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ShortCUTS is a quarterly report that will offer you a broad overview of the latest research news from Skogforsk, and perhaps even more important, facilitating contact with our researchers.
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FORWARDING OPTIMISATION | SUBALPINE FIR | 844 AT UKONF12
GREATER PROFITABILITY IN STATE-OWNED FORESTS | SINGLE TYRES BETTER
FAST-GROWING SPRUCE HITS THE MARKET
THE FINAL PLOT:
THE HARVESTER IS TAKING OVER
FROM SKOGFORSK. NO 1 | 2012 | RESEARCH FOR TOMORROW’S FORESTRY
CONSERVATION MEASURES
BENEFIT FOREST BIRDS
2050THE FORESTRY IN
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Several exotic tree species arenot only surviving but outper-form the domestic/native coni-fer species in the tough climateof Norrland in northern Sweden.This is shown in a study in whichSkogforsk monitored variousspecies of pine, spruce and larchover a period of 20 years.
”As yet, we don’t knowenough about most of the treesin the test to recommend themto forest owners,” says JohanWestin, research leader. “Butthe North American subalpine firshows the best survival ratesand good growth, and alsoshows little sign of damage. It would be interesting to lookmore closely at older experi-ments, where the subalpine firhas been tested over a longerperiod.”
CONTACT: Johan Westin 090-203 33 [email protected] MORE: Resultat no. 13/2011– available at skogforsk.se
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FORWARDING OPTIMISATION:
PROMISING RESULTS
System support in the operator cab optimises forwarding.
According to a Skogforsk survey,the state-owned forestry companySveaskog could increase profitabi-lity in its silviculture investmentsby 30 percent.
“Profitability can be improved
through the right combination ofhighly productive plants, fast-gro-wing tree species and fertilisation,”says Johan Sonesson, who led thestudy.
GREATER PROFITABILITY IN STATE-OWNED FORESTS
CONTACT: Johan Sonesson 018-18 85 [email protected] MORE: Resultat no. 17/2011– available at skogforsk.se
Marie Larsson-Stern, Sveaskog, with hybrid larches.
Skogforsk has developed amodel for optimising forest trans-port, presenting the machine ope-rator with the shortest, mostefficient routes and showing in de-tail how timber and logging resi-dues should be loaded andtransported.
The model can be implementedin existing systems to help new for-warder operators plan their work,but experienced operators also be-nefit from this type of system, ac-
cording to Skogforsk’s Karin West-lund, who is leading the study:
“Fuel consumption is reducedand quality is improved by using atransport plan where timber volu-mes can be seen on the map onthe operator’s screen,” she expla-ins. “There is less risk, for example,of timber being forgotten in the fo-rest.”
The study shows that there isgreat potential for reducing foresttransports.
“We could be talking aboutquite a few percent,” says PetrusJönsson, who has worked with theanalyses in the project. “But weneed to carry out more field stu-dies in order to quantify the results– one problem is the lack of preci-sion in the GPS coordinates.”
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CONTACT: Karin Westlund 018-18 85 [email protected] | Petrus Jönsson018-18 85 73 [email protected] MORE: Resultat no 18/2011. Order from skogforsk.se
SUBALPINE FIR– A PROMISINGNEWCOMER
Subalpine fir – tough spruce species in Norrland.
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The number of participants atthe Skogforsk DevelopmentConferences in Västerås, Jön-köping, Umeå and Östersund.The forestry sector likes theDevelopment Conference.Mentometer voting in action.
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With the help of plant breedingresearchers, producers of forestplants can now grow spruce plantswith volume growth 35 percentgreater than that of the sprucescurrently growing in Swedish fo-rests.
“Spruce cuttings with over 25 %greater growth than local sprucespecies are already on the market,”says Bo Karlsson of Skogforsk.
It pays to be an active consumerwhen buying forest plants for a cu-tover. Growth rates vary greatlybetween different spruce plants onthe market, and cuttings from ge-netically-bred seeds grow.
Bo Karlsson admits the cuttingsare more expensive. But there areeconomical ways of using best ge-netically-bred plants while redu-cing the regeneration cost.
“Plant rows alternately with ge-netically-bred plants and ordinaryplants. This provides most benefitfrom plant breeding, because it willbe the fast-growing spruces thatwill grow best on the cutover.”
Difference in growth between various seed sources
Unimproved seeds from local spruce +- 0 %
Seed from East European stands + 7 %
Existing seed orchards + 10 %
New seed orchards + 25 %
Controlled crossings + 35 %
FAST-GROWING SPRUCEHITS THE MARKET
CONTACT: Bo Karlsson 0418-47 13 [email protected] MORE: Resultat no. 12/2011– available at skogforsk.se Bo Karlsson proudly presenting his elite spruces.
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SINGLE TYRES BETTERA timber truck fitted with extra-wide single tyres is more econo-mical and has less environmentalimpact than current timbertrucks with dual tyres.
A haulage company couldsave SEK 35,000-40,000 a yearby switching to single tyres, pri-marily because this would re-duce fuel consumption by fourpercent. However, single tyresshould be combined with CTI, a system for controlling tyrepressure, in order to prevent rutformation on forest roads.
The trend is towards greaterpayloads, so trailers must be fit-ted with triple axles – the groundpressure will then be reducedcompared with current axle con-figurations.
Wide single tyres will then be-come even more economical, aswell as further reducing environ-mental impact and damage. Singlewheels on drive axles are currentlynot very common, but studies aregoing on to examine the effect ofswitching from double wheels tosingle wheels on drive axles.
CONTACT: Claes Löfroth 018-18 85 [email protected] MORE: Resultat no. 15/2011– available at skogforsk.se
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THE FORESTRY SECTOR IN
THEME | UKONF 12
We begin with a few assumptions:global population will increaseand climate will change; newemerging economies willgrow strongly, and custo-mer requirements willchange rapidly. Today, theglobal economy is basedon fossil fuels, but this isthe subject of the firstprediction:
“By 2050 a green eco-nomy will have develo-ped,” says Kaj Rosén. “Bygreen economy, I mean sus-tainable development based onrenewable resources from, for ex-ample, forests. This is vital becausethe rapidly growing population willincrease pressure on the limited re-sources in the world.”
If we are to meet increasing de-mand without increasing consump-tion of resources and energy,manufacturing processes must bemade much more efficient.
Tougher requirements“Greater globalisation and emerging,fast-growing economies will toughen
the competition on the global mar-ket,” says Lennart Rådström. “Qua-lity-conscious consumers on com-pletely new markets will be deman-ding much more in terms of functionand reduced environmental impact.Requirements relating to various ma-nufacturing processes will becomemore complex.”
A possible scenario in 2050 is a
strong forest sector, competitivethanks to Swedish forest resources.
“However, we think that tra-ditional products, such as tim-ber for construction, fibre forpaper, and biofuel, will besupplemented by new pro-ducts,” says Erik Viklund.“This trend is alreadyunder way. Clothes, phar-maceuticals, smart pack-aging, medicines and wood
composites are just a few ex-amples. In the final stage,
Swedish wood fibre will beused in solid and liquid fuels
that provide society with heatingand power.”
Key playersBy 2050, the Swedish forest industrywill have been a key player for a longtime in the transformation to thebiobased society, according to thethree Skogforsk researchers.
“But this will require powerful in-novations and constant adaptation toconsumer requirements,” continuesErik Viklund. “Forestry will alsoneed a strong base in the form of active enterprise on a vibrant rural
The world is changing. Rarely or never has the Swedish forestry sector been in such a strongposition to help the transformation to a sustainable society. There are great challenges, buteven greater opportunities. Kaj Rosén, Lennart Rådström and Erik Viklund have peered intothe crystal ball and discerned various trends relating to the speeches at the Skogforsk Deve-lopment Conference, UKONF 2012. Text & photo sverker johansson | [email protected]
2050
RESEARCH FOR TOMORROW’S FORESTRY ShortCuts | 1 | 2012 5
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landscape. The Swedish forest industrywill then have doubled the return onits products and services – and con-tributed to a considerable reductionin carbon dioxide emissions.”
“Forestry will be highly intensive,with short rotations, greater produc-tivity and more efficient forest mana-gement,” predicts Kaj Rosén. “Newtree species and genetically-improvedtypes of our traditional species willbe used to meet the challenges of achanging climate. Remote sensingand mobile sensors will give us veryprecise data about crops – on themost intensive areas, forestry met-hods will be similar to those appliedin agriculture. We will preserve spe-cies and satisfy our need for recrea-tional use of forests by graduallyrefining the ‘Swedish model’, whereintensive methods are used more fre-quently than today, and where areasof environmental forestry and unuti-lised forest will be permitted to in-crease.”
“Productivity in the value chainwill increase tremendously in fortyyears,” predicts Lennart Rådström.
“Forest machines will be much moreenergy efficient and cause minimaldamage – and many stages in loggingand other forestry practices will beautomated. Timber transports andmachine operation in the forest willbe optimised. And in line with newcustomer requirements, descriptionsof the properties of the forest re-source will be very functional anddetailed.”
“Here communication will bindeverything together,” says Erik Vik-lund. “It will optimise the value cha-ins, but also provide online data foruse in decision-making, adapted toevery situation.”
But the worst-case scenario?The Swedish forest industry sectorwill not be able to compete withother countries in the transformationto a biobased economy. Fibre-basedproducts from Swedish forests will
lose out to other materials at an earlystage. The wood manufacturing in-dustry will last longer because of sup-port from the energy sector, butfalling demand will cause the valueof Swedish forest resources to falldrastically by 2050.
New knowledge requiredForestry will become less intense asthe prices of commodities drop. Ro-tation times will lengthen, producti-vity will fall and climate change willconstantly expose the forest to greatrisks. The willingness to invest innew technology will fall as profitabi-lity tails away. However, the supplychain will still need to be highly pro-ductive and efficient to prevent lo-sing even more market shares.
Right or wrong? Who knows, butone thing is certain – the world willbe very different in 2050 and thiswill require new knowledge.
“We believe that the researchers atSkogforsk will deliver importantparts of that knowledge,” concludethe Skogforsk prophets.
It will requirepowerful inno-vations and con-stant adaptationto consumer requirements.
ERIK VIKLUND
A green economy willhave developed– sustainable developmentbased on rene-wable resourcesfrom, for ex-ample, forests.
KAJ ROSÉN
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’’’’Productivityin the valuechain will increase tremen-dously in fortyyears.
LENNART RÅDSTRÖM
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Each year, 365,000 hectares of forestare thinned in Sweden. And whenthe thinning project is completed, wewant to know the results. But moni-toring of thinning is time-consumingand costly. The machine operatormeasures plots, which reduces the ef-ficiency of logging. Furthermore, theresults from the manual samples arenot particularly accurate.
Researchers have developed a cal-culation model using the forest ma-chine data about the felled forest tomake calculations about the remai-ning standing forest. Johan J Möllerof Skogforsk explains:
“Naturally, the felled trees and theremaining trees differ in some ways,for example the diameters of the treesthat are left are somewhat larger. Butstatistical calculations and practicaltests have enabled us to build amodel that works for most thinningprojects.”
Researchers believe that the majo-rity of thinning projects will be mo-nitored automatically using harvesterdata. Other types of thinning, prima-rily special practices such as uneven-aged thinning in forests close tourban areas or high thinning ofmixed stands, will continue to re-quire manual measures in the future.
“The model simplifies everyday ac-tivities for very many people in thesector,” says Johan J Möller. “Ma-chine operators will no longer needto get out and count trees in darkand cold conditions, forest ownerswill see directly the results of thin-ning activities on their properties,and forest utilisation plans can beupdated immediately after logging.The model also serves as a kind ofquality assurance of the thinning
THEME | UKONF 12
MONITORING MODEL FOR THINNING
Skogforsk has launched anew model for monitoringthinning. It can facilitate monitoring and reduce costswhen thinning large areas offorest, and is a long-awaiteddevelopment.
Text & photo sverker [email protected]
RESEARCH FOR TOMORROW’S FORESTRY ShortCuts | 1 | 2012 7
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0GV1 GV2 GV3 GV4 GV5 GV 6 GU1 GU2 GU3 GU4 GU5 GU6GV1 GV2 GV3 GV4 GV5 GV 6 GU1 GU2 GU3 GU4 GU5 GU6
Manual measurement Harvester forecast
Volumes after thinning (m³ solid volume/ha)
It’s easier when we don’t have tomake plots – and the report filesare sent automatically.” Jonas Ståby, machine operator for Österby Gallring AB – the test company.
Good correspon-dence. Volumeafter thinningshown by manualreference measu-rement (grey) andvolume calculatedusing harvesterdata (green) forthinning objects inVästergötland(GV1-GV6) andUppland (GU1-GU6).
work of the harvester operators.”In the next stage, the machine
operator will always knows the inten-sity of thinning – and the nature ofthe remaining forest. But before that,the precision in geographical pinpo-inting of the trees must be improved.
The way to go“Today we only have GPS coordina-tes for the machine itself, and theoperator must work through approx-imately half a hectare before there issufficient data to clearly show theprogress,” says Johan J Möller. “Butpositioning technology will improveover time – and then the operatorwill get a very good estimate of thin-ning intensity on the screen in realtime.”
“The core of successful forest ma-nagement is information about theforest so updating after thinning isimportant. But this is a difficult task– automation is the way to go.”
“Surprisingly good results”Ingemar Eriksson is Business SupportManager at Skogssällskapet, which isfunding Skogforsk’s work on themodel. As early as 1996, when heworked at Skogforsk, he was involvedin a report that forecast the futurewith regard to monitoring of thin-
This simplifies everydayactivities for very many people in the sector.’’
’’
ning, using GPS and harvester mea-surement. Nevertheless, he is surpri-sed by the development.
“I hadn’t expected such good re-sults – the researchers have really ex-ceeded my expectations. But moretests are required under practical con-ditions. The tests are being carriedout in well-managed stands underBergvik Skog and Skogssällskapet. Iwould like to see results of the modeltested under different conditions.”
“Even though it is not applicablein all situations, the combination ofnew technology, for monitoring ofthinning and, for example, laser
scanning, is really positive. This isalso an important stage in using in-formation generated by the machinesand improving the flows of informa-tion between machines and businesssystems.”
Ingemar Eriksson also feels that fu-ture forest management requires bet-ter input data.
“We are now introducing the plan-ning models from the Heureka rese-arch program to formulate andoptimise management of our and thecustomers’ properties. If this is to besuccessful, we will need this type ofupdated stand database.”
RESEARCH PROGRAMMESWOOD UTILIZATION Lars [email protected]. Phone: +46 18 188555FOREST TECHNOLOGY Magnus [email protected]: +46 18 188596LOGISTICS Gert Andersson, [email protected] Phone: +46 18 188567
FOREST BIOENERGY Rolf Bjö[email protected]: +46 18 188509TREE BREEDING NORTHBengt Andersson [email protected]: +46 90 2033358TREE BREEDING SOUTH Bo [email protected]: +46 418 471305
SILVICULTURELars-Göran Sundblad [email protected]: +46 90 2033369ENVIRONMENT Jan-Olov Weslien [email protected]: +46 18 188505
UPPSALA (Head Office) Uppsala Science Park,SE-751 83 Uppsala, Sweden Phone: +46 18 188500
EKEBO Ekebo 2250, SE-268 90 Svalöv, SwedenPhone: +46 418 471300
UMEÅ P.O. Box 3, SE-918 21 Sävar, Sweden.Phone: +46 90 2033350
www.skogforsk.seEditor in chief: Jan Fryk | Form: Pagarango | Editor: Bitzer | ISSN: 2000-2726 | Photos: Sverker Johansson unless otherwise statedTranslated by: Leslie Walke, CommunicAID | Printed by: Gävle Offset, 2011
“The trend is very clear. Con-servation measures are having apositive effect on many forestbirds.”
“More forest birds have in-creased in numbers than havedecreased,” says Olof Widen-falk, who has analysed data for1998–2010 from the SwedishNational Forest Inventory. “Wesee a clear positive trend afterthe 1990s when conservationmeasures were introduced in fo-restry practice.”
The project has compiledand analysed data from theSwedish National Forest Inven-tory and the Swedish Bird Sur-vey, the national birdmonitoring programme run byLund University on behalf ofthe Swedish EnvironmentalProtection Agency.
“We compared population
trends at national and regionallevels with conservation trendsin forestry, and results showedthat many bird populationshave increased in line with con-servation measures, surprisinglymany in fact” says Olof Widen-falk.
From cutovers to certificationIt was towards the end of the1980s that people startedto become aware of theproblems caused by in-tensive forestry. At thestart of the 1990s, thetrend started to change inmodern stand harvesting,and individual trees, clumpsof trees and edge zones startedto be preserved on the cutovers.
This is reflected in the statistics. Conservation reallybroke through when the
revised Swedish Forestry Actcame into effect in 1994, butthe trend towards greater con-servation measures actuallystarted earlier.
Not all have increased“Populations of species such asthe willow tit and marsh tit,treecreepers and the Siberianjay have not increased,” expla-
ins Olof Widenfalk. “It maytake longer before they
respond to the conser-vation measures, but
it could also meanthat they have
more specificrequire-ments onthe forest
environmentthan other species.”
However, the general trend
Conservation measures in stand harvesting are proving successful, andforest birds are on the increase. This is shown in a study in which LundUniversity and Skogforsk analysed population trends in Swedish birdsin relation to developments in forestry. However, there are also specieswhose populations should have increased, but have not.
Text kristina sundbaum | [email protected] sverker johansson | [email protected]
Trends for forest birds. Six regionaltrends for All Forest Birds for the pe-riod 1998–2010. The number of birdspecies varies for the different re-gions. For All Forest Birds, the follo-wing numbers of species wereincluded: N Norrland 43, S Norrland45, Ö Svealand 45, V Göta/Svealand44, Ö Götaland 47 and S Götaland34.
All Forest Bird Species (58 species)All of Sweden N Norrland S NorrlandÖ Svealand V Göta/Svealand Ö Gö-taland S Götaland.
is very clear – conservationmeasures are having a positiveeffect on many forest birds.
“So there is every reason tocontinue along this road,” saysOlof Widenfalk.
THEME | UKONF 12
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01998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010
Alla skogsfågelarter (58 arter)
Hela Sverige N Norrland S Norrland Ö Svealand V Göta/Svealand Ö Götaland S Götaland
TRIM indexCONSERVATIONBENEFIT FOREST BIRDS
