Harvesting operation in steep terrain

Lin4Wood

07.09.2013

On 30^th of August the Lin2Value project partners together with delegates from the Chinese partner institutions, Dr. Wu Shuirong (Chinese Academy of Forestry; CAF) and Mr. Guo Wenfu (Experimental Center of Tropical Forestry; ECTF) were attending a visit to an advanced timber harvesting and extraction operation in steep terrain in the center of the well-known Black Forest.  Guided by Prof. Dirk Jaeger, Mr. Roland Fürst (Koller Forsttechnik GmbH) and Mr. Zähringer (State Forest Enterprise of Baden-Württemberg; ForstBW), the attendants were able to witness a fully operational Koller K507 cable yarder.

The yarder was operating in a steep-terrain spruce forest, yarding several assortments and log dimensions. The attached processor head on the self-rotating cabin enabled on-site debranching and bucking of the logs.

In April 2013, the ECTF signed a purchase contract with Koller Forsttechnik GmbH for an all-terrain Koller K303H, which will be arriving in fall 2013. The staff of the ECTF will take part in a training schedule introducing cable-yarding machine operation and maintenance, as well as harvesting safety and directional felling.

The field visit these days was an excellent opportunity for the Chinese partners to get an insight in modern cable yarding and harvesting technologies as applied in Germany and an outlook towards where the Lin2Value project might lead the future development of the Chinese forestry sector. Further, the Chinese partners had a chance to discuss with experienced practitioners about the advantages of such technologies and the challenges involved in managing such operations.