Short communication. Lumber yield and production time in sawmilling of pallets in Durango, Mexico

<p><em>Aim of study</em>: Evaluate times and yields in the transformation of pine logs to pieces of pallets.</p><p><em>Area of study: </em>Four sawmills of the forest region of El Salto, Durango, Mexico.<em></em></p><p><em>Material and methods</em>: The sample size was 388 logs with 32.91 m³ as volume without bark grouped in four diameter classes and five taper classes. The transformation time was estimated using the “Snap-back timing” method, and yield was defined as the ratio between pallets and log volume.</p><p><em>Main results</em>: The time required to obtain 1000 bft of pallets is approximately 5.8 hours and the mean yield is 56%. This means that for each cubic meter of logs without bark, it is possible to obtain 240 board feet of pallets (bft). In addition, 4.16 m³ of logs without bark are required to obtain 1000 board feet of pallets. The estimated mean productivity was 0.54 m³/h.</p><p><em>Research highlights:</em> As the log diameter increases, yield also increases. The taper of the logs was not significant in the transformation yield.</p><p><strong><em>Key words</em></strong><em>: Indicators of productivity; pallets; diameter logs; taper; sawmilling process; lumber yield; raw material; Mexico.</em>