Technodiversity Glossary

Harvesting is one of the main functions of harvesting. The term has two meanings: As a general term it includes felling of trees, processing to a transportable product and the extraction from the forest to the customer. As a more precise term it only points to the change of state of the product, while the extraction is not included.

In this narrow sense the harvesting includes the sub-functions felling, delimbing, topping, cross-cutting or bucking and chipping. All other sub-functions except the felling is called processing as well.

Different sub-processes can be assembled into a full chain, when the end of the foregoing sub-process matches the needs of the following sub-process. In the functiogram, such a so-called ‘buffer’ is symbolized by a dark button.

In real life, when we plan any job, we know where it begins and where it should end. Between these two poles we have a lot of options to reach this aim. But as soon as we define one specific sub-process, the list of viable sub-processes becomes much shorter.

For example, we want to fell trees and process them into short logs, which are stored at the forest road. This means that we start with buffer 10 and end up at buffer 33. Here we have more than 5 options to reach this goal. But when we decide to use a forwarder for the extraction tasks, the degree of freedom decreases, because the forwarder is specialized for extraction from 23 to 33 (it is good for short logs). To finalize the method, we only need to fill the gap between buffers 10 and 23. Then, out of our initial more than 5 options, only 3 are left.

(See more at TDiv PR1-B07)

In Technodiversity, we prefer to visualize harvesting methods by a functiogram. For naming we have found following convention:

The noun describes the functional group of harvesting like full tree method, tree length method, cut-to-length (ctl) method or chip method.

An adjective declares the degree of mechanization like (fully) manual method, partly motor-manual method, (fully) motor-manual method, partly mechanized method, and fully mechanized method.

As an example, the functiogram shows the fully mechanized ctl-method.

(See more at TDiv PR1-B06 and B07)

In a study from 2009, Kleinhückelkotten et al. have found five different groups of people who use the forests for recreation. One of them are the holistic forest friends, the others are ecological forest romantics, pragmatical distant persons, self-centered forest users, and indifferent persons.

About 22% of the sample was classified as holistic forest friends. These people like natural forest structures and believe that modern forestry will assure sustainable yield of products and sustainable forest functions. This group is relatively comfortable with forest technology.

(See more under TDiv PR1-E02)

The horse or mule is a tool being used for the pre-skidding of full trees (buffer 11 to 21) and tree length (buffer 12 to 22) and for the pre-skidding and skidding of logs (buffer 13 to 23 or 33).

Horses work on more or less flat terrain and drag the load, while mules are used in steep terrain and prefer to carry the logs. The work with the horse or mule is classified as manual work.

A classic combination in which the horse/ mule is being used is the “Tree length method using chainsaw, horse, and tractor” also known as “Partly mechanized tree length method”.

In a study from 2009, Kleinhückelkotten et al. have found five different groups of people who use the forests for recreation. One of them are the indifferent persons, the others are holistic forest friends, ecological forest romantics, pragmatical distant persons, and self-centered forest users.

With 18% of the total, the indifferent persons form a relatively large group. They feel no emotional connection with forests at all. If they talk about forestry, they assume that forestry is too primitive for them. Often, they don’t accept that forestry earns money with forest products. Fortunately, members of this group will seldom visit a forest.

(See more under TDiv PR1-E02)

see individualizing

Individualizing is the third step of the three-step-model of decision-making in forest technology. The first step is functionalizing and the second one is localizing.

With the third step, one extracts from the remaining processes that option that offers the best fit with the individual aims of the decision-maker. It will be one of the technical processes, but it can also be that the zero-option is the best.

(See more under TDiv PR1-A04 and PR1-F01 to F05)

Interest costs are a part of the cost calculation with the engineering formula. They consider the costs that have to be paid back to the bank for borrowing the money. Normally, the interest is indicated as a percentage of the borrowed sum per year.

In reality, it is calculated monthly on the base of the actual residual debt. So, it becomes less from month to month. In the last month it is nearly zero. Taken as the grand average, interest is calculated over half of the borrowed sum.

Thus, we can approximately calculate the interest costs with

•       the price of the initial investment

•       divided by 2 (to reach the average)

•       times the interest rate in percent.

(See more at TDiv PR1-C02)

The interim calculation is a part of the cost calculations that a manager must do during the work life of a machine or working system.

The task of the interim calculation is to check whether the preliminary estimations of the system costs were realistic and can be approved by the real work of the system. If there are deviations, it is necessary to calculate newly and to correct the data for the further use of the system. In extreme situations it can be optimal to finish the utilization of the system earlier than planned and to sell it if possible, in order to limit the economic damage.

This seems to be simple, but it is not:

In contrast to the pre-calculation, where the costs are calculated as average over the total planned life span, now the real cost curves are observed. The experiences with the curves of repair and maintenance costs of written-off machines show that they vary extremely due to the age of the machine. So, in order to find a realistic view from the machine, the real costs must be compared with the an estimation how the cost curves normally will behave.

(See more at TDiv PR1-C01 and PR1-C05)