.
You can even watch videos of
machines at work to get an idea
Wedding photo
W
hen you get married, you
want to have a wonderful
day and a beautiful photo album to
treasure.
If you work for a Valmet dealer, there’s no doubt about how you
want to remember the day. When
32
Dutch mechanic Hendrie van Ee
tied the knot on September 28, he
wanted a shiny red Valmet 830.3
in the picture.
“Quality comes in red” bodes
well for a happy marriage r
of how they operate. Then there’s
information about Komatsu Forest the company, explaining what
is important to us and presenting
our corporate values.
You can download images and
ringtones or try your hand at different games.
The campaign site is accessed
from the homepage of Komatsu Forest’s international website,
www.komatsuforest.com. r
ANECDOTAL
Under this heading, Just Forest will print anecdotes and stories from then and now. The editor will be happy
to receive ideas for publication. Send your tips or stories to [email protected].
ProTec for trucks
THERE ARE COUNTLESS applications for Valmet’s ProTec hose protection system. The Swedish company Nora Buss has bought ProTec for one of its trucks used to transport forest residues and Jan Pettersson is more than satisfied with his investment.
“This will soon pay for itself,” says Jan. “Before, we were averaging one hose breakage a
week. Since fitting ProTec, we haven’t had a single breakage. What’s more, both the link and the
rotator will last much longer as there’s no bending when we press down on the residue load.”
An enjoyable day at work
IN ALL JOBS lunch is something to look forward to. Mostly because it gives you a chance to take a break, recharge
your batteries, and perhaps enjoy a good conversation. In
Scandinavia, it often involves a box lunch in a forest hut,
the cab of your machine, or – in the summer – in the open
air. In Germany, people often visit the nearest “Gasthaus”.
In France, they’ve more than mastered the art of making the most of lunch, as Just Forest can report after an
assignment there. The forest workers all meet in a local
restaurant. There’s often a set menu – with as many as five
courses and wine to enjoy. It’s not unusual to be served
delicious duck and a cheeseboard that takes some beating.
After such a meal, productivity simply has to improve. r
33
Not all products are available in all markets
Forwarders
830
840
890
860
860
840
890
Harvesters
901
901
425
425
EX10
911
911 X3M
425 EX/425 EXL
Non-leveling/Leveling
445 FXL
Leveling
941
415 EX
475 EX/475 FXL
Harvester heads
330
34
350
360
370
370E
378
380
385
CONTACT US
More
information
about the
product line
t.com
s
e
r
o
f
atsu
m
o
k
PRODUCTION UNITS
Komatsu Forest AB
Phone: +46 90 70 93 00
www.komatsuforest.com
Komatsu Forest LLC
Phone: +1 715 524 2820
Maxi
DISTRIBUTION CENTERS, SALES CENTERS
AND DEALERS
EUROPE
AUSTRIA
Karner und Berger GmbH
www.valmet.at
Phone: +43 2769 84571
BELGIUM
BIA n.v./s.a.
Phone +32 (0)2 689 28 11
E-mail: [email protected]
CROATIA
Iverak d.o.o.
www.iverak.hr
Phone: +385 1 291 0399
CZECH REPUBLIC
Komatsu Forest GmbH
www.komatsuforest.cz
Phone: +420 2 7270 1438
DENMARK
Helms TMT Centret AS
www.helmstmt.com
Phone: +45 9928 2930
ESTONIA
Balti Metsamasina AS
Phone: +372 322 3630
FINLAND
Komatsu Forest Oy
www.komatsuforest.fi
Phone: +358 20 770 1300
FRANCE
France South:
CEMA
Phone: +33 555 930 222
Fellers
415 EX
425 EX/425 EXL
France North:
MAT FOR
Phone: +33 388 385 444
GERMANY
Komatsu Forest GmbH
www.komatsuforest.de
Phone: +49 74549 6020
HUNGARY
Kuhn Kft.
www.kuhn.hu
Phone: +36 128 980 80
LATVIA
Valmet Lat
Phone: +371 750 1357
LITHUANIA
Lifore Ltd
Phone: +370 5 2602 061
NETHERLANDS
W. van den Brink
www.lmbbrink.nl
Phone: +31 3184 56 228
NORWAY
Komatsu Forest A/S
www.komatsuforest.no
Phone: +47 62 57 8800
POLAND
Arcon Serwis SP.ZO.O.
www.arconserwis.pl
Phone +48 22 648 08 10
PORTUGAL
Cimertex, S.A.
Phone: +351 22 091 26 00
RUSSIA
Komatsu Forest Oy
Phone: +7 095 258 1428
SLOVAKIA
Komatsu Forest
www.komatsuforest.cz
Phone: +420 2 7270 1438
SPAIN
Hitraf S.A.
www.hitraf.com
Phone: + 34 986 59 29 10
SWEDEN
SweLog Skogsmaskiner HB
www.sweloghb.com
Phone: +46 171 41 67 70
SWITZERLAND
W Mahler AG
www.wmahler.ch
Phone: +41 44 763 5090
UNITED KINGDOM
Komatsu Forest Ltd
Phone: +44 1228 792 018
NORTH AMERICA
UNITED STATES
Komatsu Forest
North American Marketing
Green Bay, WI
Phone: +1 920 593 3000
[email protected]
445 FXL
Leveling
CANADA
Komatsu Forest
North American Marketing
Green Bay, WI
Phone: +1 920 593 3000
[email protected]
To find your local dealer/sales representative.
Go to www.komatsuforest.com
SOUTH AMERICA
BRAZIL
Komatsu Forest Ltda.
Phone: +55 41 2102 2828
CHILE
Komatsu Chile S.A.
www.kch.cl
Phone: +56 419 253 01
475 EX/475 FXL
603
Felling head
PC-attachment
OCEANIA AND OTHER MARKETS
AUSTRALIA
Komatsu Forest Pty Ltd
www.komatsu.au
Phone: +61 2 9647 3600
NEW ZEALAND
Komatsu NZ
www.komatsu.au
+(64)-9-277-8300
SOUTHEAST ASIA
Komatsu Forest Pty Ltd
Phone: +61 2 9647 3600
INDONESIA
PT United Tractors Tbk
www.unitedtractors.com
Phone: +62 21 460 5959
SOUTH AFRICA
Komatsu Southern Africa
Ltd
www.komatsu.au
Phone: +27 11 923 1110
Model 233
35
Is your magazine delivered to the wrong address? Please contact your nearest sales office.
Komatsu Forest AB
Box 7124,
SE-907 04 Umeå
Sweden
Change of address
The product offering may vary between markets.
Products and knowledge to optimize your profitability
The right knowledge, products, and prices, spanning everything from greases to engine and
hydraulic oils. That’s the core content of our broad range of high quality lubricants. For you, this
means maximum security and simplicity. You know that everything’s been carefully chosen and
tested. You know that our technicians and service centers are always close at hand. And we take
care of your machine so as to optimize both service life and performance. And profitability.
As a Valmet owner, you’re in good hands. Not only do you have one of the market’s most high performance machines, you also
have, in very real terms, an entire forestry machine group to back you up. Read more about ProSelect on our website.

English - Komatsu Forest

Transcription

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