Performance and cost of a new mini-forwarder for use in thinning operations

Two tests were conducted with a new model of mini-forwarder, specifically designed for thinning operations. The tested machine resembles a conventional industrial forwarder, with tandem bogies and central articulation, but is much smaller and lighter. The machine was tested on forest plantations established on ex-farm land: such plantations offer favorable and homogeneous work conditions, which allowed reasonably accurate productivity figures to be obtained with a relatively small number of observation hours (about 10.5 h). Despite the relative inexperience of the driver, the tests indicated a productivity of between 3.1 and 3.8 m3 per scheduled machine hour (SMH) over an extraction distance of about 400 m. Extraction costs ranged from 12.4 to 15.1 € m-3 at the calculated machine rate of 47.6 € h-1. Compared to older models derived from recreation vehicles or tracked wheelbarrows, the machine tested in this study offers a better performance and a much more comfortable workplace, with the operator sitting inside an enclosed and insulated cab. Fitted with four bogies and provided with a much longer wheelbase, the new forwarder is likely to be safer than tracked machines when surmounting obstacles, and it certainly offers a much smoother ride to the operator. Nevertheless, the tested machine is still much narrower than industrial forwarders and does not enjoy the same lateral stability. Hence, the machine is ideal for sneaking between trees and climbing over obstacles, but once on a slope it must be driven straight along the grade and never across it, unless with much caution. Like all hydrostatically driven vehicles, the tested mini-forwarder is not suited to long-distance extraction (1 km): if run at high speed for too long, its hydrostatic transmission tends to overheat, forcing the operator to make frequent stops. © 2010 The Japanese Forest Society and Springer