Issuu

SPECIAL INSERT: 2017 Northwest Mill Location Map

WHEN LOGGING PROMOTES CONSERVATION

White and Zumstein Inc., Naselle, WA

FINESSE LOGGING

PRESERVING THE LOGGING CULTURE

HM Inc., Eagle Point, Oregon

Shamion Forest Thinning and Salvage, Springfield, OR

NATIONAL TREE FARMER OF THE YEAR

Oregon’s Defrees Family

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ON THE COVER Photo of HM Inc.’s 2454D John Deere was taken by Mary Bullwinkel.

May/June 2017 Vol. 42 No. 05-06

Committed to Preserving the Logging Culture

Committed to Preserving the Logging Culture HM Inc.’s willingness to make new approaches to logging and its ability to specialize has sustained the family business.

The Defrees Family of Northeast Oregon was awarded the 2016 National Outstanding Tree Farmer of the Year award by the American Tree Farm System.

When Logging Promotes Conservation White and Zumstein say taking on the difficult jobs no one else wants can be challenging, but also rewarding and educational.

Conference Review

National Tree Famer of the Year

Finesse Logging

A look at the Mass Timber Conference and the Intermountain Logging Conference

National Tree Farmer of the Year

Tech Review A review of tracked log loaders and their capabilities.

DEPARTMENTS

Page 4 .............................................................In the News Page 16 ..................................................... Machinery Row Page 26 ................................................. Association News Page 42 ........................................................ New Products Page 44 ............................................... Calendar of Events Page 45 .................................................Advertiser’s Index Page 45 ................................................. Classified Section Page 45 ............................Subscription/Reader Service Page 46 ........................................................Guest Column

When Logging Promotes Conservation

28 |

www.forestnet.com May/June 2017 TimberWest

Industry Teams up with Colleges to Train Idaho Sawmill Workers

Every hour, Idaho Forest Group’s Chilco Mill — north of Coeur d’Alene — produces enough lumber to frame six to eight houses. The Spokesman-Review reported that although skilled-labor jobs pay between $25 and $34 per hour, plus benefits, Idaho Forest Group has difficulty recruiting qualified candidates for the positions. Faced with labor shortages, the company has teamed up with North Idaho College, Lewis-Clark State College, and other wood products manufacturers to train 200 sawmill workers over the next two years. “When people think of sawmills, they think of the sawmills of yesterday, when a lot of sweat and blood was required to make each board,” said Tommy Groff, maintenance manager for Idaho Forest Group. However, “very few of our 230 employees ever touch a board.” As mills have become more automated, they employ fewer workers, but those workers are highly trained. The Idaho Department of Labor is putting up $483,000 in grant money for the training. Another $142,000 will come from cash and in-kind donations from mill operators. Other contributors joining Idaho Forest Group are Potlatch Corp., Stimson Lumber Co., Plummer Forest Products, and Empire Lumber Co. “It’s making a difference,” said Scott Sheppard, Stimson Lumber’s director of manufacturing.

Upper Wenatchee Pilot Project

Earlier this year, the OkanoganWenatchee National Forest was awarded $1.6 million from the Washington D.C. office in the form of supplemental hazardous fuels funding from the Wildfire Hazardous Fuels Program. The funds will be used to implement the Pilot Proposal for Fire Resiliency in Chelan County, which includes the Upper Wenatchee Pilot Project. A breakdown of the funding includes • Upper Wenatchee Pilot - $1,045,000 • Stemilt (Chelan County land) and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife lands to do commercial thinning and prescribed fire implementation - $385,000 • TREX Program for training prescribed fire personnel - $50,000 • Lake Wenatchee Fire Adapted Community work - $50,000 • Mission Creek prescribed fire implemented by Forest Service - $70,000 The Okanogan-Wenatchee is currently analyzing two subwatersheds in the Lake 4

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

Wenatchee area for treatment — the Lower Chiwawa and Big Meadow areas, which total 36,000 acres. The additional Upper Wenatchee Pilot dollars will allow the Forest Service to add two subwatersheds to the project area — Lake Wenatchee and Beaver Creek, which total 40,000 acres. The four drainages total 76,000 acres and make up the Upper Wenatchee Pilot. By combining all four subwatersheds, it is believed that the forest will be able to initiate implementation of ecological restoration projects within two to three years, instead of the several years it would have taken to analyze and issue a decision for treatments within the 76,000-acre landscape. The Okanogan-Wenatchee is planning to complete the environmental assessment for the Upper Wenatchee Pilot by the summer of 2019 with projects coming out in fiscal year 2020. The American Forest Resource Council (AFRC) anticipates that this 76,000-acre planning area that focuses on reducing fuel loads in the Lake Wenatchee area will yield several projects that will help provide the needed raw material for their members. The Okanogan-Wenatchee has struggled to meet its assigned timber targets in recent years, and AFRC hopes this big project will help bolster and grow the forest’s timber program in future years. Source: AFRC writer Tom Partin.

EPA Grant for California Biomass Project

Biomass Magazine reported that EPA Region 9 will provide Plumas County Community Development Commission a $200,000 grant to complete a brownfield property assessment and develop a clean-up plan for a 28-acre former lumber mill site in Crescent Mills, California. The award will leverage approximately $1 million of preliminary assessment and redevelopment grants that have already been provided to the site. The site will later be developed into an integrative wood utilization campus that will process biomass material removed from surrounding forests for fire control and ecosystem restoration. The campus is expected to include a biomass power station, a wood chipping facility, and other businesses focused on wood product utilization. These operations are expected to spur local economic growth and create jobs lost as a result of the declining timber industry. TW Correction: We want to correct an error in the March/April issue. R & R King Logging is located in Florence, Oregon.

Editor: Diane Mettler, diane@forestnet.com Copy Editor: Beth Szyperski Contributing Editors: Larry Bernstein, Mary Bullwinkel, Lindsay R. Mohlere, Bill Wake, Andrea Watts ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Sales Mgr: James Booth – jbooth@forestnet.com Director: Rob Stanhope – stanhope@forestnet.com Sales Contact Information: Toll Free: 1-866-405-6462 Phone: (604) 990-9970 • Fax: (604) 990-9971 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Publisher & Production Manager: Sheila Ringdahl – sringdahl@forestnet.com Office Manager: Betty Rosales – brosales@forestnet.com Corporate Office Information: Phone: (425) 778-3388 Fax: (425) 771-3623 timberwest@forestnet.com www.forestnet.com Send all materials - Insertion Orders, Contracts, Copy, Photos, Disks to: TImberWest Publications, LLC P.O. Box 610 (300 Admiral Way, Suite 105) Edmonds, WA 98020-0610 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Send both OLD and NEW Circulation information to: TimberWest Magazine Attn: George Aldridge P.O. Box 610, Edmonds, WA 98020 Fax: (425) 771-3623 • subscribetw@forestnet.com ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Advertising created by TimberWest Publications, LLC is the sole property of TimberWest Publications, LLC and may not be copied or reproduced without the express written permission of the publisher. PUBLISHER’S EDITORIAL STATEMENT: TimberWest reports on the logging and lumber segment of the forest industry in the Western United States with emphasis on the states of AK, WA, OR, ID, MT and CA, providing current information on timber harvesting techniques, sawmill operations, news, legislation, events, people and products pertinent to this market. TIMBERWEST (USPS #024858) is published bi-monthly (Jan/Feb, Mar/Apr, May/Jun, Jul/Aug, Sept/Oct, Nov/Dec) by TimberWest Publications, LLC, 300 Admiral Way, Suite 105, Edmonds, WA, 98020. Periodicals postage paid at Edmonds, WA and at additional mailing offices. Copyright 2017. All rights reserved. Subscription rates to qualified subscribers are Free and all non-qualified subscriptions in U.S. are $22 per year payable in advance. Canada $35 (U.S.). Other $40 (U.S.). Single copies paid in advance $4. Company affiliation, title, date and signature must appear on subscription forms. Publisher reserves the right to refuse non-industry subscriptions and advertising. All other advertising is accepted at the discretion of the publisher. Publisher does not assume any responsibility for the contents of any advertisement and all representations or warranties made in such advertising are those of the advertiser and not of the publisher. Back issues, if available, $4 each. Directory and Calendar issue $10 each. Canadian Publication Mail Product Sales Agreement #40740074. Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to P.O. Box 86670 Stn. Main, North Vancouver, BC V7L 4L2 Printed in Canada at Horseshoe Press Inc. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to TimberWest, P.O. Box 610, Edmonds, WA, 98020-0610

ContractorProfile HM Inc.’s 240 Link-Belt equipped with a 623 Waratah harvester head.

Committed to Preserving the Logging Culture HM Inc., Eagle Point, Oregon By Mary Bullwinkel

he triple combination — good people, good machines, and pride in what they do — is the key to success for Eagle Point, Oregonbased HM Inc. Established in the 1980s, HM Inc. is owned and managed by business partners (a wife and husband team) Susan and Ed Hanscom. It is HM Inc.’s willingness to make new approaches to logging work and the ability to specialize in logging jobs that have sustained the family logging business. HM Inc. is proud to provide family-wage jobs and send everyone home safely each and every day. Ed Hanscom worked in the timber industry for a number of years before starting his own company, HM Inc., which has now been in business for 31 years.

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

“I love it…it’s been fun,” Hanscom says. “I have met a lot of really great people.”

Turning to Specialization

Hanscom comes from a logging family, getting his start in the industry working for Hanscom Bros. Inc., owned and operated by his father, Harry Hanscom, and his uncle, Harold Hanscom. Hanscom Bros. Inc. was established right after World War II, and the two brothers logged in Oregon and California for more than 50 years. HM Inc. is destined for similar longevity. “A number of years ago, we elected to specialize in doing tough, special projects,” Hanscom says. “We’ve done a number of special projects that offered a challenge, and that’s probably one of the reasons I am still here.” One of those special projects was a logging job on Bureau of Land Management

(BLM) land in the middle Applegate watershed in 2012. HM Inc. logged the Pilot Joe Timber Sale, several hundred acres of timber bought by Boise Cascade. The sale incorporated a new forest-restoration approach to logging on federal land, designed to leave larger trees and improve forest health, while reducing the chance of catastrophic wildfire and keeping loggers working and sawmills operating. At the time, Hanscom says he was optimistic about the new approach. During the logging operation, he had a high profile visitor, namely U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, who affirmed the government’s commitment to making the new approach work. “I taught him how to set chokers,” Hanscom says. Salazar specifically referred to Hanscom and his logging crew when he said, “We need to figure out a way of getting beyond the gridlock and moving forward with sustainable forestry that will sustain the jobs Ed

ContractorProfile has in his company while at the same time sustaining the conservation values that have been so much a focus of this debate over the past 20 years.”

Equipment Makes the Difference

It is the willingness to make new approaches work and the ability to specialize that have kept HM Inc. in business all these years. The company’s logging equipment allows for versatility to do various logging projects as well as road building and some site preparation. HM Inc was recently operating a yarder side and a shovel side northeast of Prospect, Oregon, on land managed by the U.S. Forest

Service. The yarder side was staffed with a 6240 Madill yarder and an Acme carriage, a 240 Link-Belt with a 623 Waratah harvester head, and a 2454 John Deere. The shovel side was using a John Deere 2454 to gather and a 2154 John Deere with a 622 Waratah harvester head to gather and process trees into logs. HM Inc. had another yarder side operating approximately two hours west of the two above-mentioned locations. According to Hanscom, there are many benefits to his Madill yarders. “For us, it’s easy to move and the perfect machine for little jobs. It weighs less than 80,000 pounds fully rigged, so it’s quick and easy to move and set up.” When describing the John Deere log

loaders Hanscom says both are less than four years old and are the right equipment for the current logging jobs. “We pretty much log second growth timber anymore…smaller, pretty predominantly tree length.” Hanscom also runs D7G and D6H Cats for bullcooking and light construction. Brush grapples and ripper shanks can be attached to the John Deere loaded for site preparation and to decommission temporary spur roads. HM Inc. has one logging truck, a 2016 Kenworth, set up with a quick-change to lowboy or to haul logs. “We do a lot of small jobs, and it is very important to be equipped to move when we want,” Hanscom says. “Our ability to move quickly is one of the keys to our success.”

HM Inc. family and crew (left to right): John Parks, Larry Hanscom, Harry Hanscom, Ed Hanscom and Susan Hanscom.

www.forestnet.com May/June 2017 TimberWest

ContractorProfile

John Deere 2454D log loader being operated by Larry Hanscom.

Keeping Good Employees

Hanscom stresses the importance of modern and properly functioning logging equipment and what it means for sustaining jobs for his employees. “One thing that has helped us be successful is the fact that we have good equipment, and what helps our employees is we can work almost every day. We try to keep the crew working 11 months out of the year.” For HM Inc., wintertime logging projects are usually for private landowners and using rocked roads. Hanscom speaks highly of his logging crews. Some have been working for him

for more than 25 years. Other members of the crew, who are described as the “new” employees, have been with HM Inc. for ten years each. “The fancy equipment doesn’t work without the people we have,” Hanscom says. “You can have all kinds of neat stuff, but the people are what make it happen.”

Problem Solvers

The reputation for solving problems associated with existing timber sales also contributes to the success of HM Inc. Hanscom says he has taken on difficult projects as well as timber sales with layout

problems, and he finds ways to solve those problems to move forward with harvesting the timber. “We do have a good reputation,” he says. “We do a good job, and we have good employees. I tell everybody, ‘If you can’t be proud that you were there, you shouldn’t be there in the first place.’” It’s of no surprise that Hanscom and his crew are dedicated to hard work and making sure the job is done right the first time. HM Inc. has also been called in on logging jobs (continue on page 10)

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ContractorProfile (continued from page 8) to fix some of the problems left behind by other operators.

Dedicated to the Industry

Hanscom is not the quiet and shy type. He’s a no-nonsense, level-headed, forwardthinking, and engaged logger, with a logical approach to logging to keep both forests and the timber industry healthy. A 1971 Oregon State University Forestry graduate, Hanscom is a past president of the Oregon Logging Conference (2004) and Pacific Logging Congress 5th Annual in the Woods Show (2006), and he has long been involved in the Southern Oregon Timber Association and Associated Oregon Loggers. Over the years, he has remained dedicated to protecting the logging way of life. Hanscom sees the need to manage U.S. Forest Service and BLM lands, including the timely salvage and restoration of land damaged by wildfire. He believes that not only does that type of logging improve forest health and reduce the threat of future wildfires, it also provides much needed jobs in the timber industry and a resource to keep sawmills operating. “It’s a tremendous waste if you don’t salvage it,” Hanscom says. “It is a waste of a resource and a waste of an opportunity.” The logging industry is faced with a number of challenges: finding people to replace an aging workforce and the constant addition of what Hanscom calls bureaucratic and judicial rule changes or interpretation. “One of the challenges is that the rules are constantly changing,” Hanscom says, “and I want to do all I can to preserve the logging culture.” TW

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

Above: HM Inc. crew (left to right): Jordan Guevarra, Ramon Mendoza, Ed Hanscom, Guadalupe Serna, and Jim Neill sitting in the Link-Belt. Below: HM Inc.’s 2016 Kenworth coming out of the woods with a full load.

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ForesterProfile

The award winning family (left to right): Dean Defrees, Sharon Defrees, Dallas Defrees and Lyle Defrees.

National Tree Farmer of the Year By Larry Bernstein

he Defrees Family of Northeast Oregon was awarded the 2016 National Outstanding Tree Farmer of the Year award by the American Tree Farm System (ATFS). ATFS is in its 75th year and was originally created to assist and support forestland owners as they moved out West. Today, the forest conservation nonprofit organization is still helping forest owners, making sure they have the right tools and funds to manage their forests. ATFS includes 74,000 tree farmers with each state having its own committee, which creates a sense of community and offers an opportunity to connect with experts. Deep Roots in Forestry

Dean Defrees’ great-grandparents bought the farm’s original property in 1904.

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

“My grandparents spent the next several years putting the property together and bought more land to extend it,” says Defrees. The area was very heavily logged (for Ponderosa Pine) in the 1910s and 1920s. It was not until the 1970s that the Defrees Family had a good source of timber. Defrees says, at that time, his dad, Lyle, “managed the timber there because we realized we had a resource, and we have done so ever since.” These days father and son, Lyle and Dean, are the primary caretakers of the farm, though caring for the farm is a family affair as Sharon Defrees, Dallas Hall, Riley Hall, Nathan Defrees, Jess Defrees, Tyler Defrees, and Max Patashnik are all involved.

Selecting a Winner

Elizabeth Greener, ATFS director of Communications, says the Outstanding Tree Farmer of the Year award has been given out for forty years. “We want to honor someone

Slash burning on fuel reduction project in 2015.

ForesterProfile who has done something exceptional and share with other landowners to show them what exemplary forest stewardship means.” The process of selecting the winner of the award is complex. Each state can nominate a tree farmer. Greener notes that ATFS typically gets eight to 12 nominations. After reviewing the applications, the properties are visited, and the best of each region is selected. Then tree farmers, ATFS staff, and the board vote.

A Head Above

The Defrees installing a trough for wildlife.

What made the Defrees Family stand out and earn the award? The Defrees farm is in a region of the state that is prone to intense wildfires. In 1986, the Defrees tree farm suffered from such a fire, which burned 500 acres of their 2,000-acre farm — 1,227 acres are timbered, and they lease another 1000 acres. Greener says, “After the fire, they got their land back in trees because they persevered, kept managing, and replanted the entire 500 acres. They’ve done everything possible to keep the entire 2,000 in a healthy state to avoid fire, and if one should occur, it will be minor.”

To prevent future fires, the Defrees Family spent the initial years after the fire replanting the lost acres, despite challenges such as difficulty in obtaining seedlings and a bark beetle infestation that took over sections of their forest. Tom Martin, president and CEO of the American Forest Foundation (the forest conservation organization that houses the ATFS program) says, “The Defrees Family showcases the impact family forest owners can have when they are able to overcome barriers such as cost and technical assistance.”

Forest Management

With help from the ATFS network, which provided advice, a connection with experts, and more knowledge on forest

management, the Defrees Family carried on. They spent decades building and maintaining defensible fire lanes, thinning their forest to reduce the fuel load that can feed wildfires, and keeping their creek and stream banks well planted to curtail erosion and preserve water quality. All of their work has resulted in a tremendous impact on the ground — a fire- resilient forest, needed wildlife habitat, healthy creeks and waterways, and more. Removing underbrush and ridding it of species takes a lot of time and labor and is costly. The Defrees Family was able to handle the high cost of this forest management with the support of cost-share dollars from National Resources Conservation Services (NRCS), a program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The right equipment is essential to keeping the forest managed properly. Among other machines, the Defrees Family uses a John Deere 650G dozer along with a Young grapple and a John Deere 240 skid steer to harvest. A STIHL brushcutter is used to trim the pines, and you’ll find a STIHL chainsaw at their farm as well. (continue on page 14)

In 1986 the Defrees tree farm experienced a wildfire that burned 500 acres of their 2,000-acre farm. They replanted despite the challenges finding seedlings.

www.forestnet.com May/June 2017 TimberWest

ForesterProfile

The entire family, including Dean Defrees, take an active role. (continued from page 13)

Advice for Others

The Defrees are a humble family. “We were really surprised and honored. It was quite a shock knowing the level of competition.” Defrees sees the award as validation of all the hard work the family, particularly Lyle, put in over the years. While Defrees notes that he and his family do not have all the answers, they are happy to share their knowledge and what they have done with the locals around them. Some advice Defrees has for locals and other famers is, don’t be afraid to ask for help including technical assistance; develop a management plan that includes long-range goals; take an inventory to know exactly what you have; and concentrate on problem areas. He adds that ATFS,

Middle school forestry tour in the fall of 2016.

Oregon State University Extension Service, the Oregon Department of Forestry, and the Oregon Small Woodlands Association have been technical advisors and partners in helping manage the Defrees tree farm.

A Look Ahead

The Defrees Family allows people to come to the farm for recreational purposes

brings her students to the farm for field trips. While Defrees appreciates his work, there are challenging aspects as well. He notes that prices for saw logs are low as it’s a depressed market. The cause, according to Defrees, is wildfires in the surrounding areas and the poor real estate market. Ponderosa Pine, the trees that grow on the farm, are used primarily for window and door framing materials. Despite the challenges, Defrees is excited for the future, as he believes that research and development will find more uses for the product. Defrees hopes that the farm’s future includes his children. He believes they have developed a love for the land and may follow a path similar to his.

“The Defrees Family showcases the impact family forest owners can have when they are able to overcome barriers such as cost and technical assistance.” including hunting. Some people come in and watch birds and enjoy the forest. They also have tours and workshops. All of this is offered free of charge. Dean’s wife, Sharon, is a high school biology teacher and periodically

Above: The entire Defrees family takes great pride in their national award and the positive impact they are having in the industry. Left: Dallas Defrees with Stihl brushcutter trimming pine regeneration.

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Anthony Robinson Joins TimberWest Publications Team

ob Stanhope, owner of TimberWest Magazine and publisher of Logging and Sawmilling Journal, is pleased to announce that Anthony Robinson has joined the team as Associate Publisher. “Anthony’s experience in client relations, communications, consulting, forest operations, and project management is truly an asset in taking on strategic planning, special projects, and business development for both Logging and Sawmilling Journal, and our associated U.S. publication, TimberWest,” said Rob. “He is a welcome addition to our team.” Anthony has taken a leadership role in the further development of the industry-leading website — www.forestnet.com — for both magazines, as well as related social media activities. “I’m very excited to be joining the team,” said Anthony. “I think the forest industry has a bright future, and I think our magazines do a terrific job of serving readers and advertisers, and we can build on that further with the website and social media.” Anthony’s 10-year career in forestry and natural resource management includes project management, consulting, operational planning, harvesting, mining, and geographic information systems. Anthony began his journey in the forest industry as both a tree planter and a mill worker. Born in Australia, Anthony completed his undergraduate degree in 2008 at the University of Western Australia. He began his career working for a small agroforestry company in southwestern Western Australia. Some years later, his passion for forestry operations and planning led him to the University of British Columbia, where he

Anthony Robinson

completed an MSc in Forestry in 2014. Anthony later joined the UBC Malcolm Knapp Research Forest as the on-site coordinator for the Demo International 2016 trade show. Recently, the Canadian Institute of Forestry nominated Anthony for the James Kitz award for outstanding young forester. The award recognizes individuals involved in forestry in Canada who make outstanding contributions early in their profession. TW

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TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

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Forestry Experts Awarded EUR 157,700

Distinguished forestry experts received Einari Awards in Vieremä, Finland. Maintaining the life’s work of Einari Vidgrén, the Einari Vidgrén Foundation awarded EUR 157,700 to recognize veteran harvesting professionals Ahti Annala of the company Kone Annala Ky, and Jan-Erik Oldenburg of the company Puistometsäpalvelu Oldenburg Oy. Industrial Counsellor Einari Vidgrén, the founder of Ponsse Plc, established the Einari Vidgrén Foundation in 2005 with the aim of increasing appreciation for the work performed within the field of mechanized wood harvesting. The purpose of the foundation is to heighten awareness of the entrepreneurship related to wood harvesting and to make the mechanized harvesting sector more interesting as a potential workplace, especially among young people. TW

FireColumn

Photo Credit: U.S. Department of Agriculture

Despite Rain and Snow, Fire Season Cometh By Lindsay R. Mohlere

ith most of the Northwest still damp from record rainfall and snow, the 2017 fire season (normally scheduled to begin July 1) is expected to be a shade less severe than last year’s season, which produced more than 2,500 wildfires that torched 510,000 acres. The 10-year average is 4,100 wildfires with 750,000 acres burned. Nationwide, there were more than 67,000 18

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

wildfires, which burned nearly 5.5 million acres. In 2015 over 10 million acres went up in smoke. According to 247wallst.com, the leading states where wildfire has caused the most damage are Idaho, Oregon, California, and Washington, respectively.

People Influence Severity of Fire Season

Forest Service experts warn that the end of the drought throughout the region doesn’t necessarily mean a reduction in the

number of fires or the severity of fire season. Increased precipitation has boosted the growth of grasses, bushes, and other flora and will result in an increase of fuels once the weather begins to dry out. As August heats up, so does the risk. Unfortunately, the real key to a hot or mild fire season is the human element. Either by accident or, more appropriately, stupidity, it is estimated that 80 to 90 percent of all wildfires are caused by humans. In Oregon and Washington, more than 2,000

FireColumn fires were started by people. The rest were started by lightning. Human-caused fires are the result of campfires not properly extinguished, burning debris, tossed cigarette butts, and intentional acts of arson, to name a few. Unintentional heat and sparks from vehicles and equipment are also seen as major contributors. Researchers Bethany Bradley of the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Jennifer Balch of the University of Colorado-Boulder report in the online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that, “Humans are expanding fires into more locations and environmental conditions than lightning is able to reach.” Additionally, the WUI (Wildland/ Urban Interface) along with climate change and years of forest mismanagement are a big part of the equation. Fire and climate experts are keeping their fingers crossed for a mild fire season, but predicting what will happen is like flipping a coin or gazing into a crystal ball. To mitigate the human element, we could all be more careful and aware, but you all know that’s almost impossible. Dumb is dumb. And again, you can’t fix stupid.

NASA Teams with MTDC

At that point, NASA and the Missoula Technology and Development Center joined forces to form CHIEFS (Convective Heating Improvement for Emergency Fire Shelters) to develop an upgraded emergency shelter for wildland firefighters. NASA pinned their hopes on decades of experience developing flexible heat shields for space reentry. They expected the new design to be ready by fire season 2018. The effort to make a new fire shelter that will last longer as the fire burns around

them and to withstand direct flames has stumbled. With the current fire shelter design, firefighters can survive 500-degree radiant heat for approximately one hour, but 2,000-degree direct flame cooks the shelter in about a minute. The goal is to withstand convective heat for longer than two minutes. So far, prototypes have not been able to outperform the current iteration. Primarily, the CHIEFS project has been set back because they have not found suitable material that can withstand the heat and flame for longer periods of time, have a better adhesive

No Good News on New Fire Shelters

Work on developing a new, more effective fire shelter for wildland firefighters by the beginning of the 2018 fire season has sort of fizzled out. Sometimes referred to as “Shake & Bake Tents,” fire shelters are considered the last resort for wildland firefighters who get trapped by a fire and face a burnover. The tent-like structures are manufactured with an outer layer of aluminum foil, backed by a silica weave designed to reflect heat away from the shelter. An inner layer of foil laminated to fiberglass is separated from the outer sheet by a layer of air. The shelter reflects about 95 percent of radiant heat (like you’re standing next to a campfire), but absorbs nearly all the convective heat generated by direct contact with the fire. According to the Forest Service, fire shelters have saved more than 300 lives since the agency listed them as required gear in 1977. The current design, developed as a result of the deaths of 14 firefighters during Colorado’s Storm King fire in 1997, was introduced in 2002 and has gone through several updates. New efforts to redesign and improve fire shelters began in earnest after the deadly 2013 Yarnell Hill fire in Arizona. Nineteen Granite Mountain Hotshots were killed when the fire overran their position and their fire shelters failed.

Forestry applications with forwarders Excellent traction in heavy-duty service Strong bead and shoulder for high puncture resistance bkt-tires.com

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FireColumn between the layers, and be as lightweight (4.5 pounds) as the existing shelter. There are several promising materials slated to go through the research and testing protocols, but a new prototype that meets the goals of the Forest Service is, unfortunately, not going to happen by its projected completion deadline. While the Forest Service has invested $200,000 to $500,000 in the project so far, creating a new, improved fire shelter should remain a priority. While deploying a fire shelter might be the last thing every wildland firefighter would ever want to do, they still need a shelter that offers greater ease of deployment, lighter weight, and at least double the protection. Fighting wildfires is a dangerous job, but zero tolerance for death and injury is the rule.

What’s Burning NOW!

As of June 15, 2017: Several prescribed fires are being tended in Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Arizona has the most wildfires burning in the U.S. The Associated Press reports that at least 80 square miles are burning across the state. Several other major fires are burning in New Mexico, and Georgia.

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

Fire and climate experts are keeping their fingers crossed for a mild fire season, but predicting what will happen is like flipping a coin or gazing into a crystal ball. That’s a wrap. Stay safe out there! (Talkback - TWfirecolumn@gmail.com)

(Source: InciWeb, ODF, WA/DNR, NWCC, USFS, AP, NIFC) TW

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ContractorProfile

Finesse Logging Shamion Forest Thinning and Salvage By Lindsay R. Mohlere

om Shamion, owner of Shamion Forest Thinning and Salvage Co., out of Springfield, Oregon, sits in his Rottne H14 equipped with an SP 561 head and reaches out over 30 feet to select just the right tree. Like an expert fly fisherman casting a dry fly to a huge rainbow trout on the other side of a gin-clear

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

mountain stream, Shamion knows that precision, technique, and equipment are the keys to running a successful thinning operation.

Decades of Thinning

Shamion began his journey as a thinning specialist more than 30 years ago when he was first introduced to the Rottne brand. “I started logging right out of high school working for my dad and uncle’s company.

They were partners. I did a variety of things. Started out as a faller, skidder operator, built roads, ran a feller buncher,” he says. “In the winter of ’85 another uncle of mine brought in what I think was the first cut- tolength (CTL) equipment in North America,” Shamion says. The manufacturer of the CTL equipment was Rottne Industri AB, a Swedish company known for its revolutionary designs and innovation. Shamion’s uncle set up a demo

ContractorProfile

Left: The Rottne H14 easily threads the 33’ boom equipped with an SP 561 head through a tightly packed stand of Doug fir. Above: Tom Shamion and son Nik stand next to their 2012 Ponsse BuffaloDual harvester/forwarder. Right: The SP 561 head is lighter weight than most processors, which increases the agility of the Rottne H14. with his brother’s company, and Tom took over the duties of operating the harvester. According to Shamion, the new technology didn’t impress the older loggers. “At the time, our operation was in South Dakota. The old loggers thought the wood was too light, but the Pope & Talbot mill in Spearfish South Dakota was sold on it. They were strictly a short-log mill, and they wanted four sets of the machines.” Since Shamion was operating the machine in the demo, he had the opportunity to get in one of the sets of machines. “I was being groomed to take over the family business, but I didn’t want the aggravation of owning a big logging company. It was more than I wanted to do at the time,” he says. In May 1986, Shamion made his decision and has never looked back. “I became an independent contractor right then.” Now Shamion, along with his youngest son, Nik, and brother-in-law, Tony Read, guide specialized thinning machines through the vast Weyerhaeuser tree farms, spacing leave trees every 14 to 15 feet and avoiding scarring. He takes pride in being one of the best in the business at what his Uncle Ed calls “finesse logging.”

First in the Forest and Going Strong

After the demo phase was completed and Shamion signed on as a harvester operator,

his dad’s youngest brother, who was a sales rep for Rottne, set up a parts and service program to help launch the new machines. Rottne brought in people from Sweden to train the operators and mechanics. “There were only four of us with the equipment,” Shamion says. “We were the only ones in the country who had them. We operated in the Black Hills for another six years and then moved out to Oregon in 1992. LaGrande was home for over 20 years.” In eastern Oregon, Shamion tackled a variety of thinning jobs in the pine forests working on federal and state lands and for private landowners. In addition to commercial harvesting, much of the work was fuel reduction jobs, bark beetle salvage, and cleaning up after forest fires. “I don’t really like going in behind fires,” he says. “It’s hard on the mechanized stuff, soot gets into the bearings, dulls chains constantly, messes with the engines. If everything doesn’t work perfect, you can destroy an engine easy.” During the winter months, when the snow was too deep to work, Shamion ventured to the west side of the state to do thinning contracts on small private tree farm stands. Three years ago, he decided enough was enough. Instead of working eight to nine months in eastern Oregon, he felt working every day on the other side of the Cascades looked far better, so he moved to the west

www.forestnet.com May/June 2017 TimberWest

ContractorProfile side of the state. “Thinning jobs were few and far between,” he says. Since then, he has been working exclusively for Weyerhaeuser and working every day.

Matching the Machine to the Tree

Operating on Weyerhaeuser tree farms, Shamion says, “has allowed me to fine tune tree farm thinning with what I think is the perfect match,” noting that tree size on the farms is pretty consistent. Typically, there could be up to 600 trees per acre on the Weyerhaeuser farms. Shamion’s crew will thin each acre to about 200 trees per acre, leaving the dominant trees and allowing the crowns to open up for better growth. “When we were back in Wyoming, one job would be lodge pole pine, and another would be bull pine. We had to do a lot of different things to get the job done. Out here, the Rottne harvester is the perfect match for the tree farms that are 25 to 27 years old. So far I’ve got 6500 hours on a machine that’s barely two years old. We get 95 percent availability; hardly any downtime. You just can’t go full speed, especially when the bark is slipping. You’re scarring trees if you try to go too fast.” Shamion explains that the average size of tree they cut now is 14 to 15 inches. Tree spacing is about 13 to 14 feet. He has found that the Rottne H14 and the SP 561 head handle the job with ease and precision. “The SP head is a lot lighter. Everybody wants to cut that 27-inch tree. It’s a lot of extra weight on the end of your boom. The SP’s got a swing damper on it now that allows you to really control the swing of the head and a tree much better because there’s less weight on the end,” he says. Shamion also runs a 2012 Ponsse BuffaloDual, which can be converted from a harvester to a forwarder in a matter of a few minutes, and a 1998 John Deere log loader.

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

Above: Tony Read takes a bow from the cab of the Rottne H14. Below left: Up close look at the Ponsse BuffaloDual harvester/forwarder. Below right: Glimpse inside the Rottne H14 cab.

The Every Day Challenge

Shamion says his biggest challenge is finding the right owner/operator running self-loading short-log haulers. “There’s not many around. There’s some long-log selfloaders, but what fits the best for CTL logging are short-log self-loaders.” He says that back in the Black Hills in the 80s, the Pope & Talbot mills just drew a line in the sand, demanding every truck that came into the mill be a self-loader and the driver had to unload the truck. “They designed a two-piece trailer that allowed them to go with a lot lighter loader. They can still net 30-31-ton loads. In eastern Oregon we tried it, but it’s an all or nothing deal. You need enough self-loaders to do all

your work, not just have one out there to do the overflow.” Another problem with self-loaders in eastern Oregon was the fact that the mills were pretty far from where the jobs were located. With trucks making an average of two loads a day, employing short self-loaders wasn’t efficient or profitable. “Over here [in western Oregon], a truck can do four or five loads a day,” Shamion says. “That’s where a self-loader can make you some money, especially if the truck is set up to haul 30-ton. I hope somebody in the Black Hills will read this article and migrate my way. I could really use them.” TW

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Idaho Forest Products Commission — New Publication

The Idaho Forest Products Commission has recently come out with a new publication — Managing National Forests in Idaho Critical Choices for Our Forests. The publication is filled with facts and information about the national forests in Idaho, where they are located, the laws that govern them, and much more. The Associated Logging Contractors says it’s a “must have” information piece to share with your crew, friends, community members, and elected officials. This is an ideal publication for those wanting to learn the background, management process, and current issues facing our public forests. To order a copy, visit www.idahoforests.org or call (208-) 3343292. TW

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

Talk about Trees Results

Oregon Women in Timber (OWIT) wants to thank everyone for their support of the 2017 Talk About Trees Annual Auction. The event was a great success, with over 400 people in attendance, bringing in close to $90,000 dedicated to Talk About Trees, OWIT’s statewide forest education program for pre-kindergarten through 8th grade. Since 1991, the program has reached more than three million students. The NW Ford Dealers Advertising Association helped out with a $5,000 donation. They have donated a total of $96,000 to OWIT since 2002, and their continued support is greatly appreciated. Please thank your local Ford dealers next time you visit a Ford dealership! TW

AFRC Washington D.C Update

Heath Heikkila and Travis Joseph reported on behalf of the AFRC that in May, President Trump released his FY18 budget blueprint for the entire Federal Government. Trump’s budget requests $89.9 million to support BLM’s management of 2.4 million acres of O&C lands, Coos Bay Wagon Road lands, and intermingled public domain lands in Western Oregon. The budget document includes language that “prioritizes support for local communities through employment opportunities by offering 205 million board feet of timber annually ... .” While the FY18 budget request represents an $18.4 million reduction to the overall Western Oregon program, the request would hold the forest management line item stable while proposing significant cuts to other budget line items. Under the Trump budget, the following Western Oregon BLM budget accounts would be reduced (compared to the FY17 budget allocation): Transportation and Facilities Maintenance (-$3.5 million); Species Management and Recreation (-$8.2 million); and National Monuments (-$70,000).

AFRC Moves to Intervene in Lava Project

Earlier this year, members of the Associated California Loggers and Logging Association of Northern California moved to intervene to support the Lava Project. Last year, Conservation Congress brought a lawsuit against the Forest Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service challenging the Lava Project on the Modoc National Forest within the Doublehead and Big Valley Ranger Districts. The case is assigned to Judge England in the Eastern District of California. The project involves treatment of 8,390 acres of eastside pine and mixed conifer types highly susceptible to standreplacing fire. The total estimated volume is 12.1 million board feet, with sales to occur in late 2017 and 2018. ACL and LANC members will likely harvest the timber, and AFRC members will mill it. Conservation Congress’ complaint focuses on impacts to the northern spotted owl and the gray wolf, alleging the need for an environmental impact statement instead of an environmental assessment, the need for a new biological assessment and biological opinion for the northern spotted owl, and the need to reinitiate consultation regarding the impacts of the project on the gray wolf. This case is one of the first to challenge a project based on the effects on the gray wolf. Source: AFRC news writer Sara Ghafouri. TW

www.forestnet.com May/June 2017 TimberWest

ContractorProfile

When Logging Promotes Conservation White and Zumstein Inc.

By Andrea Watts

“

Engineered Chaos

t’s a world apart from a clearcut; it’s logging in reverse,” says Eugene (Gene) White, owner of White and Zumstein Inc., of the log jam work his crew is undertaking in the Nature Conservancy’s (TNC) Ellsworth Creek Preserve.

Usually, yarding cut trees onto a landing requires precision to avoid the equipment and crew, but on this job, precision means lowering whole trees, in a prescribed pattern, into a stream located nearly 500 feet below where the yarder is perched—while minimizing disturbance of the stream’s bank and the stream itself.

“Engineered chaos” that functions like Chinese finger traps is how Dave Ryan, a forester with TNC describes these engineered log jams. The fact that these guys can yard downhill and place the individual logs to build the jams according to the design, and make it safe, make it work, is impressive, he says. As White and I drive up to the job that is located a few miles outside of Naselle, Washington, White explains that he became a contractor for TNC in the usual logging-world way — word of mouth. “An acquaintance, Jerry Brindle, suggested us to Kyle Smith, who was the Ellsworth Creek Preserve’s forester at that time, because we have cable thinning experience and a [Thunderbird] 6140 TSY and a yoder,” he says. Last year marked the five-year anniversary of this partnership.

Challenging and Rewarding

Now in his 22nd year in business, White has taken on many difficult jobs, several of which no other logger was willing to try, and he describes the work as difficult at times,

Doosan 225 operated by Darren Darr. 28

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

ContractorProfile but challenging, rewarding, and educational. “Typically, it’s been situations where we really needed a job, and that’s all that I could find available,” White says, explaining his reason for taking on the difficult jobs. “When I signed the contracts, I really didn’t know exactly how, or if, we could do it but so far, the answer has always come when we had to have it. Having literally some of the best men out there has been the biggest key to our success.” What makes working at the 8,000-acre Ellsworth Creek Preserve challenging is not the broken terrain, but rather the emphasis on quality instead of production. In addition to the log jam work, which White describes as “a new and interesting challenge for us,” his crew is thinning the cedar-hemlock second-generation stands. The thinning must be scheduled around the weather and the Marbled murrelet nesting window, but that being said, White adds, “Once Ryan explains the management objectives, he trusts us to locate the yarding corridors, so we can safely fall the trees and protect the murrelet nesting trees during yarding. It can be very tedious, laying out corridors when you have to avoid touching multiple nesting trees dispersed throughout the unit.” As a forester, Ryan says that he loves the challenge of out-of-the-box thinking to design a management plan that is transitioning the preserve from second-growth to late successional. On this particular job, the 170 right-of-way trees taken from the four units being logged were used to make the jams.

(Left to right) Owner Gene White and forester David Ryan. White’s trucks hauled the unused logs to the local mill. Included in the preserve’s management plan is the goal of using the timber revenue to fund the management costs and support the local economies. “In addition to our logging projects, this type of projects [creating log jams] can help fill in niches for folks looking to work in the black,” Ryan explains. The reason for the log jams is stream and habitat restoration. When the area was

logged during the 1980s, the streams were cleared of course wood debris, which has since been found to create valuable habitat for fish and other aquatic organisms. Now, nearly 40 years later, TNC is restoring these streams by returning course woody debris to the stream channel in the form of log jams that mimic natural conditions.

The Right Crew and Equipment

It’s the combination of crew experience

White likes the combination of their Doosan 225, operated by Darren Darr, and a Thunderbird 6140, operated by Tracy Heston.

www.forestnet.com May/June 2017 TimberWest

ContractorProfile and attention to detail that enables White’s crew to create the log jams that are imagined on paper. Aberdeen native Russel Shippey is his resident cutter, and Ryan appreciates “having a faller who gets what we’re doing.” The brush crew performing the actual placement of the logs includes Trent Summerville and four-year veteran Ryan Alder. Both have done a great job creating innovative ways of moving the trees into the perfect positions in the stream — and doing it safely, White says. Fourteen-year veteran employee Curt Bowers operates the shovel on this job, keeps the log jam material staged for sending over the hill, and prepares the brush bundles. On the rigging is Blake Anshutes, the newest addition to the White and Zumstein family. Responsible for yarding the logs down the hill are Darren Darr and 12-year operator Tracy Heston. To perform the work, White employs a combination of a Doosan 225, operated by Darr, and a Thunderbird 6140, operated by Heston. Of the Doosan, which White bought in December 2014, he says that he is very happy with it. “It’s the perfect size machine to work with the 6140. The Doosan is relatively inexpensive compared to other brands, but it has a beefy undercarriage and is very stable and smooth. We haven’t had one problem with ours in the first 4,000 hours.” One adjustment White made to perform the work was switching from an Eagle slack puller carriage (of which he owns three) to his Bowman 9100 sky car, which is usually reserved for the clearcuts. “The sky car made everything smoother and faster and gave the guys in the brush instant response and control. It’s been a workhorse for us,” White explains, “and the equipment is being tasked in ways the manufacturers hadn’t imagined.” Although there was no precedent for building log jams, Dave Ryan recalls that Trent and Ryan Alder looked at the diagram and said, “‘Let’s make it look like the picture.’ They understood that we need to sell this concept.” What especially impresses Dave Ryan is the crew’s approach to safety and attention to detail. “They’re not dragging the

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

logs into the stream . . . in terms of safety and thought, it’s apparent with this crew they have obviously studied the plan and how they were going to do it.” Altogether they placed 46 log jams along the one-mile section of the stream. “The precision they can lay [the trees] with is remarkable,” Ryan observes as another tree is taken down the landing to the stream. TW

Above: Left, Darren Darr, loader operator filling in as chaser on this job. Right, log loader Curt Bowers. Below: For just one project, WC placed 46 log jams along one-mile of stream.

ConferenceReview

Changing the Way America Builds Mass Timber Conference, March 29 – 30

By Lindsay R. Mohere

.S. timber products and manufacturers took center stage at the Second Annual International Mass Timber Conference, at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland. The purpose of the event was to explore the entire supply chain for mass timber and the opportunities and obstacles for mass timber building in North America. The event

attracted an audience from 23 countries and drew more than 800 architects, engineers, builders, lumber executives, and others, including a few loggers. Mass Timber refers to a new wave of engineered wood products designed to be stronger than conventional timber and easier to build with because of their uniformity and straightness. The technologies include Cross Laminated Timber (CLT), Nail Laminated Timber (NLT), Laminated Strand Lumber,

and Laminated Veneer Lumber, along with newcomers Dowel Laminated Timber (DLT) and Mass Plywood Panels (MPP). A prominent building material in Europe since the early 90s, the advancing technology can be used as an alternative to steel, concrete, and masonry in a variety of midand high-rise building types. Mass Timber/ CLT buildings are structurally sound and less expensive to construct. Mass timber construction has significant environmental benefits, such as storing carbon dioxide, is fully renewable, and prevents pollution associated with the manufacturing of concrete and steel. Currently, there are several buildings in the U.S. that are constructed with CLT, with more going up, including the Albina Yard building in Portland, Oregon, and T3 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Framework, a 12-story mixed-use high-rise in Portland, is also scheduled to begin construction in the summer of 2017.

Changing the Way American Builds

Architects’ model of a 12-story mixed use high-rise build with CLT, scheduled to begin construction in summer of 2017. 32

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

Steve Marshall, assistant director of Cooperative Forestry, USDA Forest Service State & Private Forestry, opened the conference with a keynote discussion on “Changing the Way America Builds.” Marshall explained that, for the past four years, the Forest Service has been working toward that overall theme, and they believe that mass timber has the potential to change the way America builds. As an example, Marshall cited the doubling of Forest Service wood innovation grants to aid mass timber projects from a year ago. “In 2015-2016, we had 20 separate mass timber/CLT projects that we put money into. This year, we’re looking at 46 separate proposals. And there’s some absolute killer proposals in the group,” he said. In addition to fostering legislation as part of its intentional strategy to support the development and integration of mass timber/CLT construction, the Forest Service has also conducted blast testing with the Department of Defense and will be doing

ConferenceReview

larger scale fire testing to clear the path for possible significant changes to the building code in the U.S. “The main focus of the Forest Service is sustainable forests. In much of the U.S., we have over-stocked forests because we have been so successful at putting out fires over the last 100 years. We’re looking at the ways we manage the forests,” Marshall said, noting that sustainable forests creating sustainable structures built with mass timber will have a positive effect on the environment, social structures, and the economy.

Northwest Plays a Big Role

The Northwest has figured prominently in the mass timber revolution in the U.S. Currently, there are two engineered wood products companies producing CLT and one producing MPP. Marshall indicated that there are several more operations that are considering moves into manufacturing mass timber products. All three Northwest companies were major exhibitors at the conference and drew huge crowds to their respective displays. DR Johnson Wood Innovations of Riddle, Oregon, is the first lumber company in the U.S. to be certified to manufacture CLT. Its first CLT building project was the Albina Yard building in Portland. The other CLT manufacturer is Smartlam Inc. of Columbia Falls, Montana. The newest innovations to the mass timber mix are Mass Plywood Panels, created and engineered by Freres Lumber Company of Lyons, Oregon. Throughout the rest of the event, other topics such as Mass Timber Markets – How Big Can They Be, Improving the Project Delivery Model, Tall Wood Examples, Current Mass Timber Projects, and Is Mass Timber a Solution for Housing Equality? delivered standing-room-only audiences. The International Mass Timber Conference is owned and produced by Forest Business Network. The company’s sole focus is to help forest product businesses grow and prosper. TW

www.forestnet.com May/June 2017 TimberWest

ConferenceReview

Wood is Good Intermountain Logging Conference, April 5 – 7

By Barbara Coyner

arger undercarriages, better

remote servicing, fewer components, generous LED lighting in more spacious cabs, lower fuel consumption, increased cooling capacity, more horsepower. The list of new and improved features spells out just what loggers want in their equipment these days. It’s that steady innovation that they come to see at the Intermountain Logging Conference in Spokane, Washington, and the machinery midway can be counted on to draw plenty of feedback.

It Begins with People Cutting Trees

“The new products are great,” said keynote speaker Nick Smith of Healthy Forests, Healthy Communities. “But it still begins with people cutting trees. Today, there’s a real disconnect with urbanites, yet urban folks benefit every day from wood products. Clean air and clean water come from healthy forests too.” Smith’s positive message suggests there’s renewed energy this year as talking heads consider climate change and carbon footprints. The new and creative ways with wood are making a strong impression, as the “wood is good” mantra challenges architects and builders to use cross laminated timber, pre-engineered panels, and other engineered wood products more routinely. As wood competes favorably with concrete and steel for strength, durability, and resiliency, urban builders are even constructing taller wooden buildings. Research is showing that some of the engineered wood products actually withstand earthquakes quite well and also have less of a

carbon footprint than concrete or steel, plus developers and buyers like the natural look of wood. The change in attitudes is an upbeat message for the entire timber industry.

Steep Slope Logging Dominates Discussions

Yet for conference attendees, it all begins in the woods, and that means focusing on equipment and processing methods geared to safety, productivity, and efficiency. Steep slope logging remained heavily on the radar during the three-day conference. As speaker Doug Mays of Weyerhaeuser Corporation asked how many in the audience still worked as a hand faller, only three men raised their hands, illustrating that boots on the ground are phasing out. To the outsider, however, the term “steep slope logging” seems the antithesis of safe. Yet safety today means staying in a protective cab rather than facing the elements with a chainsaw, making steep slope logging the safer alternative. “It’s time for a change,” Mays said. “We need a new concept. In New Zealand, there are no hand fallers. We need to exhaust every other approach before bringing on hand fallers. It’s a win-win for loggers, fallers, and landowners. We need to replace chainsaw handlebars with machine controls.” Mays added that Weyerhaeuser is now testing the waters for steep slope logging, planning to eventually ramp up to capture 75 percent of lands previously logged by hand fallers. The whole concept of using cable assist makes sense to Steve Barham, the safety coordinator for Intermountain Logging Contractors, based in Coeur d’Alene. “It’s a lot less exposure to danger and if it’s done correctly, it’s much safer. But it has to be an

engineered system, not something put together in the back of the shop.” Dale Ewers of DC Equipment has been on the scene in New Zealand, where steep slope logging got its foothold nearly a decade ago, and while he still sees occasional safety incidents, such dangers have largely evaporated as mechanization replaces people on the ground. After doing equipment repairs for a major New Zealand logging contractor for years, Ewers developed his own machinery to tackle steep slopes, and now he manufactures and markets the Falcon Claw 1250 and 2150, along with other specialized machinery. “The company saw people as the problem for safety,” Ewers told his audience. “Mechanization was the solution. We still have some hand fallers, but with this approach, we see so many gains in productivity.” Catering to the current interest in steep slope logging, a Cat 330 retrofitted by Tractionline as a steep slope winch-assist machine, with its stout vertical boom and winch, stood out front and center among the outdoor equipment displays. With its powerful design elements, the configuration drew dozens of comments. Yet seeing the machine up close showed exactly what is necessary to safely operate on steep slope terrain. As always, the conference offered a buffet of support accessories. For example, the Montana Claw drew interest from those who need extra traction while working in extreme weather conditions. The quick-connect grousers known as “Track Claws” were designed by two heavy equipment operators who saw the need for such a product for snow, ice, mud, and steep terrain.

Optimism

With the Intermountain Logging Conference in its 79th season, there was a new sense of optimism in the general discussions. Most attendees didn’t find the change of administrations to be of any strong advantage. Instead, logging contractors and workers see that the industry itself is responding to a changing world. TW 34

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

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Komatsu Swing Machines Deliver High Productivity & Profitability! • 196 Net Horsepower from fuel-efficient Tier 4 Final engine • High capacity cooling system with wide core cooling fins provides high performance & reliability; easily cleaned • 40' Reach Live Heel Forestry Front or 34' Reach Road Builder Front delivers high productivity, reliability & durability • Electro-proportional control (EPC) sliding thumb buttons PC390LL-10 provide smooth & precise attachment control 42' Reach & 257 HP • Fully-certified Oregon OSHA forestry cab with 48" or 7" riser • High drawbar pull for excellent shovel logging & rough terrain performance ® • Standard all LED work lighting & KOMTRAX Level 5.0 remote monitoring & management system © 2017 by Komatsu America Corp. All rights reserved. All comparisons and claims of improved performance are made with respect to the previous Komatsu model unless otherwise specifically stated. Trademarks and service marks used herein are the property of Komatsu Ltd., Komatsu America Corp., or their respective owners or licensees. Photos may include optional equipment.

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Kent, WA 800-669-2425 Rochester, WA 800-304-4421 Spokane, WA 800-541-0754

Eugene, OR Portland, OR Boise, ID Pocatello, ID

800-826-9811 800-950-7779 800-221-5211 800-829-4450

Billings, MT Kalispel, MT Missoula, MT

800-735-2589 800-434-4190 800-332-1617

Tracked Log Loaders Caterpillar

The Cat 538 LL Forest Machine and 558 LL Forest Machine are versatile, purpose-built log loaders that can be customized to perform a range of loading tasks to deliver maximum profit potential to loggers. The first models in the 500 series to meet U.S. EPA Tier 4 final emission standards, they increase profitability by maximizing efficiency and reducing costs. They feature outstanding fuel efficiency while increasing horsepower and swing torque.

Cat log loaders are available in numerous configurations for log loading, shovel logging, butt-n-top/power clam applications, and millyard applications. Cat offers both an under/under configuration, which consists of a traditional under-mounted heel cylinder for loading and shovel logging, as well as an over-under configuration, which is optimized for stacking height. The Cat 538 and 558 feature a new machine design, new engine, and enhanced hydraulics. Machine and hydraulic performance are boosted by increased engine horsepower for strong multi-functioning and improved performance — and more production. Uniform speed control maintains a constant engine speed regardless of load. Coupled with other features, both models deliver excellent fuel economy. The machines are engineered for durability and reliability with proven Cat components, purpose-built upper and lower frames, and increased cooling capability to maximize machine uptime. The Cat 558 LL is available with a rear entry cab option that offers unparalleled operator experience with safer access, improved operator comfort, increased visibility, and an innovative cab lock down system to help maximize machine uptime. www.cat.com/ forestry

Doosan

Doosan Construction Equipment has manufactured log loaders since 1999. Today, Doosan offers three models, including the DX225LL-5, DX300LL-5, and DX380LL-5. The DX380LL-5 is the newest model and was introduced in fall 2016 at the DEMO trade show in Vancouver, B.C. It is designed to serve forestry professionals in shovel-logging tasks. The DX380LL-5 has high-swing torque and approximately 44 feet of reach. Doosan log loaders are manufactured with heavy-duty 36

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

components and application-specific guarding to keep them running strong and to help minimize downtime. Doosan log loaders are built with a high, wide undercarriage for excellent ground clearance. They have thick steel doors and panels to help protect internal components. Equipped with a live heel and durable boom and arm, Doosan log loaders, when configured with a log grapple, are ideally suited to stabilize logs and efficiently sort, stack, and load them onto trucks. Options for Doosan log loaders include a forestry cab for states and provinces with additional requirements; straight travel pedal, allowing operators to travel in a straight line more easily; a block heater or diesel-powered coolant heater for improved cold-weather starts; sideview camera available for viewing on the LCD screen; and LED lights for enhanced visibility when working early in the morning or at night. Doosan offers two durable log grapples for use with its log loaders—the LG52 with a 52-inch arm opening and the LG58 with a 58-inch arm opening. Log grapples complement the log loader’s live heel for efficient operation. www.DoosanEquipment.com

John Deere

Designed to increase operator efficiency and performance, the John Deere G-Series log loaders are proving to raise the bar for productivity and efficiency. With four models suitable for a wide range of applications, the 2156G, 2656G, 3156G, and 3756G offer superior operating comfort, featuring larger, quieter cabs with standard rear entry allowing for easier entry and exit. Polycarbonate windows stand up to the harshest conditions, while strategically placed floor windows offer improved visibility of the tracks. The cab-forward option increases right-side visibility by positioning the operator 17 inches further forward than standard cabs. “We know keeping an operator comfortable is a key factor in maximizing productivity,” said Dave McFarlane, marketing manager, Deere-Hitachi Specialty Products. “We made a significant investment in the cab design of these machines, and our customers are really noticing the improvement.” In addition to the redesigned cabs, these models offer a host of features designed to improve machine uptime and performance. The newly-designed G-series hydraulic systems are more efficient, improving productivity and lowering the cost of operation. All models are equipped with a powerful PowerTech Plus engine. Additionally, improvements in lower rollers and XD and LC (continue on page 38)

TechReview

(continued from page 36) undercarriages extend machine life while a 30 percent reduction in electrical components has reduced electrical-related downtime. Hardened steel bushings in the boom tower on the two largest models extend joint life and simplify repairs. These features, combined with the JDLink machine monitoring system, help keep machines at peak performance levels, ensuring the highest level of uptime and productivity. www.deere.com

Hitachi

Hitachi America recently introduced upgraded Dash-6 foresters in North America. The new models build on the manufacturer’s reputation of efficiency, reliability, and durability, and they include multiple new, customer-driven features that improve productivity, comfort, and safety.

capacity cooling system, high drawbar pull, additional forestry guarding, narrower, 11’5” transport width, more comfortable operator controls, all LED lighting, and KOMTRAX 5.0 technology. It features a new high capacity cooling system, utilizing wide core cooling fins for the radiator, hydraulic oil cooler, and charge air cooler, providing improved performance and reliability. The heavy-duty 1/4”- thick cooler air intake door is waffle-screened and sealed to reduce debris accumulation and cleaning time. It generates 64,250 lbs. of drawbar pull, and a rugged PC390class swing motor and drive deliver high swing torque for superior log loading and road building performance. The guard system now has a fully protected LED light, plus a rugged tree deflector with a “hockey stick” design that can be removed or reverse-mounted for transport. Along with the tree deflector, the track frame steps can also be removed or reversemounted to achieve an 11’5” transport width, which meets most local regulations and reduces the need for special transport permits. www.komatsuamerica.com

Link-Belt

The Link-Belt 4040 TL Forestry Machine is now available with an option for high-wide or high-narrow undercarriages to meet transport requirements. Models can be equipped with live-heel or butt-n-top attachments for log-loading applications. Designed specifically for the 4040 TL, both side- and rear-entry Oregon-OSHA 8082-2 certified forestry cabs are available from the factory, with sky roof and escape hatch.

The four new Dash-6 models — ZX210F-6, ZX260F-6, ZX310F-6, and ZX370F-6 — utilize a fuel-efficient Final Tier 4 (FT4)/EU Stage IV Isuzu engine that does not need a diesel particulate filter (DPF). All four models also feature a quieter cab with three inches of additional legroom — the side entry cab is 25 percent larger than the previous Dash-3 models. Hitachi foresters are built from the ground up in a state-of-theart manufacturing facility and are specifically designed for forestry work, ensuring quality while giving owners and operators efficiency, reliability, and durability. www.hitachiconstruction.com

Komatsu

Komatsu America Corp., a leading global heavy equipment manufacturer, recently introduced the new PC290LL-11 to its current log loader product lineup. Featuring a 196 net horsepower, EPA Tier 4 Final Komatsu SAA6D107E-3 engine, the new PC290LL-11 is available in either a 40’ reach live heel log loader or a 34’ reach road builder configuration, for high performance in demanding logging applications. Log loader and road builder operating weights are 89,730 lb. and 82,230 lb., respectively. Other new or improved PC290LL-11 features include a high 38

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

This new 40 Series model features an advanced, electronicallycontrolled Isuzu engine that meets Final Tier 4 requirements, with up to 18% improved fuel economy than previous models, with minimized DEF usage—less than 3% against fuel consumption. Experience less downtime due to refueling with a 55% capacity increased fuel tank and a 50-to-1 diesel to DEF closing ratio. In addition, there is no diesel particulate filter (DPF) maintenance constraint. (continue on page 40)

YOU’RE GONNA NEED MORE TRUCKS. Designed to increase productivity, the new Hitachi Foresters sport a reliable, Final Tier 4 engine that doesn’t require a DPF. Comfort comes in the form of a quieter and larger cab with stretch-out-your-legs room and an improved AC system. Top it all off with safety improvements like redesigned visibility and cab access. The enhancements go on and on – just like the line of trucks that will need to keep up. HitachiConstruction.com/Foresters

TechReview (continued from page 38) The cab offers outstanding operator ergonomics, comfort, and visibility. With a large, 7-inch LED color monitor to interface with the machine, an operator can easily navigate a full menu of userfriendly controls to take full command of the excavator and attachments. The standard rear-view camera displays a panoramic view of the work site from the rear of the machine, with sight guidelines added for increased safety. The Wide Angle View Enhancement System (WAVES) can be added to provide a full 270° viewing envelope with no blind spots. The 4040 TL is equipped with the RemoteCARE GPS-enabled telematics system, enabling 24/7 remote monitoring and security. Flashing diagnostic codes on the monitor quickly alert the operator to potential trouble. www.lbxco.com

Madill

Madill offers both the 2850C and 3800C tracked log loaders. The 2850C is 89,000 lbs. (9.0 PSI) and offers an ideal power to weight ratio, enabling outstanding overall performance in any environment or condition. With its Cummins QSC 8.3L Tier III engine, the 2850C provides ample hydraulic flow for more lift power, swing torque and tractive effort. The log loader also features 102,000

and a wide stance cab body provide excellent stability. They feature comfortable, spacious operator’s cabin with rear entry and plenty of storage space. The full-length front window and additional floor windows create clear sightlines to the load and tracks. A high output climate control system is a match for the coldest and hottest conditions. The engine compartment is open and spacious. Access to daily service points is convenient, and major components are readily accessible. The engine and hydraulic components are shielded and compartmentalized. The twin swing drive system provides powerful swing torque and reduced gear tooth loads for excellent performance and reliability. The 875 and 880D are powered by the reliable and efficient Tigercat FPT N67 engine rated at 212 kW (285 hp) at 2,200 rpm. The Tier 4F configuration meets North American emission standards using a simple and effective selective catalyst reduction (SCR) after-treatment system. www.tigercat.com TW

CALENDAR July 1-4 Annual Logger Rodeo, Sedro-Woolley, WA 360-770-8452, www.loggerodeo.org

ft. lbs. swing torque, has a lift capacity of 45,470 lbs. @ 15 ft. of lift capacity, and a boom reach of 40’6” heel and 36’ BNT. Operators will also enjoy the Madill 46” rear entry cab with forward facing control panel, LCD monitor, bluetooth, four 5v charging ports, high visibility cab with bronze tint Lexan floor and side windows. The 3800C weighs in at 100,000 lbs. (10.1 PSI) and its power to weight ratio offers outstanding overall performance in any climate. The 325 hp Tier III Detroit Diesel Series 60 engine provides superior hydraulic flow. And the 3800C features 130,700 ft. lbs. swing torque, a lift capacity of 46,930 lbs. @ 20 ft. and has a boom reach of 44’ heel and 39’ BNT. It also features the same Madill 46” rear entry cab as the 2850C as well as a forward sloped cab riser for excellent visibility. www.madillequipment.com

Tigercat

The Tigercat 875 and 880D loggers are both robust, purposebuilt platforms that can be configured as log loaders with a variety of power clam and butt-n-top grapple options. The boom geometry and cab positioning provide superior right-hand-side visibility. Some of the many advantages of the 875 and 880D over excavator conversions include higher cooling capacity, a better operating environment, stronger undercarriage components, and extremely efficient hydraulic circuits. The result is higher production, uptime, and fuel efficiency. The heavy-duty forestry undercarriages provide a stable base for performance and operator comfort. A massive single-piece, forged pedestal strengthens the undercarriage and improves durability. Long frames 40

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

July 14-15 Darby Logger Days, Darby MT 406-369-1316, darbyloggerdays.com July 14-16 South Fork Loggers Day Festival, South Fork, CO 800-571-0881, www.southfork.org July 23-25 Pellet Fuels Institute Annual Conference, Stowe,VT 703-522-6778, www.pelletheat.org July 30-August 2 Council on Forest Engineering Annual Meeting, Bangor, ME 240-382-2633, www.cofe.org August 10-13 75th Annual Morton Loggers Jubilee, Morton, WA 360-496-6362, www.loggersjubilee.com August 18-20 New York State Woodsmen’s Field Days, Boonville, NY 315-942-4593, www.starinfo.com/woodsmen September 7-9 70th Annual Lake States Logging Congress, Escanaba, MI 715-282-5828, www.timberpa.com September 14-17 Orofino Lumberjack Days, Orofino, ID 208-476-3412, www.orofinolumberjackdays.org September 15-16 Mid-Atlantic Logging & Biomass Expo, Selma-Smithfield, NC 252-432-1903, midatlantic-logging-biomass-expo.com

CONTINENTAL BIOMASS INDUSTRIES CBI 6800BT HORIZONTAL GRINDER

• CAT C-27, 1050HP diesel engine (available as Tier 4 Final) • Grinds pallets, stumps, & logs into quality fuel and mulch • Large capacity feed hopper easily handles full-length trees • High-strength, forged steel 40”D x 60”W upturn drum rotor

WHOLE TREES • STORM DEBRIS • SLASH • STUMPS • REGRIND

OUTPRODUCE • OUTPERFORM • OUTLAST CBI • 22 Whittier Street, Newton, New Hampshire 03858 USA • (603) 382-0556 • www.cbi-inc.com

Tigercat 480B Mulcher and New 4061 Mulching Head

Tigercat has released the next generation 480B track mulcher and the brand new Tigercat 4061 mulching head. The 480B tackles the toughest terrain and offers superior durability and high uptime for large-scale, time-sensitive right-of-way and site preparation projects. With a power rating of 550 hp at 1,800 rpm, the Tigercat FPT C13 Tier 4F engine offers quick load response, low operating costs, and high power density, combined with excellent fuel economy. Tigercat FPT engines are also backed by Tigercat warranty and support.

specifications. The 4710D is powered by a Tier IV Caterpillar C18 engine rated at 755 horsepower. A Tier II, 765 horsepower engine is also available. Boasting 18 inches of ground clearance, this model is particularly suited for land clearing operations or other applications where mobility and frequent moving are desired. Peterson’s three-stage grinding process with an up-turning rotor and large grate area enables the 4710D to produce materials to exact specifications. Quick-change multiple grate system makes it easy to customize grate configurations to produce a wide variety of finished materials. Grates are removed through an access door on the side wall. www.petersoncorp.com

Fecon’s New Excavator Bull Hog The new mulching head offers excellent durability and reliability in a package ideally suited to the capabilities of the Tigercat 480 and M726 series mulchers. The housing features reinforced side covers and abrasion-resistant skids. The housing is optimized with debris door cylinders mounted internally for protection and contains position references to aid in skid alignment. Timing belts eliminate belt slip and provide efficient power transfer to the rotor, lowering maintenance time and costs. www.tigercat.com

Fecon introduces the FMX Excavator Bull Hog mulching attachment for mid-size (5 to 10 ton) excavators. With a 36” cutting width and variable motor that can be adjusted for 12-40gpm, the FMX is a great addition to Fecon’s excavator line up. The 36”

John Deere’s Narrower Stick Booms for M-Series Tracked Harvesters

To help loggers maximize timber quality, John Deere has upgraded its harvester stick boom attachment across all 800MH- and 900MH-Series tracked harvesters. The new stick boom geometry delivers the same high level of boom envelope performance, but with a narrower design to help operators minimize damage to harvested trees.

model weighs 850lbs and can be mounted on backhoes and side arm booms also. This brand-new excavator head offers a split ring rotor design with our new reversible cubit teeth, giving you the ability to quickly mulch 4” material and intermittently mulch up to 6” material. With options like a front trap door and crutch mount, you can configure the FMX to suit your needs. www.fecon.com

Wood-Mizer New LX450 Twin Rail Sawmill

The new boom stick is 122mm (4.8 inches) narrower at the attachment end than the existing booms, reducing contact with the harvested tree. This narrower boom uses the standard Waratahsupplied dogbone adapter for traditional external hose routing. A new narrower cradle supplied by Waratah will continue to offer customers an optional through-the-nose plumbing solution. www. JohnDeere.com

Peterson Introduces the 4710D Horizontal Grinder

Peterson has introduced the 4710D horizontal grinder, designed for high-volume producers with very demanding end-product 42

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

Wood-Mizer, the world’s leading portable sawmill manufacturer, introduces the LX450 sawmill – the first Wood-Mizer LX series sawmill released in North America. The addition of the LX sawmill series makes Wood-Mizer the first and only company to give sawyers the choice between a monorail or twin rail sawmill in order to accommodate various sawing applications and preferences. Featuring many of the same benefits of the Wood-Mizer LT sawmill series, the new LX450 sawmill matches Wood-Mizer’s widest cut at 34” while offering the largest depth of cut at 16 1/2” available from Wood-Mizer. (continue on page 44)

(continued from page 42) The LX450 is power options include a 38 HP Kohler Gas EFI; or the 35 HP Yanmar Diesel option coming soon. A key innovation of the LX450 sawmill is the rigid LX Frame sawhead tower that holds the control panel, engine, and the sawmill head. Designed to accommodate a larger width and depth of cut, the LX Frame travels on parallel hardened steel bars on the bed and allows the operator to have better visibility during the cutting process. www.woodmizer.com

New Vermeer WC2500TX whole tree chipper

Vermeer has introduce the WC2500TX tracked whole tree chipper. The WC2500TX offers the same performance and compact design as the recently released WC2500XL whole tree chipper

by Vermeer, but is equipped with a tracked undercarriage to aid in maneuverability in the woods and on tough land-clearing sites. The WC2500TX boasts a compact design and packs a 600 hp Tier 4 Final engine to meet jobsite production demands. There is

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

also a Tier 3 engine option for countries that have not adopted Tier 4 emission regulations. It can be equipped with either the microchip drum that produces chip sizes between 1/8” to 5/8”, or the macrochip drum that produces chip sizes between 5/8” and 1 1/4”. The knife setup is quick and simple with knife position being set by two bolts — no babbitting needed. www. vermeer.com.

The Rawlings VRM Super Hi Inertia Vertical Wood Hog

Rawling Manufacturing has introduced the VRM Super Hi Inertia Vertical Wood Hog. The VRM hog opens hydraulically from the rear of the machine allowing full access to the hog’s internal wear components and rotor for ease of maintenance.

All Rawlings Hogs are equipped with their patented Super HiInertia Rotor that powers through feed surges with ease while still running at lower RPMs than all other machines on the market. This saves our customers both maintenance and electricity costs. www.wastewoodhogs.com TW

Classified

AD INDEX COMPANY PG# BKT TIRES...................................19 CASCADE ENGINE CENTER..........43 CASCADE TRADER......................27 CBI.............................................41 DIAMOND MOWERS....................13 FEENAUGHTY MACHINERY..........20 GEM CHAIN BAR.........................16 HITACHI......................................39 JEWELL MFG..............................10 JOHN DEERE...............................11 KOMATSU AMERICA....................35 LBX/BEJAC/TRIAD.......................37 LOG MAX....................................31

OLOFSFORS................................15 OREGON LOGGING CONF.............44 PAPE MACHINERY.......................17 PETERSON..................................21 PEWAG CHAIN.............................33 PIERCE PACIFIC.............................8 PONSSE NA..................................5 QUADCO / SOUTHSTAR.................9 ROTOCHOPPER.............................2 TIGERCAT...................................48 US FORESTRY/SPF......................25 WARATAH...................................47 WAY MACHINE............................26

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READER VERIFICATION The U.S. Postal Service requires readership verification at specified intervals. Please assist us by providing the information below. Circle your Primary Business (enter one number) 1A Logging firm or contractor 1B Trucking company 1C Cutting contractor 1D Road builder/materials producer 1E Combined logging/processing forestry 2A Forest mgmt/government 2B Broker/consultant 3A Sawmill/chip mill 3B Veneer/plywood/panel mills 3C Pulp/paper mill 3D Specialty wood products 3E Biomass/Wood Energy Plant 4A Equipment manufacturer 4B Equipment distributor/dealer 6A Associations 6B Ad agency 6C Other 7 Forestry consultants 8 Education/Student/Library 9 Tree farming

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www.forestnet.com May/June 2017 TimberWest

guest columnist

Avoid a One-Track Mind consumption. Though a less efficient cooling system costs less up front, there will still be the price of added cooling systems that are required to perform some of today’s more demanding tasks.

By Bill Wake

here are a number of points to

consider when choosing a compact track loader that can significantly impact productivity and ROI. It’s important to examine basics, such as what the machine will be used for, the types of surfaces it will be used on, ease of maintenance, and operator safety and comfort. The best combination of features results in an allweather, all-application machine.

Is Size a Factor?

The most demanding jobsites require bigger, more powerful machines for largescale construction and forestry applications. The most powerful machine on the market produces 360 foot-pounds of torque. A lot of larger machines are sold for applications where high-flow performance is critical. Many manufacturers publish theoretical hydraulic flows and pressures on their spec sheets but cannot run more demanding attachments entering the market, such as mulching heads and cold planers. Consider life-and-carry work. Vertical lift designs are best for that type of work, such as handling materials, moving pallets, and loading trucks. The radial lift design is the best solution if the primary function is mulching or excavation that requires heavier attachments. Lifting also requires an examination of lift height and reach requirements. Determine the appropriate height. A lifting height of greater than 10 feet could mean the difference between moving material twice or being able to sort and load with one unit. Make sure the unit works with attachments that fit the type of work it will be doing. Manufacturers design compact track loaders to be attachment drivers, which leads to higher utilization and more flexibility to complete a variety of jobs. Research what attachment types and sizes the machine will accommodate. This includes looking at the unit’s hydraulic flow rate and the weight of the attachment to match it to the loader specifications. To maximize torque to the attachment and enhance overall performance, the unit must run at peak efficiency. Rubber track undercarriages reduce friction, improving horsepower efficiency by as much as 10 percent compared to steel-embedded undercarriages. This is because the engine requires less horsepower to power the tracks, and more power is directed to the hydraulic system for powering the attachment. Demanding applications often require 46

TimberWest May/June 2017 www.forestnet.com

Consider Conditions

Bill Wake specialized features in order to maximize durability and productivity. A one-machinefits-all approach simply won’t work. If the typical applications include high debris, rough terrain, and difficult surroundings, it’s best to look for a machine purpose-built for those demands. Forestry-specific or heavyduty models offer features that enhance comfort, reduce downtime, and extend the life of the machine. Forestry and right-of-way work often involve sharp turns and driving across hills, things that frequently cause track derailment on standard track loaders. Choose a model with a large number of lugs and contact points to virtually eliminate derailment when working in such harsh environments. Track width is also important. Look for a wider track for more traction. The extra width can mean the difference between completing a job and spending the day getting unstuck. The heavier the attachment and the higher the ambient temperature, the more important it is to have an efficient cooling. Look for a machine designed to keep water and oil temperatures in safe operating ranges under 100 percent load, 100 percent of the time at temperatures exceeding 118 degrees F. These units can run attachments such as mulchers without the addition of expensive external cooling. Many manufacturers stack the radiator, oil cooler, and air conditioning condenser on top of each other. These designs run the same air through multiple coolers, reducing efficiency. For enhanced cooling efficiency choose a side-by-side radiator and hydraulic oil cooler with a separate A/C condenser. This will prevent debris from trapping between coolers and warm air from one reducing the efficiency of the other. Efficient hydraulics and cooling systems can allow a lower horsepower machine to outperform a higher horsepower unit, resulting in more power and lower fuel

Choosing the best machine for a variety of jobs requires identifying the surfaces the unit will most often work on. A compact track loader with excellent ground pressure, flotation, traction, and ground clearance is a valuable all-season machine. Rubber track machines have as many as four times more ground contact points in their tracks than steel embedded models, spreading the unit’s weight evenly for lower psi and extra flotation on delicate surfaces. Look for wider tracks for even lower ground pressure. More contact points also means more flotation and traction on steep, slippery, and wet ground, giving contractors more control on snow, ice, mud, and slush. Low psi and good flotation can even give a compact track loader the ability to drive on top of snow or mud without sinking.

Minimize Downtime

Designs that make it easy and convenient to perform regular maintenance also enhance utilization and overall efficiency. Most models only offer a rear door to access the engine compartment, which provides limited access for daily tasks. Some manufacturers build machines with multiple side panels in addition to the rear access. This provides more accessibility and can cut recommended maintenance times in half. Be sure to consider whether the ground the compact track loader will be driven over includes brush or small abrasive materials that could become trapped in the undercarriage and wear away at components. Steelembedded undercarriages have a closed design from which material is unlikely to escape and which are difficult to clean. All of the wheels are exposed in rubber track undercarriages, allowing material to easily spill out.

Smart Choice

Look carefully before choosing a common, one-size-fits-all model. A smart choice results in a compact track loader that’s not only versatile, but also features the high performance and efficiency to finish jobs faster, better, and with minimal downtime. By Bill Wake, ASV LLC director of product development. www.asvllc.com TW

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CONFIDENCE BY DESIGN. A PURPOSE-BUILT LOGGER THAT CAN BE CONFIGURED AS A LOADER, PROCESSOR OR SHOVEL LOGGER. The new 880D logger is equipped with the powerful and efficient Tigercat FPT N67 engine. A larger slew bearing combined with a new forged pedestal provides increased durability and swing torque. The forestry undercarriage and expansive ergonomic cab provide the stability, comfort and confidence that operators expect and require for high productivity in demanding applications.

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