NZ Logger November 2023

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l-r l a d o o g A

Adventures of a Kiwi Forest Ranger in Borneo

Slash deluge hits Queenstown Cemetery

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contents

NOVEMBER 2023

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FOREST TALK Halt ETS fees, say forestry leaders; A valuable fuel tool; National backs export growth; Local government no match for slash?; Turning slash into cash; Medicinal cannabis a safety minefield; Port Nelson delivers despite challenging year; Extend the lifespan on hardwearing parts; Realtime information key for forestry; Obituary: Rest in power, Jason Wynyard.

SHAW’S WIRE ROPES IRON TEST At first sight, the Komatsu 931 XC at Bluewood Thinning’s is a different-looking machine. It clearly demonstrates some of its key

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advantages on the bumpy Southland ground, as it is driven out to the road with the eight wheels all hugging the terrain like a centipede, instead of the bouncing you would expect in a four- or six-wheeled machine. Our Iron Test team put it to the test.

34

LOOKING BACK Forestry pioneer, Ross Lockyer, is back with an excerpt from his third book, The River is my Highway.

This time he’s thrashing it out with the Dayak Queen in the jungles of Borneo.

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SPECIAL FEATURE: WEATHER EVENT Jim Childerstone investigates the recent slash/log inundation which engulfed Queenstown Cemetery, after flowing down Bob’s Peak.

His association with the Queenstown Lakes District Council goes back many years.

DEPARTMENTS 2 editorial 48 Advertorial: Forestry Technology 52 fica 56 top spot 58 Greenlight New Iron 60 classifieds

November 2023 | NZ LOGGER 1

from the editor

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Slash deluge hits Queenstown Cemetery

Adventures of a Kiwi Forest Ranger in Borneo

The Komatsu 931 XC harvester next to the corduroyed load-out skid in Southland.

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Ups and downs AS NEW ZEALAND READIES ITSELF TO WELCOME A NEW PRIME MINISTER, increasing costs for foresters participating in New Zealand’s Emissions Trading Scheme have the industry up in arms. Legislation piling on legislation has been the theme for this year. We wait with interest for the outcome of the High Court judicial review.

A bit of healthy competition in the form of the Rugby World Cup offers a welcome respite. Since I don’t yet have a crystal ball, you’ll know the answer to who gets the glory before you read this column. Hopefully our boys in black are basking in the aftermath of a match well won. Because, after all, while we have to pay the bills, and work can be both rewarding and frustrating, it’s those moments of pride and fun with Whānau and friends that really matter at the end of it.

A lesson sadly taught by the untimely death of champion woodchopper, Jason Wynyard. A beacon of inspiration for many, Jason will be sorely missed in forestry circles. A man who knew how to take life by the horns.

Forestry pioneer, Ross Lockyer’s colourful adventures in Borneo also remind us that business is about more than just hard work and spreadsheets. Relationships, networking and the old ‘it’s who you know’ adage are as important now as when Ross had drinks with ‘the tough old matriarch’ of the Dayak tribe back in the 1970s. The Dayak Queen drove a hard bargain, but it was better than having hard-earned meranti log rafts cut from their moorings. As always, a great historical read from Ross.

Turn that page and we are back to the industry’s incessant bugbear – forestry slash. Queenstown Cemetery has been the latest unhappy recipient of a deluge of logs and slash. Having worked with forestry contractors on the Bob’s Peak Gondola in the past, Jim Childerstone unpacks the history behind the project and whether, and where, one can apportion blame. Not at the door of the logging contractors, he says.

As always, never a dull moment.

Until next time, stay safe.

forest talk

Halt ETS fees, say forestry leaders “EXCESSIVE, UNREASONABLE AND DISPROPORTIONATE”. SO SAY the Climate Forestry Association, New Zealand Institute of Forestry (NZIF), Ngā Pou a Tāne – The National Māori Forestry Association and the Forest Owners Association (FOA), along with a wide range of industry representatives and Māori forestry interests – in total representing the owners of more than 300,000 hectares of local forest – who have launched a judicial review in the High Court seeking an urgent examination of the new Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) fees regime.

The new regime will increase costs for foresters participating in New Zealand’s Emissions Trading Scheme by several thousand percent, will undermine climate action, put Iwi, landowners and farm foresters under significant financial pressure and threaten the country’s climate action, according to sector leaders.

The charges are estimated to add at least $14 million per year in fees for foresters participating in the ETS, with some individual forest owners facing more than $1m a year in new fees, with the $30 per hectare charge on forestry projects that use exotic trees.

Climate Forestry Association Chief Executive, Andrew Cushen, says the industry has come together to take legal action because there is much more at stake in this proposal than just the impact the new fees regime will have on a sector that creates jobs and revenue for the regions.

“As well as piling enormous costs onto an industry that many local businesses and communities rely on, MPI’s new fees will disincentivise climate action,” says Mr Cushen.

“The new charges are likely to have a major chilling effect on planting intentions and new investment – already thrown into uncertainty by the Government’s ETS review – when forest carbon sequestration is currently one of New Zealand’s most successful climate change mitigations.”

NZIF President, James Treadwell, says these charges are poised to shatter hopes of achieving the Climate Change Commission’s target of 300,000 hectares of new native forest, potentially jeopardising the 2050 climate commitments.

“They are also expected to further devalue land prices by at least another $500 per hectare, a blow coming precisely when farmers are

grappling with increased interest rates,” Mr Treadwell says.

“The fees create a discouraging environment for the emergence of future markets, like biodiversity markets, aimed at enhancing Aotearoa’s environmental footprint.”

Ngā Pou a Tāne Chair, Te Kapunga Dewes, says the fees are clearly in breach of the Crown’s duties as a Treaty partner and put the environmental and economic futures of Māori and non-Māori alike at grave risk.

“Many Iwi and Māori landowners are captured participants of the ETS. As a result of confiscations and the Treaty settlement process, much of the land Māori have been left with is best – and often only – suited to afforestation. Indeed, in many of these settlements, the carbon value of forests was part of the negotiation and settlement with the Crown,” he says.

“The value of those settlements will again be eroded through this new fees regime, with many of the new costs disproportionately hitting Māori directly.

FOA Chief Executive, Dr Elizabeth Heeg, says these charges could set a dangerous precedent for other ecosystem service markets like biodiversity credits, but will also hamper New Zealand’s ability to transition to a bioeconomy.

“The system should be designed so that polluters pay, rather than penalising the people who are doing the vital work of capturing carbon dioxide. Ultimately all of us as taxpayers will be forced to bear the cost of New Zealand’s failure to meet its climate targets. We are already projected to fall short of the target, and the uncertainty created by measures like this just makes for a bigger bill.”

She says the industry also has major concerns about the impacts of the fees on local farmers and landowners, as well as the people who rely on them for jobs.

“The new measures are enough to put some small and medium operators and farm foresters out of business, given the wider economic downturn. The chilling effect on forestry will have impacts on our ability to transition to a bioeconomy in coming decades if these charges remain in effect.”

The industry action, which was filed in the High Court last month, is seeking a halt to the new fees. NZL

A valuable fuel tool “THE NEXT QUARTER IS GOING TO BE ‘A SHOCKER’ WITH ROAD user charges going back up after the discount came off in July, sharp increase in fuel prices from the falling dollar and increasing vehicle prices pushing up finance costs.

“A significant number of operators are under stress because of these cost pressures and, on top of that, we have a slowing economy,” says the National Road Carriers Association’s (NRC) James Smith.

With fuel and road user charge costs on the rise and a slowing economy, now is perfect timing for road transport businesses to get onto the new Customisable Cost Index, he says.

“The Customisable Cost Index is an interactive tool that allows operators to see the impact of cost increases on their businesses.

It allows users to align the index to their business because there 4 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

is no such thing as a generic transport business.”

Mr Smith says the NRC has worked with Infometrics Chief Forecaster, Gareth Kiernan, and Statistics New Zealand over the last 12 months to build the interactive tool.

“To get the best value from the tool, transport companies need to know what percentage of their total costs are fuel, labour, tyres, maintenance, road user charges and finance.

“If they don’t know these percentages they shouldn’t panic as we can easily run a cost model for them that will provide this data.

Users can then move a slider to select their starting quarter. The index has data from 2009 through to the June quarter of this year.

“They can also choose to see their costs excluding fuel. This is important if they already have a Fuel Adjustment Factor in place.

They can then print off their own cost index.”

forest talk

National backs export growth TAKING LEADERSHIP, THE NATIONAL PARTY SAYS IT WILL SET AN ambitious target to double the value of exports in 10 years to help rebuild the economy so all New Zealanders can get ahead, according to National’s Trade spokesperson Todd McClay.

“Trade underpins New Zealand’s economy, and the standard of living for every one of us depends on it.

“The more we sell to the world, the better off we will be at home, and New Zealand will be able to afford more of the public services – from highways to hospitals – on which we all rely.

“However, right now New Zealand has a $16 billion trade deficit and the second worst current account deficit in the developed world relative to GDP, behind only Greece.

“We will work tirelessly to promote New Zealand exports and dismantle trade barriers that make it difficult for New Zealanders to sell their high-quality produce, goods and services overseas.

“We know the prize is large. For example, New Zealand’s exports to China, the world’s second largest economy, have increased seven-fold since the Free Trade Agreement between our two countries signed in 2008. China is now New Zealand’s largest trading partner, with annual two-way trade valued at more than $40 billion.

“By contrast, despite India being on its way to becoming the world’s third largest economy, trade between our two countries has declined since 2017. National will make increasing trade and investment with India a priority.

“Over the next decade, National will measure the success of our trade policy in the value of exports, not simply by how many new trade agreements we sign.”

National will: • set an ambitious target to double the value of exports including from forestry and agriculture, services, international education, technology and tourism within 10 years, • pursue quality Free Trade Agreements to increase access to foreign markets, • conduct a record number of trade missions to open doors for New Zealand exporters, • make India a strategic priority for increased trade and investment.

“Strengthening New Zealand’s connections with the rest of the world is one of the six key drivers of growth that National has identified to rebuild the economy and bring down the cost of living,” says Mr McClay.

Mr Smith says users will need to know their NRC website member login to access the index. If they don’t, the NRC CTS Team can help. If users have any questions about how to use the Index or how to work with what it tells them, they should contact one of the NRC’s CTS team.

“And if there are any enhancements to the tool that users can think of, please contact me as we are looking to expand this service. Thanks to the NRC members who helped test it during development as their input was invaluable,” he adds. NZL

Positive wood products policy Support for New Zealand’s wood processing and manufacturing industry, as proposed in the National Party ‘Forests for a Strong Economy’ policy will advance New Zealand’s economic and sustainable future, says the Wood Processors and Manufacturers Association of New Zealand (WPMA) Chief Executive, Mark Ross.

“New Zealand’s wood industry is one of the few sectors able to promote regional growth, strong communities, and environmental benefits,” he adds.

The National Party policy carves out initiatives such as making carbon values available to wood processors under the Emissions Trading Scheme, introducing a streamlined consenting process to establish new wood processing facilities, and facilitating growth in export markets for value-added wood products.

A strong domestic wood processing sector will benefit foresters, processors, contractors, manufacturers, and the building sector. This increases employment, investment in our regions, and helps meet our climate change emissions targets.

Creating and selling our wood product story, plus working closely with policy makers and the wider industry to encourage greater support and investment will provide opportunities to lift growth in the sector. NZL

National Party leader, Christopher Luxon.

Members can adjust the input thresholds by selecting the starting quarter, percentage of costs by cost type and if they want an index inclusive or exclusive of fuel.

November 2023 | NZ LOGGER 5

forest talk

Local government no match for slash?

“Federated Farmers has been pushing really hard for this for THE FOREST OWNERS ASSOCIATION (FOA) SAYS LAST MONTH’S new regulations to deal with forestry slash will lead to even less some time now, so it’s great to finally see some action that will forest planting and compromise forest carbon sequestration to make a difference for our rural communities.

“Farmers have been incredibly frustrated with the amount meet climate change targets.

FOA President, Grant Dodson, says putting local government in of productive farmland that’s being lost to blanket pine tree charge of determining whether landowners are allowed to plant plantations.”

In the last five years alone there have been more than 200,000 trees on their land, is inviting them to restrict forest planting and hectares of productive farmland converted to pine trees and carbon arbitrate on a landowner’s choice on how to use their own land.

“We’ve seen with anti-forest councils, such as Wairoa, that a few farming – and it will probably never be farmed on again, he says.

“This has completely hollowed out some of our rural communities. local prejudices can inhibit farmers from planting any trees and so not contribute economically and environmentally to the region as As the pines have moved in, the people have moved out – and the life of these small towns has gone with them. much as they could.

“Federated Farmers generally holds a view that landowners are “This announcement came with the pre-election rush. We are told the new rules will be in effect within a month, which is way entitled to make their own decisions about how to use their land, too quick to develop the risk assessments and management tools but in this case rules and regulations have completely distorted the which landowners and councils will have to comply with,” says Mr market,” he adds.

Mr Dodson counters that the recent Ministerial Inquiry into Dodson.

He says that foresters are well aware that forest slash can be land use and forest slash in Tairāwhiti following Cyclone Gabrielle an issue on land which is particularly erosion prone and hit with showed that farmland erosion was an ongoing and substantial problem. storms of unprecedented severity driven by climate change.

“Only more trees will fix that. Yet the thrust of this government “We are putting a lot of work into ways which together can reduce the risk of post-harvest wood going down rivers, from different statement is, the fewer trees the better. We need a proper process to learn the lessons of Gabrielle raised by the Parata Inquiry, or we species of tree to using as much waste as we can for biofuels.

“But there will be debris left after harvest and we need to get could finish with dangerous outcomes.

“The evidence is that forests slow floodwaters. During the as much as we can secured or removed. That removal has to be Auckland Anniversary floods, catchment studies at Mahurangi and practical and safe.

“Councils don’t have the health and safety operational knowledge Titoki forests showed that despite extraordinary volumes of rain, the soil was never saturated. The better looked-after the trees, the and capacity to make that assessment.

“An objective assessment of the wood in the rivers following less the damage.”

Mr Dodson says he acknowledges the progress reflected in the Cyclone Gabrielle showed forest slash, certainly in Hawke’s Bay, government statement of the One Year Review of the National was not the reason for most of the damage.

“A survey of the wood at Wairoa found only two percent of the Environmental Standard – Plantation Forestry (now renamed debris was forest slash. Most of it was willows, poplars, and native Commercial Forestry) particularly the enforcing of environmental trees. Likewise, at Waikare River further south of Wairoa, which rules for carbon-only forests.

Turn to page 44 for an update on the Queenstown slash made the news recently, also only two percent of the wood on the inundation. NZL beach was forest slash.

“The real aim should be to protect downstream roads and properties from FOA President, Grant Dodson. damage, whatever the source of that risk.

That means tools and a capacity to remove whole trees of any species, before they can cause damage.”

Meanwhile, Federated Farmers forestry spokesperson, Toby Williams says, “These new rules will give local councils, who are accountable to the communities they represent, much more say over what is planted – and where it’s planted.

“We’ve seen in Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay the kind of damage that can be caused when forestry slash is mismanaged – it was totally devastating for our communities and we’re still recovering,” Mr Williams says.

There will now be a requirement to remove slash from erosion-prone land, and the environmental effects of permanent pine forests will need to be managed the same way as plantation forests.

6 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

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forest talk

Turning slash into cash

Above: Students from Uawa and Ruatoria creating a trial batch of charcoal at the Skills Builder Training Course.

Right: Burning in Bucket Kilns – participants have made their own aluminium buckets to better understand the process of a kiln.

THE SLASH FOR CASH PROJECT IS ON A MISSION TO CLEAN AND heal the Tairāwhiti and Wairoa regional lands by repurposing wood debris waste on forestry lands, farmlands, orchards, beaches, roadsides and landfills into organic biochar fertiliser and smokeless charcoal briquettes; while also creating employment opportunities for the local East Coast communities.

It is the brainchild of Thabiso Mashaba, a cultural and environmental economist, who arrived in Uawa in March this year, less than a month after Cyclone Gabrielle tore through the community leaving damage and debris in its wake.

An Edmund Hillary Fellow and social entrepreneur from Botswana, he teamed up with EIT|Te Pūkenga – the New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology – to help the Tairāwhiti and Wairoa communities eliminate slash and create business opportunities through a simple scientific method and co-creative design process that was adopted and adapted in Africa.

“There was an urgent need to address the slash,” Mr Mashaba says. “And me coming from a desert, excited to see a beach, and then coming to the beach and seeing a lot of logs lying around… I then asked the people and confronted them, ‘why is it that you’re not hurrying up to clean up the beach?’ Everybody was fingerpointing; forestry, Government, this, and that.

“I got them to appreciate how we would go about it in Africa, which was how we would see it as an opportunity. Much as it is a disaster, there is an opportunity to potentially earn something out of it because waste is gold.”

Bridget French-Hall, ACE Coordinator Tairāwhiti, says it made sense to provide Skills Builder Training (Slash For Cash) for the project.

ACE funding was used to purchase the tools needed to run the courses and pay the facilitators to deliver it.

8 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

Three ACE courses were delivered, training 42 people in Ruatoria, Uawa and Tolaga Bay. As ACE coordinator, Mrs French-Hall oversaw the courses and facilitated a small graduation ceremony on the last day of each course.

“The students learnt how to make different products over a period of four full days. They presented their new skills to their community members, whanau, and council. Over the duration of the course, the students learnt how to produce each item on a small scale and discuss how they could operate on a much larger scale.”

The process involved making aluminium bucket kilns to carbonise the slash in an environmentally safe way by way of a simple scientific method known as Carbonisation.

“It’s controlled burning that’s done in an enclosed container, at a low temperature and this keeps all the gases that could be going up, going back into the drum and burning. Eventually they become part of the carbon, and form the charcoal that remains in the drum.”

The charcoal could then be charged with something like animal manure, which makes it a nutrient-rich fertiliser for soil.

Briquettes are another option, as they burn without smoke, making them perfect for indoor heating and cooking. Mr Mashaba says they were popular back home for heating chicken houses in winter.

Mrs French-Hall says the response has been fantastic: “We did put a lot into it, but I could always see the big picture. And the outcome was even bigger than I imagined. So, I’m really stoked that we’re a part of it.”

forest talk

Top: Uawa and Ruatoria participants following the co-design process and creating their own briquette press.

Above left: Uawa Participants showcasing how to make cash from slash.

Above right: The certificates the participants received at the graduation ceremony on the last day of the four-day course – Get Started Skills Builder Training.

Mr Mashaba cannot speak highly enough of the partnership with EIT|Te Pūkenga.

“What I love about EIT|Te Pūkenga is, it takes it to the next level.

The ACE programme, its design and its allowance for us to bring in various technical skills into the community, is something that I treasure highly.

“The entire staff complement, and Bridget herself, have been quite supportive. It’s like having a mother or father holding your hand as you start your first steps and then watching you grow. That’s how they have been to us.”

Each student has been given the opportunity to join the Slash for Cash team and move on to Stage 2, creating a for-profit social enterprise.

Mr Mashaba is now pitching ideas to local councils, government funding agencies and international government agencies, philanthropic organisations, corporations and impact investors to fund machinery and kilns to go to market and start cleaning up beaches, public areas, private lands and forestry blocks.

While some community members have shown interest in

purchasing the products for their gardens, heating and barbeque, the team has secured their first big client, Charcoal Chicken Gisborne.

The team in Uawa are doing final product and laboratory tests to meet New Zealand food preparation standards; are producing more biochar using 44 gallon drums; producing more briquettes and will soon supply 10 boxes of 10kg carton boxes weekly to their new client and individual clients. Negotiation with other businesses are also underway for the biochar fertiliser service and smokeless charcoal briquettes.

“If Slash for Cash was mechanised, we could create a thriving business, employ more people and keep our coast clean and green,” says Mr Mashaba.

Separate from this project, the team is already in discussions to provide another ACE programme to continue teaching grassroots community members basic woodworking, metalworking skills, basic electricity skills and the co-creative design process in order to address community livelihood challenges through appropriate product, technology and community business solutions. NZL November 2023 | NZ LOGGER 9

forest talk

Medicinal cannabis a safety minefield

10 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

employees in the workplace. But only if a good substance policy is in place will employees have an obligation to inform their employer of relevant prescription medications,” says Mr Dobson.

Employers must also carry out testing in a fair, compliant, and transparent manner. It’s essential to update workplace drug and alcohol policies to include guidelines for medicinal cannabis.

“If an employee is affected by medicinal cannabis at work, even if it is prescribed, it will affect their ability to safely execute their duties. The substance creates a minefield to navigate, and it poses a risk to the employee, their peers, the business and the public.

Employers must understand that these products can adversely affect cognitive abilities and motor function,” he explains.

THC, the psychoactive component, impairs cognitive functions and motor skills, posing risks in any industry. Additional symptoms include issues with memory, attention, decision-making skills, poor judgment, mood swings and irritability.

“CBD or low THC forms of this drug are particularly problematic.

If an employee has a prescription, it’s important to work with an MRO to understand if the employee’s needs are in alignment with the requirements for the role,” says Mr Dobson.

TDDA recommends businesses review and update their drug and alcohol policies, and ensure policies are clear and effectively communicated. It also recommends education sessions for managers and employees alike, as well as enhanced training for supervisors to recognise risk in the workplace.

“Seek guidance from subject matter experts who understand your business and its requirements. If enacting a drug and alcohol testing programme, engage qualified third party experts.

“Medicinal cannabis is here, and it’s in New Zealand’s workplaces. It can be a high potency substance and it needs to be treated as one – it brings risk to any workplace. If someone is driving a company car, you need to have a plan to address the issue. Don’t get caught on the back foot,” he says. NZL

From left: TDDA’s Rod Dale, Dr Mary Obele and employment lawyer, Andrew Schirnack, at a recent TDDA medicinal cannabis workshop run for employers.

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INCREASED DETECTION RATES OF CANNABIS IN WORKPLACE drug screenings are the result of the proliferation of medicinal cannabis and easier access to the substance, says The Drug Detection Agency (TDDA).

In-house data from the Agency’s Imperans IT platform as well as anecdotal evidence from employees and clients paint a risky picture, says TDDA CEO, Glenn Dobson.

“Business leaders need to understand, mitigate risks, and address the issue immediately,” he says. “We’re seeing cannabis trigger our testing devices regularly, which isn’t particularly new.

What is new is that people in safety sensitive workplaces then show up with a prescription for cannabis. But just because the substance is legal doesn’t mean it’s safe to take it and get behind the wheel of a 40-tonne truck.”

New Zealand’s Medicinal Cannabis Act came into effect in 2020.

Growers and distributors needed time to meet the government standards in terms of product development and quality assurances.

TDDA attributes the gap between 2020 and 2023 detection rates to regulatory pressures, but now believes the situation is at a tipping point. Employers need to understand how to grapple with the challenge of integrating this change into existing drug and alcohol policies.

TDDA recommends businesses take professional advice to understand the issue of medicinal cannabis within their workforce.

“Like any prescription medication, such as opioids or prescription painkillers, there need to be clear guidelines on company and employee expectations. Businesses must integrate professional guidance into their substance polices and update them immediately to manage medicinal cannabis,” says Mr Dobson.

“Every business will eventually need to deal with substance issues, but having easy access to high-grade cannabis products will accelerate and amplify those issues. Kiwi companies need to update their drug and alcohol policies immediately,” he adds.

TDDA further recommends businesses consult with experts on drug and alcohol policies, employment law, and a doctor trained as a medical review officer (MRO).

“Each is needed to craft an operational plan that mitigates workplace risks, and protects a business’ bottom line.

Understanding the pharmacological aspects of medicinal cannabis, testing programmes and technologies, employee rights and employer obligations is essential for businesses to protect their people and maintain a safe and compliant workplac,” says Mr Dobson.

Medicinal cannabis products may contain the psychoactive component in marijuana, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), be CBD-based, or both, posing unique challenges for employers. Those in safety-sensitive industries will be most affected. Employers need to understand their duty of care under the Employment Relations Act 2000, their compliance requirements for the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, operating within the Privacy Act 2020.

Employment information as well as medical testing information can quickly fall foul of privacy laws.

“Employers have an obligation to ensure the safety of all

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forest talk

Port Nelson delivers despite challenging year PORT NELSON CHIEF EXECUTIVE, HUGH MORRISON, SAYS HE is pleased the Port has provided its forecasted dividend of $4.0 million amidst tightening export markets and supply chain challenges.

“Port Nelson’s purpose is to facilitate regional prosperity, providing a $4.0 million dividend to our shareholders, Nelson City Council and Tasman District Council, is an important contribution to that prosperity,” he says The Port’s 2023 financial year results show an underlying Net Profit after Tax result (NPAT) (excluding one-offs and property valuations) of $7.7 million, down $0.1m on the budget provided in the Statement of Corporate Intent and down $0.2 million on last year. Cargo volumes reached 3.2 million tonnes, 2% below budget and 2.5% ahead of last year.

“We have faced challenges this year that have impacted our end of year results. A record volume of apple and wine exports helped offset what have been difficult trading conditions for imports and exports of sawn timber, fish and general cargo. Log exports also had a slow start to the year, however the sector recovered to return to forecasted volumes ahead of a market slowdown in June,” says Mr Morrison.

Like most businesses, the Port faced strong cost pressures during the year, particularly fuel, interest, payroll and insurance costs. One-off factors impacting the business were a slight uplift in investment property values, a write-off of feasibility costs related to the intended Science and Technology Precinct and, most significantly, recognition of beneficial interest rate swaps, triggered by the establishment of Infrastructure Holdings Ltd. Together these one-offs contributed to an overall NPAT result of $9.3 million.

The Port’s carbon emissions continue to be below the average of the last four years. Emissions in the year were similar to last year, and overall, down 18.8% on 2019FY emissions. “This year the Port set a goal to further reduce its scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions 12 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

from 42% to an ambitious 67% on 2019 emissions, by 2035. These targets are framed within the parameters of the Paris Agreement and in line with the targets set by the Climate Leaders Coalition, of which the port is a member,” he adds.

The Port has again had an active year supporting its community.

Mr Morrison notes that the Port’s sponsorship programme is very important: “We feel privileged to engage with many amazing people who lead initiatives that positively impact Te Tauihu.

Some of the organisations we have supported this year include the Cawthron Seagrass Project to help restore biodiversity in the Nelson haven, Moananui which supports the blue economy, LifeLinc the beneficiary of the Port Nelson Golf Day, and the Port Nelson Export Hub, providing support and guidance to local importers and exporters.” In addition to sponsorship donations, the Port offers in-kind contributions including donations of port services, equipment and personnel.

During the year, the Port also developed an iwi and Māori Partnership Plan and is implementing the plan over the next three to five years.

“The Port is looking to strengthen the organisation’s identity, grow cultural confidence and contribute positively to iwi and Māori aspirations here in Te Tauihu.”

The Port initiated a long-term strategic plan for the period out to 2030, and commenced an Infrastructure Master Plan, looking ahead 30 years. Consultation with stakeholders for the Master Plan has shown that the Port has forecasted the potential need to accommodate at least a 50% annual increase in cargo over 30 years; driven by growth in timber, apples, kiwifruit, wine and seafood. In the 2024 financial year, further engagement will be sought with internal and external stakeholders, including iwi before the plan’s finalisation.

Looking to the future, the Port anticipates ongoing trading challenges for exporters over much of the 2024 financial year but expects improvements in container shipping schedule reliability. NZL

forest talk

Extend the lifespan on hardwearing parts

PARTS AND EQUIPMENT ARE WORN DOWN by constant abrasion, impact and erosion.

This causes significant amounts of material to be lost and reduces productivity that can never be recovered. Plus, there’s the recovery or replacement costs of these wear-prone components.

Wear protection specialist, Duroweld NZ, is continually developing new hardfacing techniques to counter wear, abrasion, impact, erosion, friction, heat and cavitation – whether for extending the life of new parts or rebuilding components already in use.

The goal is to improve productivity, reduce downtime and diminish the cost of replacement parts by extending their service life.

Duroweld specialises in hardfacing, providing a quick and affordable solution to extend the life on machine parts by offering the following solutions: • hardfacing machine parts with tungsten carbide, • supplying/cutting wearplates to loadbearing applications, • hard surfacing to debarker tips,

• building up winch rollers and drums for haulers, • CNC profile cutting, • manufacture of wear components, and • on-site repairs and maintenance.

Production demands on parts and equipment have dictated a harder, more wearresistant solution.

Advantages of hardfacing include a longer service life with fewer replacement parts needed and higher productivity. Less downtime means greater availability of machine time.

This all contributes to a reduction in total

operating costs.

As one customer says: “Duroweld has provided professional quality hardfacing services to our company for many years and continues to do so. The team is always able to offer technical support and creative solutions, and make themselves available even at short notice to assist with our hardfacing requirements.”

And another: “Duroweld has given the teeth on our mulch and grinding machines at least 300% more life than similar products that we have used.” NZL

Forestry equipment wear parts for processors and grapples (left).

Grooved Drums and Sleeves

DIAGNOSE • DESIGN • DELIVER

forest talk

Real-time information key for forestry SOUTH ISLAND CANTERBURY-BASED contractor, Dave Sharples, sees accurate workplace information as essential to the future of his forestry business and is making the most of onboard software solutions to monitor the daily volume of his machines as well as the availability of timber for skidders to haul.

Sharples Logging operates a variety of ground-based machinery harvesting privately-owned woodlot blocks in the Canterbury region, from the Rakaia River in the south to as far north as Kaikoura, with the work done under contract for Forest Management Ltd (FML).

The company uses John Deere’s TimberMaticT Maps, which provides realtime production views and shared wireless connections between machines, combined with the web-based TimberManager for mobiles, tablets and PCs that allows him to follow progress on everything from land harvested to specific machines on site.

“Maps and Manager have been really beneficial for our business. They give us a good idea on cycle times and the ability of

each machine to actually have the amount of wood required on the ground for the skidder to haul,” says Mr Sharples.

“It provides us with a real-time record of daily production quantities and I can use that as a reference for each block we go to.

FML is looking at accessing this information as well, which would help us to work out the true volume and number of trees in each block, then use the information for what we could expect to harvest in each area.

“I think being able to keep a record of the volume each machine hour is doing every day is imperative for us to assess the true operating cost of our Logging operation and whether we can be competitive, more than anything else.

“We need to be looking ahead to work out whether we’re able to competitively and safely do these jobs. If you’ve got a reference point you can work from, and you’re aware of areas you could have done for a better price or where you lost money, that makes the business more viable and capable of giving the forestry company a

better price to do jobs.”

As well as information, Mr Sharples says having the right machinery for the right jobs is a big driver of productivity and profitability.

In 1995 he was working as a registered builder when he was approached by a forester friend who wanted him to join him in pitching for a local logging contract with Carter Holt Harvey.

Looking for a change, Mr Sharples agreed and established Sharples Logging in Nelson as a cable hauling contractor. The next step was a trip to the United States to buy three pieces of plant – a Skaget swing yarder, a new loader and a John Deere 850C dozer.

“The dozer went extremely well. It was like a pedal car – you manoeuvred using the clutches on either side and the brake in the middle!” he laughs.

“I still have an 850C but it’s a later model. It’s a John Deere which we use with a winch for pulling wood in all the hard-toget-to places such as gullies, and two-stage it out with our skidders. That dozer has about 12,500 hours on it.”

14 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

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forest talk

Now based out of Rangiora, Sharples Logging, harvesting blocks under contract for FML, uses two local sawmills who own their own forests as well as private woodlot blocks, mainly on the foothills in the outer Canterbury region. Sharples Logging has several John Deere machines including a 768L-11 bogie skidder, a 2954D processor, a 959ML directional feller and a 748H skidder serviced by local dealership Drummond & Etheridge, plus several excavators.

Mr Sharples is expecting the 768L-II, a six-wheel bogie skidder with strong traction and flotation in wet and muddy terrain, will give them the opportunity to pull wood everyday in all kinds of weather.

“A lot of the ground we work on, especially around the Peninsula, hasn’t got a lot of binding to it and once it’s wet it becomes very porridgy, so we end up with a lot more difficult areas to pull out of,” he explains.

“We have run tracks on a previous 848L11 skidder which has made a difference, but the bogie skidder has a lot more traction, and the option to put tracks on it will give us the ability to pull wood for longer hours.

I’m hoping we’ll be able to pull bigger volumes as well, with each drag.”

Sharples Logging fells, processes and loads up to 350 tonnes each day in peak harvest season with an average piece size of around 1.5T, depending on whether they are working in a tended or unpruned blocks, with transport of the timber done by contractors.

Mr Sharples says fuel economy is another important reason he runs a predominantly John Deere fleet.

“The fuel consumption from each of our John Deere machines has been very good,

minimal compared to other machines that we used. We like the machines for their design and engineering options on stronger power ergonomics and the availability of servicing and upkeep, but fuel consumption is probably the biggest driver for us.

“I think John Deere is a class above, putting physics in motion for the best possible result. I’ve had a very good run out of the machines I’ve had and that’s the reason why I’ll continue to stick with them.” NZL

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Obituary

Rest in power, Jason Wynyard THE FORESTRY SECTOR HAS BEEN shaken by the untimely death of champion woodchopper Jason Wynyard (14 November 1973 – 4 October 2023).

A proud son of Ngāti Maniapoto and Ngāpuhi, Jason hailed from Kawakawa.

This gentle and humble giant of Timbersports created an unparalleled legacy, winning 230 Championship titles! So says founder of the NZ Rural Games and NZ Rural Sports Awards, Steve Hollander.

Fresh from his 2022 triumph at the New Zealand Championship, Jason followed it up in March this year with second place in the New Zealand Stihl Timbersports Men’s Championship.

Only the night before he was bestowed with the NZ Rural Sports Awards Lifetime Legacy Award.

Over the years, he won the individual world championship nine times and holds the world record for Single Buck (with assistant) with a time of 9.39 in 2007.

In addition, he won the Stihl Timbersports Series no less than 14 times.

In the 2017 New Year Honours, Jason was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to the sport of wood chopping.

In May this year, it was announced that he had been diagnosed with Stage 4 Burkitt lymphoma, an aggressive form of cancer, and after undergoing aggressive treatment he was advised by doctors on 18 August that he had only weeks to live. He died on 4 October 2023, at the age of 49.

Mr Hollander reflects: “It’s so deeply tragic that this mountain of a man who was in the prime of his life has been taken from us. Jason was a beacon of inspiration for many, myself included.

“I was fortunate to meet him at small woodchopping gatherings across New Zealand. At a time when Timbersports barely registered on mainstream media’s radar, Jason played a pivotal role in spearheading a woodchopping showcase on Auckland’s Queens Wharf during the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Leading the Kiwis against their Australasian rivals, this event was a precursor to the New Zealand

ents, for the diameter. This heavy

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Jason Wynyard in his prime.

Rural Games with its own ANZAXE competition, before the New Zealand Timbersports Championship became the marquee event at the Games.

“The Timbersports and Rural Sports communities mourn the loss of an icon. Jason’s unwavering commitment and prowess are a testament destined to motivate generations of woodchoppers. On behalf of the NZ Rural Games Trust and all our partners, our deepest sympathies go out to Sharon, his two sons and the entire Wynyard whānau.” NZL

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Above: Jason took second place at the 2023 New Zealand Stihl Timbersports Men’s Championship at the Ford Ranger New Zealand Rural Games in Palmerston North. Jack Jordan is in first place and Shane Jordan in third.

Left: Jason in his element in March this year.

ents, for the 16 NZ LOGGER | November 2023 diameter. This heavy at set it apart from

“The latest edition of the QS630, with all its upgrades is proving to be a great asset to our business.

We’ve added paint marking this time around and have found it creates efficiencies within our operation greater than we expected.

Also the Log Mate 510 operating system is easy to navigate around, we’ve had no trouble coming to grips with this. Overall we’re very happy with the new package Southstar has provided”.

Pete – PJ & DA Stephens Limited Tokoroa.

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Iron Test

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EST EST EST 1909 1909 1909

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Operator, Nigel Hutchinson (Hutchy), walks Komatsu’s 931XC eight-wheeled harvester out to the road at Bluewood Thinning’s Southland block.

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November 2023 | NZ LOGGER 19

The Komatsu 931 XC’s cab at full tilt forward.

AS WE VENTURE INTO THE DEEP SOUTH BETWEEN INVERCARGILL and Fiordland in search of an eight-wheeled Komatsu harvester at Bluewood Thinning’s operation, we notice a lot of the trees scattered on flat farmland seem to be about 15% taller than similar trees in the North Island. The Iron Test team throws around various theories as to what might cause this.

The long rolling hills of Southland look like ideal ground for growing Douglas fir trees too, but that theory doesn’t pan out once we get in the forest. Maybe after a thin they will come right? Going by the stem quality going out on passing log trucks to the port, these guys at Bluewood Thinning’s are definitely thinning out the correct trees.

The stand is around 28 years old, so once this thin is complete they’ll have another 17 years to pack on some decent timber and the growing room to do it before they reach the target age of 45.

The Ernslaw One-managed Gowan Hill Forest is actually a bit steeper than rolling in places and we need four-wheel drive to avoid loosening up the gravel too much on the hills for the log trucks.

The terrain has a bit of rock and this was ripped pre planting.

It is a bit bumpy looking down the rows in the thinned stands.

At first sight, the Komatsu 931 XC is a different-looking machine. It clearly demonstrates some of its key advantages on the bumpy ground as it is driven out to the road with the eight wheels all hugging the terrain like a centipede, instead of the bouncing you would expect in a four- or six-wheeled machine.

You can barely see where it’s been either, even in muddy conditions, so the low ground pressure designed into this unit is proving itself.

The cab is also tilted to level with the terrain, improving the ride and reducing fatigue on the operator.

Finding the perfect pro head We catch up with Paul Roche from Komatsu Forest to see how this machine came to be here in the deep south.

“Back in June 2019 we sold the first Komatsu rubber tyred solution to CMH Contracting in Rotorua after a visit to Australia,” Paul says.

“This was a 951 with a S172 head. Our thoughts were, let’s get the biggest we can get for New Zealand’s timber. We had viewed an operation in Australia and the form of the trees was really nice, very little branching and these seemed to almost snap off when going through the S132 head.

“So, based on our thinking we went as HD as we could – the big 951 along with the S172 was ordered and off to work it went. What a very capable machine and it paved the way for us.

“Based on that scenario we had a great working machine providing excellent data back to the forest owner and contractor.

The Komatsu 931 XC’s cab at full tilt back.

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Above left: The foldaway step is perfectly placed.

Above right: Regular operator, Nigel Hutchinson (Hutchy), and Iron Tester, Alister Hudson (right), discuss the eight-wheeler’s benefits.

Below: Regular operator, Hutchy, opens up the bonnet for inspection while bitterly cold squalls loom overhead.

Everyone was happy. We had so much precise data, it was a massive push for ‘where to next’ with base and heads we were to supply going forward.”

From that data they noticed some very interesting information, adds Paul: “The machine was too big for our thinnings here in New Zealand. The data was showing we should have provided the smaller 931 and S132. The live data capture was incredible, we could see in real time production and why the machine was too big.

“In the meantime, we had sold another rubber combo for the Bluewood Naseby operation. Naseby was unique in many ways – tree sizes and varieties signalled again we should go for the 951 S172 combo.

“Again the data came back that we should go smaller.”

The North Island contractor ordered the first 931 S132 and data soon came back proving they were onto a winner says Paul: “Again. even this machine was doing it with ease. Time to cut between trees had improved massively, process time had sped up, the differences were so very clear we now had the right set up.

“With Hutchy, (Nigel Hutchinson) from Bluewood, we had an operator who was really ‘in phase’ with what was happening in the thinnings and when the new blocks came up in Southland both Clint (McIvor – Bluewood owner) and Hutchy knew exactly what they wanted – the 931XC S132 combo.”

They fitted the 230H boom to this one with 11 metres of reach.

As far as delivery time from initial orders for the XC, Komatsu Forest orders stock for the year ahead.

“It’s a real crystal ball view at present. We then take the option to change spec when the factory closes the order and we have to lock down the specs.

“Depending on where we are it could be a six-month wait for an XC. Other models, of which we sell many in Australia, can be sourced from there. It’s great having access to each other’s stock and really does work well.”

Rolling the dice The only issue was it had to be the eight-wheel drive, says Paul.

“I had no experience of what this could offer. I knew stability was a bonus and all other results pointed to this platform being ideal but I had never seen one in application so was again a little hesitant – would it turn okay, fit down the rows, the Gowan Hill forest is very narrow and tight.

“I couldn’t really provide any practical knowledge re the XC platform. It was Clint who rolled the dice and ordered the machine.

“It’s proven to be a great decision. I would say Clint’s actions have led the way for the steeper thinnings blocks around New Zealand – really a must see for anyone considering thinnings.”

SERIOUS POWER FOR BIG TIME LOGGERS

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Main: Luckily Gowan Hill is mostly made of rock so the heavy rain hasn’t had much effect on the loadout skid for Bluewood Thinnings.

Insert: The stem quality is a bit challenging with multiple deformities, rapid tapers and short lengths, so it’s impressive that the Komatsu has performed to expectations in this forest.

Looking under the bonnet of this 22-tonne harvester, there’s a 6-cylinder turbo 7.4 litre AGCO Power diesel which has a long history in Komatsu forwarders and harvesters and is made in Finland, while the rest of the machine is manufactured in Sweden.

The front and rear axles are geared bogies with diff locks and have high clearance with portal axles housed in the rims.

It has a top speed of 20km per hour and an impressive 200KN of tractive force.

Direct power Regular operator, Hutchy, says the new 931 has a very direct form of power compared to the 951 and it is really quick. That’s the first thing we notice as well when it has a stem in the head, it is surprisingly fast which is great for production. But, as Iron Tester Alister Hudson says, it could be dialled back a bit first-off, especially when thinning, to avoid damaging any of the remaining trees.

It must be great to know your new machine is viewed as having excessive amounts of speed when that translates to productivity and hitting targets. You would probably get away with describing this head as violently quick actually. Bluewood CEO, Kath McIvor, says there was talk of dialling the speed back but it never happened and Hutchy is obviously used to it now.

The head has two paint options for colour marking but Hutchy says with just two or three grades to be cut in this rough stuff

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there’s no need for it to be used, as each grade is obvious at first sight: “This would be a good option though when we get into better quality wood where we have more grades. It just makes life a lot easier for the forwarder operator unloading at the roadside sorting area when there is colour marking with more grades.”

Alister adds, “The colour marking systems in general do have a bit of maintenance involved as well. We put diesel in with the dye to help it maintain good flow and we have to be careful sediment doesn’t build up in the bottom of the tank. We have drill bits on hand to clear out the nozzles as they tend to clog up, especially if we’re not using them often. ” A bit like the old handheld spray cans from the manual log making and dot cutting days then, except a whole lot faster.

When asked if the tracks will stay on all year, Hutchy says.

“Pretty much down here in the deep south, unless there is a drought.

“So far I’ve only had this machine on a thirty degree slope but the tracks help all the time in the wet.”

Komatsu has made five recent improvements to the S132 head, starting with Constant Cut which ensures rapid cutting while limiting chain speed to 40 metres a second to maintain safety.

The entire length measuring wheel system has been redesigned right back to the hydraulic system. A separate valve now controls the wheel measuring cylinder which is also new. This guarantees improved measuring accuracy.

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Find End Laser is an optional extra included on the Bluewood machine to save time, wood and fuel because you don’t have to recut the butt to find the end.

The Iron Test team saw this make a huge difference to the speed of processing because once the tree is down the operator is running the head further down the stem, delimbing and cutting the first log before an older style processor would have even gotten to the butt and started to cut it to orient itself and begin the measuring process. That early start and then the impressive feed and cut rate must make a huge inroad into the challenge of making money in the small piece size wood that thinnings often present.

To improve on the head’s service life Komatsu has reinforced certain parts of the head such as the stops for the feed rollers when the head is closed.

The top section where the upper knife is mounted has also been reinforced. Various reinforcements have been added to the main body as well, to improve service life.

And finally a wider tilt angle has been added which means less strain on the head, especially when felling trees downhill where the head risks hitting the stop position.

Despite adding all this extra steel, the head only weighs in at 1380kg which helps make it quite nimble.

We noticed this strengthening theme in the Komatsu forwarder we tested at Grimmer Contracting earlier in the year as well and it is presumably to cope with the faster growing, and hence heavier, wood encountered in clearfell in New Zealand versus the selective harvesting more commonly seen in Europe.

Komatsu promotes the 931XC as a low-impact machine with its low ground pressure, while also offering high operator comfort from the tilting cab and high stability with that extra axle, and these definitely panned out as we expected.

The conversation with Kath McIvor turns to roading and although the roads are far better in the South Island than they

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are in the North, Kath says a recent trip to Adelaide proved that the Australian experience is even worse.

“At least here they attempt to fill the potholes a lot of the time but in Adelaide the holes really are holes that you drive down into and out the other side, much larger than you’d see here.”

Kath says the crew has only been in this area since April and commutes from around Southland.

“Prior to that we were in Naseby for three five-year contracts and that was harvesting all sorts, Douglas, Radiata, Larch, Ponderosa and Corsican. This wood here goes to the Daiken Southland MDF plant at Mataura and to export.”

The Gowan Hill Forest was a farm back in the day and has a very hard pan so the establishment foresters decided ripping the rocky ground with a small fleet of bulldozers would assist the trees to get their roots deeper. Most of the rips were downhill to aid in traction but the aftermath is a bumpy ride for operators as they work their way through harvesting and extracting the logs.

The extreme levels of stem deformity are put down to snow, wind, challenging soils and a shortage of good quality seed available at the time of planting about 28 years ago.

Hutchy says he’s never 9 seen quadruple-headed trees before in such

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EST EST 1909 1909 |TOCALL WWW.SHAWS.CO.NZ JONNY EDWARDS 021 944 894 THE THE SUPPLIER SUPPLIER NEW TO NEW ZEALAND ZEALAND HEAVY HEAVY INDUSTRY INDUSTRY 26 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

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1: Easy access filters on the AGCO Power 7.4-litre engine.

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3: The cab tilt rams look more than adequate.

4: Nice office! The cab interior and seat is spacious, comfortable and stylish.

8 5: The PC and controls are well laid out.

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Above left: The popular, clean and quick S132 felling and processing head.

Right: Hutchy and Alister are happy with Bluewood’s new harvester.

Below: Despite it being midday, the lights are definitely necessary as stormy weather descends on Gowan Hill.

numbers. “Further up the hill the growth of these 28ish year old trees is even more stunted. A lot of them are only six metres tall and so skinny that they struggle to go through the head.”

I guess the good thing is after this thinning the remaining trees will get a bit of a light boost and be able to start catching up.

“What we noticed in Naseby,” Kath says, “is that walking through the bush the branches would break underneath you.

Here they ping back at you so they are certainly a bit different.”

There are a few unique challenges in here but the up side is this kind of harvesting tends to be a bit more stable and less speculatory than clearfelling.

“We are lucky to be working with Ernslaw,” Kath says.

Iron Tester, Alister, has worked in this forest roadlining years ago so can relate to the bumpy ride these guys have been having.

You can read his thoughts on running the 931 XC in his Iron Test column over the page.

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Iron Tester: Alister Hudson

A pretty good all-rounder IT’S BEEN A WHILE SINCE I LAST caught up with Hutchy – just about Christmas time a couple of years ago when I went up to Naseby to see Bluewoods’ Komatsu 951 working when it was fairly new.

That machine was pretty impressive and so is the new 931. It’s got the same layout, just with eight-wheel drive and a size down, which is comparable in size to the King One Logging’s Ponsse Scorpion and the Logset 8H hybrid that I run for Mike Hurring, which is a good mid-range size for thinning and smaller clearfall.

Access into the 931 cabin is good with wide steps and good handrails. The step that folds away under the cab is neat too.

First impressions of the cab are good with lots of room and the switchgear easy to reach.

The PC is in a good place and has all the usual readouts, with automation that’s as good as any on the market. The cab is one of the quietest of any machine I’ve run too.

The only blind spot is the boom on the right side but it’s not too bad. It’s good to be able to slew the whole cab/boom to the rear of the machine as it makes it easy

to reverse back out of a row, so no staring at a reversing camera or looking over your shoulder.

The machine has joysticks rather than the various mini levers that the others run and the functions can be moved to any button to suit the operator, which is a handy feature.

Changing from an excavator-type harvester to a wheeled machine can be challenging but with proper joysticks and the boom off to the side like an excavator it might be a setup that takes less time to adjust to.

The cabin/boom don’t seem to sit as far back on the chassis as the 951, maybe because of the wheels – this gives the smaller machine a little more room to work in close which is really handy on a first thinning job.

The machine is very stable when working over the side, better than some of its competitors. It’s also very quick in its movements but that could be dialled back.

I’ve had some experience with two roller heads in the past – with mixed results.

We’ve found they don’t tend to thrive in poor-formed wood, which some of the Gowan Hill forest is known for, but the

Iron Tester, Alister Hudson. little S132 surprised me, dealing with a few roughies and a couple of double leaders without too much swearing. I’d be interested to see how one of Komatsu’s multi-roller heads like a C144 would perform in those conditions, as a comparison.

There may be more differences between brands of wheeled harvester than any other type of forestry machine and they all have strong points and weak points, but the 931 seems to be a pretty good all-rounder, hopefully it serves Bluewood thinning well.

I’d give the machine a score of 8 bent Gowan Hill trees out of 10. NZL

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SPEC S KOMATSU 931 XC HARVESTER – SPECIFICATIONS ENGINE 7.4Litre Tier 3 AGCO POWER, 6-cylinder diesel engine with turbo and intercooler.

Peak power 190kW (254hp) @ 1850rpm Maximum torque 1000N-m @ 1,500 rpm Max speed 20 KPH HYDRAULICS Main pump 528 L/pm Working hydraulics have dual-circuit loadsensing system with variable piston pumps.

BOOM/ARM Model Max reach

Komatsu 230H 11 metres with head on

PROCESSOR/HARVESTER Model Rotation Max delimber knife opening

Komatsu S132 360 continuous 641mm

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625mm 1380kg 720mm 0-5 metres a second

REFILL CAPACITIES (LITRES) Fuel tank Hydraulic tank DEF Tank Cooling system

480 220 42 38

DIMENSIONS (MM) Length Width Height Ground clearance Tyre size Tractive Force 200kN Operating weight

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21,900kg

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Looking Back

34 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

Forestry pioneer, Ross Lockyer, is back with an excerpt from his third book (of five), The River is my Highway: A New Zealand Forest Ranger in the Jungles of Borneo.

Having spent his working life living and working in the forestry and logging industries in remote locations of South-East Asia and the Pacific, including Papua New Guinea, Borneo, Irian Jaya/West Papua, Sumatra, Burma, Thailand, The Philippines, Malaysia and Kiribati, he captures a time in history when real adventure was still possible.

Boom tug rafting meranti peeler logs, showing the International Timber Corporation Indonesia (ITCI) sorting pond at Kenangan, upper Balikpapan Harbour, East Kalimantan, 1976.

November 2023 | NZ LOGGER 35

Looking Back

I

N 1973 I RELOCATED FROM THE SOUTHERN Highlands of Papua New Guinea and started a new job as Raw Materials Superintendent (later Raw Materials Manager) for International Timber Corporation Indonesia (known as ITCI). This was a joint venture company, 65% owned

by Weyerhaeuser of the USA, and 35% by a consortium of Indonesian Generals. I was based in the frontier town of Samarinda, some 100 kilometres up the Mahakam River in East Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo).

There were no roads to Samarinda and no airport at that time, so the only access was a two-hour drive over a very bad road from the city of Balikpapan to the Mahakam River mouth, and then a three-hour boat trip upstream to Samarinda.

The ITCI concession covered 600,000 hectares and extended from the northern tip of the Balikpapan Harbour, north-east, to the Mahakam River. The Mahakam River was the northern boundary and bordered more than one third of the total ITCI logging area.

The operations at ITCI in the 1970s involved the selective logging of high-value tropical hardwood logs (mainly meranti and kapur) for export in round-log form to Korea, Japan, Europe, and Taiwan. The total monthly ITCI log production in 1975 averaged some 135,000 cubic metres (tonnes), or 20 to 22 shiploads. ITCI log production constituted around 10 percent of the total Indonesian log export volume at that time.

About half of that production volume was harvested by ITCI company’s own equipment and personnel and transported to, and rafted out of, Kenangan Camp at the head of the Balikpapan Harbour. About 10 ships per month were loaded in the upper Balikpapan Harbour directly from the Kenangan holding ponds. The other half of ITCI’s log production was produced on the northern side of the concession, and those logs were transported from the stump, via

jungle roads, to the Mahakam River and its feeder streams, for rafting. There was one logging operation at Senoni (near Selerong village), about 120 kilometres up-river from Samarinda, which was an ITCI company operation, while the remainder of the Mahakam River production was produced by three independent logging contractors.

All the logs from ITCI Senoni, and Rimbayu Barito, Rasjid and Cita contractor camps had to be rafted and towed down the Mahakam River for up to 300 kilometres to Palaran log pond, just downstream of Samarinda, for sorting, documenting, and preparation for onward towing downstream to the ship loading points out in the Makassar Straits at Muara Berau. The tugboats belonged to CV Telen, our towing contractor, who was contracted to do all the towing, and was responsible for the safe transfer of the logs from the logging camps to Palaran log pond.

Because of the tricky conditions, including floating islands of water hyacinth, tight bends in the river, and other river traffic, the tugboats were only allowed to tow in daylight. Each evening the tug captains

Top: A Kutai Dayak village on the Jembayan River, tributary of the Mahakam River, East Kalimantan, 1975.

Above: Ross Lockyer, with Mabel the office baby orangutan, having a beer after work at the ITCI office Samarinda, East Kalimantan, 1973.

Far left: Map of Borneo showing Samarinda, Mahakam River, Makassar Straits & Balikpapan.

Left: Map of Kalimantan showing the Mahakam River and mouth, Samarinda, Selerong (Senuni), Balikpapan and Berau loading point, Makassar Strait.

36 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

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Looking Back

Meranti peeler logs in the hold aboard a logship, Muara Berau, Mahakam River mouth, Makassar Straits, East Kalimantan, 1975.

would pick a good, straight, wide stretch of river and moor the rafts up to some sturdy trees growing along the riverbank. Then they would tie their tugboats up along the outside of the rafts to guard and protect them from log thieves.

A suitable arrangement There were four main mooring points that the tugs regularly used, and the two 38 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

most up-river spots were particularly good because there were some large kapok trees growing right on the riverbank that the crews could use to tie the rafts up to. Both of those mooring points, however, each a day’s towing apart, were on land owned by a Dayak tribe ruled by a tough old matriarch.

She was known locally as the Dayak Queen.

The Dayak Queen was a Kutai Dayak. The Kutais are the main tribe of Dayaks who

inhabit the lower 650 kilometres or so of the Mahakam River basin. Bahasa Kutai is the language of the Mahakam River that I had first learnt upon arrival in Samarinda under the misapprehension that I was learning Bahasa Indonesia, the Indonesian language. The Dayak tribal chiefs are usually male, although the senior women of each tribe (i.e. the chief’s wife or wives, mother, mother-in-law, and sisters of the

wives) have a lot of say in the ruling of the tribe. The Dayak chief never makes any major decisions without discussing everything with the senior women and usually heeding their advice. If the chief is absent, becomes ill, or dies, then the wife, with the assistance of the other senior women, rules the tribe as de facto chief until another male chief succeeds to the role. At times, some sub-tribes may continue to be ruled by a woman, and she can be just as tough as her male counterparts.

In the 1800s and even up until 1940, head hunting was carried out by the Dayaks on almost any pretence. Heads were required if a baby was born to a high-ranking member of the tribe, or if someone important died, or for various other reasons. The senior women of the tribe had a big say in giving the order to raid an enemy village and take heads, or if a woman was in charge, she would make the sole decision herself.

Head hunting by the Dayaks started up again when the Japanese invaded Borneo.

The Dayaks hated the Japanese and were experts at sneaking up on them in the

Above left: Jumri Noor (tugboat contractor, left) and Tom Ross (a mate from Samarinda) on the meranti peeler log rafts alongside a ship in the Makassar Straits, East Kalimantan, 1975.

Above right: Ross Lockyer waiting to board a newly arrived logship, upper Balikpapan Harbour, Kenangan, East Kalimantan 1977.

Below left: Kutai villager pit-sawing a kapur log along the banks of the Mahakam River, East Kalimantan, 1977.

Below right: Private sawmill on the banks of the Mahakam River near Samarinda, East Kalimantan, 1977. jungle and silently killing them using poison darts fired from their blow pipes. If there wasn’t too much risk of being spotted or being attacked in return by the Japanese, they would also remove the heads and bring them back to their village. To this day, there are still many dried Japanese heads stored up in the ceiling beams of Dayak longhouses, wrapped in banana leaves.

For some months, the tugboat and towing foremen had been getting a bit of aggro from the Dayaks about paying some sort of mooring fees when they used their kapok trees to tie up to. The boss foreman came to me one day and told me that the Dayaks were threatening to cut the rafts loose at

night if we didn’t pay up. I told him to tie up somewhere else, and he said that all the kapok trees on the only safe stretches of river up there belonged to the same Kutai tribe. So I told him that we wouldn’t pay any mooring fees, that they were probably only bluffing anyway, and that he should just ignore them.

A few weeks later, Jumri (the owner of CV Telen), came to find me in a panic: “Boss, the Dayaks have cut our rafts loose in the night, and we have a real mess up the river with drifting rafts, and logs smashing off village toilet rafts, tearing fishing boats loose from their moorings, and generally creating havoc with the other boats on the river!”

November 2023 | NZ LOGGER 39

Looking Back

Jumri had all his available boats up-river, rounding up the rafts and logs, and corralling them along the riverbank while his crews tried to reassemble the rafts. The villagers had also been cutting some of the logs loose from the drifting rafts and towing them up the side creeks to hide them, so they could saw them up later on their village pitsaws.

Jumri’s foreman had gone to see the Queen, and she admitted having cut the rafts loose, but she told him that she had warned his men, and that she would keep doing it until we paid her mooring fees.

She also told them that she wouldn’t deal with them, and that she would only talk to the orang putih (white man) boss from Samarinda.

So the next morning, I took off in my personal speedboat, the Suzy Wong with my ITCI rafting foreman from the Palaran log pond, and we headed up-river to have a berunding (meeting) with the Queen.

Upon our arrival at the village jetty, we tied up to be told by the villagers that the boss lady would only talk to the orang putih big boss, and that my foreman had to stay at the jetty or on the boat.

I was duly escorted nearly half a mile into the bush to the traditional longhouse where the Queen and her extended family lived.

I climbed the ladder onto the longhouse verandah and was invited along to her quarters. Once inside and seated on the floor, I was offered arak (a type of native beer made from the fruit of the aren palm), which could be pretty potent stuff depending on how long it had been fermenting, so I tried to drink as slowly as I could, to limit my intake.

The Dayak ibu was not very old, maybe in her fifties, and she had the long, stretched earlobes with heavy weights hanging from them that were standard custom with Dayak women from the upper Mahakam River. She spoke the Kutai Dayak dialect as well as her own particular tribal language, so we had no problems communicating. She and I sat and talked and negotiated for three or four hours, interspersed with offers of food and more arak at frequent intervals. Finally, we came to an amicable conclusion and a suitable arrangement.

The final deal was that we could tie our rafts up to the kapok trees anywhere in her territory at any time we liked without let or hindrance, and her men would make sure that they were always safe from log thieves.

In return, I would send up the retribusi (retribution or rent) every month on one of our tugboats and have it delivered to her longhouse. The retribution was agreed at 40 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

Top: Tugboats towing log rafts out to a Korean logship bound for Korean plymills, Muara Berau at mouth of the Mahakam River, East Kalimantan, 1974.

Middle: Foreman, Amiruddin and Ross Lockyer inspect meranti peeler log rafts before ship loading, ITCI Kenangan logpond, upper Balikpapan Harbour, East Kalimantan, 1977.

Bottom: ITCI Palaran log pond on the Mahakam River. Village children use the rafts for a short cut home, East Kalimantan, 1974.

SA O IN

© L

Above: ITCI Senuni sort yard with meranti and kapur peeler logs, alongside the Mahakam River, East Kalimantan, 1974.

Below: Load of meranti logs enters the ITCI Senuni log yard, Mahakam Riverside, East Kalimantan, 1975. four tins of ship’s biscuits, a bag of salt, four sacks of rice, ten kilos of ikan asin (salt fish), and five kilos of pinang (betel nuts). If we were late or missed a payment, then we could expect our rafts to be cut loose again.

I agreed with her that we would honour the deal, and we did just that. She also insisted that I, personally, deliver the first lot of retribusi, but after that the tugboat captains could deliver it.

A few days later, after our ITCI general supplier, Ong had been to the market to buy the requisite supplies, I delivered the agreed payment in one of our bigger boats and ended up having to again spend most of the day drinking arak and eating with the Dayak Queen and discussing matters of local interest, the Provincial Government

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Looking Back

Above left: Dumping meranti logs into the ITCI log pond, Senuni Camp, Mahakam River, East Kalimantan, 1974.

Above right: A Taiwanese crewman operates the clapped out steam winches on the rust bucket Taiwanese log ship, MV Wah Lee, Makassar Straits, East Kalimantan. Note the Taiwanese safety boots, 1974.

in Samarinda (which she did not like at all), and general happenings on the river.

I was pleased that I didn't have to do that too often, or I would have turned into an alcoholic. The good lady didn’t appear to be affected by the arak at all. She must have had a pretty solid constitution.

On the last week of every month after

that, Ong would buy the agreed supplies at the market and take them out to one of Jumri’s tugboats at our jetty, and the captain would dutifully deliver them to our new business partner. On the boat’s return, the captain would confirm that the delivery had been carried out and that the Queen was satisfied – and that she sent me her

regards. We never had any more problems after that with our rafts.

Sometimes, if I was upriver and had an hour or so to spare, I would call on her for a chat, and we would talk about this and that and drink some more arak. She was good value that lady – very sharp, intelligent, and well informed. NZL

The River is my Highway: A New Zealand Forest Ranger in the Jungles of Borneo

LIVING AND WORKING IN THE REMOTE SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS OF Papua New Guinea (PNG), Ross Lockyer had never heard about Indonesia. Yet in 1973, he was offered a forestry supervisor’s job based in Samarinda, Indonesian Borneo, and fell in love with the place on his first day.

Ross worked on the rivers and in the remote jungles of Indonesian Borneo for the next five years, quickly learning local languages, immersing himself in the Indonesian way of life, and learning the ways of the mighty Mahakam River and the Makassar Straits on which he spent most of each working day.

Compared to pre-independence PNG, living in isolated Samarinda seemed like the height of luxury to Ross, although coming from sparsely populated PNG, Ross’s first experience of Samarinda was a true assault on the senses with its crowds of people, dozens of mosques, crazy drivers, and myriad overpowering smells. Yet, overlooking the city was the new and illustrious Lamin Indah Hotel, which boasted a classy bar and restaurant and attractive and sophisticated female staff from Java, in particular the beautiful Lestari – surely a Javanese Princess!

The third book in the adventurous series about Ross’s life, The River is my Highway brings to life a whole new series of exploits, including provoking and then assuaging a local war, 42 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

single-handedly destroying village ablution facilities with a speed-boat and facing a barrage of nasty consequences, hunting local wildlife in the most committed way imaginable, loading log-ships at sea, smuggling hi-fi gear, searching for log pirates, and fronting up to the Dayak Queen. Between escapades, Ross somehow finds time to get married and start a family.

This book includes some 75 photographs from Ross’ vast collection which richly illustrate his writing.

Get ready for more colourful, laugh-aloud yarns from the master storyteller who brought you An Accidental Bushman and Cannibals, Crocodiles and Cassowaries. Once you start reading, you won’t want to put this book down!

For more information visit the author’s website at: www.rosslockyer.co.nz

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Special Feature: Weather Event

Slash deluge hits Queenstown Jim Childerstone investigates the recent slash/log inundation which engulfed Queenstown Cemetery, after flowing down Bob’s Peak. His association with the Queenstown Lakes District Council reserves goes back to 1977, originally starting with his portable mill.

O

TAGO’S PRIME TOURIST RESORT gets hit by an extreme weather bomb, right in the middle of a Skyline logging operation above Queenstown’s CBD. It was bound to happen at some stage on extreme steep rocky slopes – aka Gisborne/ Hawke’s Bay. But this type of weather event would normally only occur perhaps a couple of times within 50 years.

It was a timely reminder for Queenstown to adapt the 2005 forestry management plan for its 650 ha forested backdrop.

Unfortunately, Skyline’s clearance of tall timber under its expanded gondola chairlift enterprise made prime time news for all the wrong reasons.

All for the wrong reasons. Basically, trees falling across cableways carrying 10-person carriages would be a major disaster.

The September 21/22 deluge this year once again proved that clear felling on slip-prone steep slope logging is not a recommended forestry practice.

But for a number of years tall 70-90-yearold Douglas-fir timber growth had been a constant threat to the company’s cableway and power lines.

Back 20-odd years ago a logging contractor and myself surveyed trees within 10-metre distance of the cableway, skimming above bluffs.

Even at that stage they measured at least three to five meters above the chairlift cables. Some stems exceeded 50 metres in height.

In the last few years two contracting teams had been taking down Douglas-fir, assisted by arborists across bluffs.

The area for the clear fell operation was roughly 100 metres each side of the gondola centre line – about 900 metres from the bottom building to the top.

And it has now proved to be one of the 44 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

Above: A 1911 photo showing early plantings above the existing Queenstown cemetery. The Bob's Peak Skyline gondola was built in the 1960s.

Top and opposite page: The cemetery was severely impacted by the latest bout of extreme weather.

most difficult and most dangerous logging operations in Australasia, involving stringent health and safety regulations.

The Bob’s Peak forest was established on some extreme rock-fall areas.

Even Skyline founder, Hylton Hensman, was reputed to have thrown fir seed along the route.

An early 1911 photo (opposite bottom) shows planted trees above where the cemetery had been established, which included Pinus species, sycamore and wattle.

Native beech growth dominates in some gullies, damp areas and terraces, where many of us locals cleared shrub and pulled out exotic growth.

Two problems now facing Skyline are control of regenerating fir and other exotics, and what to grow for slope stabilisation. Certainly nothing that will reach above cableways, which must rule out native beech and podocarp.

The blame game Apportioning blame for the recent damage would be a tricky exercise.

It’s certainly not the fault of the logging contractors.

Logging contractors who I worked with on two other logging operations in the area, were competent – particularly in select tree and coupe (small area) logging.

There was little Skyline could do in this situation when clearance was required, except possibly taking out the tallest timber over a period of time.

This really goes back to the most comprehensive forest management scheme implemented by Branislav Zoric, completed in 2005.

Contracted from Carter Holt Harvey, Mr Zoric was familiar with Austrian and German systems of parkland forestry with limited production felling.

DIA DG I ANGONSO E S•E D•E D S IEGS N I G•N D•E D L IEVLEI V RER

Special Feature: Weather Event

Known as a permanent continuous cover amenity forest, the object was partly to landscape and thin out unwanted growth with limited tree extraction – known in the trade as “select stem” felling, popular in the EU. The management system prevents regeneration outside forest areas.

It is also successfully being achieved at Mount Oxford in mid Canterbury and some smaller woodlots.

Up to 60-80 stems are felled by specially equipped crew per ha for sale to mainly the domestic market.

The system caters for regeneration growth where specifically measured good grade stems are extracted and milled.

Douglas-fir, with high regen capability, allows for understory trees to be pruned and thinned, left to mature over 40-45 years.

Growth rates in the Wakatipu were recognised by many foresters as phenomenal.

Douglas fir is a highly prized construction grade timber, and my job for Mr Zoric was to supervise a couple of trials in 2003/4.

Net returns theoretically paid a silviculture crew to undertake some pruning and thinning, and widening of walk- and mountain bike-tracks. Also replanting cutover areas with alternative species.

This scheme was adapted for implementation by the Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) in 2005.

Except for an updated report we submitted in 2021, it seems Council has taken note of clear felling on steep slopes, in spite of pressure from conservationists to get rid of all exotic growth – predominantly Douglas-fir, a conifer labelled as a wilding species.

Also recommended was running a mobile chipper to mulch up residues where possible.

The result over a period of time would leave a well-managed amenity forest featuring picnic areas, tracks free of unwanted weed growth and scenic views across Lake Wakatipu with its surrounding mountains.

Mr Zoric’s 60-page summary should be available from the QLDC library.

The blame for the current mess must fall on extreme weather events and climate change. NZL

Top: Coupe felling showing Douglas fir stacks at Bob's Peak.

Above: Some tall timber handled by logging crews taking out 50-metre high Douglas fir above bluffs.

46 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

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New Zealand forestry operating model and is now deployed widely, including Australia, and Europe.

Trimble General Manager, David Joll, says the company focuses on enabling smarter decision-making at every step of the process, by combining industry-specialised software and appropriate hardware into solutions for land management, forest management and fibre management.

“Like many supply chain systems, to be effective, they need to directly cater to industry requirements. Many logistics packages for general freight, long haul, courier and the like, while doing a great job for the industries they operate in, do poorly when attempts are made to apply them to forestry. We have seen this on several occasions and as a result our solutions are tailor-made for forestry and will continue to evolve with the industry.”

Integration is key One such evolution was the integration of WSX with, not only Trimble’s other products, but also with relevant third parties within the forestry industry. Such integrations included weighbridges, scaling companies, log accounting systems, industry specific apps and forestry companies’ own systems.

OneFortyOne forestry management’s Customer and Logistics Manager, Nigel Brabyn, says the company’s use of Trimble products pre-dates Trimble’s ownership of them!

“We were using Turbo Truck, the predecessor of WSX, when Trimble acquired Asset Forestry and subsequently upgraded to WSX. We had also already implemented what are now Trimble’s geospatial land management and log accounting systems with a company called Cengea prior to its

Cyclone Gabrielle impacted significantly on harvesting and log cartage operations at NZ Forest Managers.

48 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

acquisition by Trimble in about 2011,” he says.

“We chose WSX and its predecessor as, in our experience, they are the best product for the New Zealand log transport industry by far. The other products were added because of the ease of integration.

Prior to their integration we had several separate applications that did not work well together and required a lot of manual intervention.”

For example, he says, it used to take several days to prepare export documentation but after implementation and configuration of Trimble systems “it was a simple task that automatically compiled in a matter of hours”.

Mr Brabyn says integration has been the key benefit from using these products.

“Data moves between the applications with little or no human intervention and this saves time and prevents errors. The local presence and support in New Zealand makes them even better.”

Most recently, there has been a systematic shift by customers away from paper dockets, adds Mr Joll. “Now approximately 20 million t/pa, of the 26 million /t/pa processed through WSX are

managed as paperless transactions,” he says.

Also in Trimble’s product suite, the Log Inventory and Management System (LIMS) provides management control over all phases of timberland, woodland, yard and mill operations. It combines the features of a log or timber accounting system with features for silviculture, harvesting, contractor payables, wood or fibre procurement, wood trading or sales, yard or mill inventory, consumption, and comprehensive reporting and planning tools.

NZ Forest Managers (NZFM) is in

the process of switching to Trimble’s LIMS system. This is currently in the implementation phase.

The company’s Production and Supply Support Specialist, Don McMurray explains: “When we did our log truck dispatching in-house we used WSX and its predecessor Turbo Truck. Due to the difficulty in maintaining trained dispatch staff to provide cover for leave, sickness and the like., it was decided to contract Trimble to provide the Central Dispatch Management Service (CDMS). This commenced on 1 July 2023.”

In that time, Cyclone Gabrielle impacted,

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Dispatcher at OneFortyOne New Zealand’s Belgrove weighbridge and dispatch, south of Nelson. he says, adding that the target of completing the salvage of the windthrow by 30 June 2024 has led to harvesting and log cartage operations increasing nearly four-fold.

“Trimble has been able to call on trained dispatch staff from other regions where they operate CDMS for other clients.”

Given the scale of the task, Trimble identified senior team members from other dispatch operations, as well as hiring key dispatch staff from NZFM, and set them up in Rotorua with the sole focus of managing the logistical challenges Gabrielle created.

“Working closely with NZFM to establish proven Central dispatch policies and practices, as well as opening up communication channels with everyone involved in the operation has been critical to achieving the targets to date. While the success to date can be measured in the sheer volume of logs harvested and delivered in the past months, all parties agree there is still plenty of work ahead of them,” Mr Joll says.

stakeholders to make informed and timely decisions.

• Control: Management tools that allow for more effective control of the overall process and its individual parts.

• Maximise value: Eliminate or minimise elements of the process that lead to suboptimal value recovery.

• Streamlined data management: Minimise overhead in managing data required for and derived from the log supply process, including third party integration and a paperless E-ticket solution.

• Proven technology: A partner with specific domain focus and commitment to research and development.

Mr Joll says: “The connected forest solutions are designed to mitigate risk, optimise production, and increase efficiency and control to meet the needs of

A game changer Asked how Trimble deals with the fact that many differing operating models exist within the timber haulage industry, Mr Joll says they can, in general, be separated into two main models - Harvest and Haul, in which planning and scheduling daily deliveries is part of the logging service, and; Central Dispatch, which involves daily deliveries being planned by a party other than the logger. Some supply operations may use a mixture or variant of the haulage models.

In general, key objectives for many users are the same, with the intention to improve on their current supply chain processes.

These can be identified as: • Visibility: Real-time visibility of the supply chain allowing for them and their 50 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

A skidder working in Kinleith Forest.

end-to-end forestry operations, as well as those of function-specific operators.

“For new markets, visibility is a game changer for forestry managers who have had to operate with old information reliant on a contractor’s view. In a normal manufacturing environment, the production supervisor sits on the mezzanine level overlooking the production activity. Any variance in production, any bottleneck arising, any mechanical failure that causes downtime, can be addressed by a walk downstairs and onto the factory floor. In our environment that is not possible, so real time access to accurate data, with alerts and notifications bringing attention to issues has provided a significant quantum change.”

He adds: “Either as a forest owner or log supplier to a mill, or as a transport provider to a forest/land owner, if you can deliver a better service, better value, more transparency, greater real-time and accurate data, when the client is looking for the go-to people to get the job done, your name sits at the top.

“I know that may seem a no-brainer and maybe a little simplistic, but we have seen it on many occasions where the cheapest folk don’t win, because they cannot commit to a service level delivery, which is becoming increasingly important.” NZL Sponsored by Trimble Forestry.

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FICA.ORG.NZ

your voice The voice of forestry contractors since 2002

Fighting fatigue A MESSAGE FROM PRUE YOUNGER, CEO, FICA Fatigue plays a significant role in road safety in forestry.

Drivers must be able to react quickly, stay focused and make the right decisions to safely operate a vehicle, as fatigue levels can significantly impact these abilities, increasing the risk of motor vehicle incidents (MVIs).

The purpose of this article is to assist forestry industry participants to identify, assess and manage the risks associated with fatigue. This article provides a structured approach to the development of a Fatigue Risk Management system including a fatigue policy, risk assessment tools and risk-based control options to manage fatigue. This should be read as a guide for managing the risk of fatigue at work, providing practical guidance for business and employers (and other PCBUs) and other duty holders on how to manage fatigue to ensure it does not contribute to health and safety risks in the workplace. This guidance material is not designed to replace requirements related to fatigue under other laws, for example heavy vehicle driver fatigue laws or rail safety requirements.

What is fatigue?

Fatigue is a state of tiredness or exhaustion that results in a degree of impairment. This impairment may be physical and/or mental and can result in an increased risk of workplace errors or accidents. All workplaces are affected by fatigue, but those employing shift work are more likely to have a high fatigue risk.

Y

Causes of fatigue Fatigue can be caused by a number of factors, including inadequate sleep and circadian timing. Specifically, inadequate or poor-quality sleep can result in both cumulative and acute fatigue (i.e. having one bad night of sleep may result in acute fatigue the next day, but regularly having inadequate sleep may result in chronically heightened levels of fatigue). Human circadian rhythms are biological processes including the sleep/wake cycle. These rhythms operate on a 24-hour cycle, with ‘low’ periods occurring overnight (particularly between 2-5am). During these periods, the drive for sleep is typically highest, and fatigue is more likely. Additionally, there may be both workrelated and personal causes of fatigue.

Symptoms of fatigue Fatigue can be identified by a number of symptoms, both mental and physical. Mental signs of fatigue can include irritability, increased risk-taking, poor decision-making, attentional problems and poor concentration, among others. Physically, fatigue can manifest in poor hand-eye coordination, headaches, slowed reaction times, tired or sore eyes, microsleeps, and a number of other outcomes.

52 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

These symptoms are linked with an increased risk of errors or accidents in the workplace. Fatigue results in performance-impairment similarly to being under the influence of alcohol. Research has indicated that being awake for 17 hours results in performance at a similar level to having a blood alcohol level of .05%BAC (Dawson and Reid, 1997 ).

How does a fatigue management policy work?

Fatigue management policies are developed to minimise the risk of fatigue-related errors or accidents in the workplace.

This is done in several ways. Individual businesses’ fatigue management policies will consist of a set of rules that define ‘standard hours’ as the base level of the fatigue management framework. These rules will effectively define maximum shift times, minimum break times along with additional limits to aggregate working hours, night hours and time between ‘reset’ breaks. These limits are also generally known as hours of work guidelines and most shifts that are worked within an organisation typically adhere to these guidelines.

W

A pa w ca in so FI

Consider the following points for safe driving: 1. Driving to and from work is often the most hazardous part of the workday. The risks may be overlooked however, because driving is so commonplace. Make sure safety programmes include driving procedures, ongoing training, mechanical inspections, and regular assessment of drivers.

2. Fatigue is a hazardous condition for all forestry workers.

Fatigue is caused by a variety of reasons including lack of sleep or rest, hard physical or mental work, and even poor nutrition. Fatigue can also be cumulative, meaning long shifts, multiple nights of poor sleeps, or continuous mental or physical work increase the risk of mistakes caused by fatigue.

3. Circadian rhythms are the physical, mental, and behavioural cycles the body experiences in a 24-hour period. When we work late at night, we are mentally more sluggish as our bodies expect us to be asleep during this time. When working late or during a night shift, take extra steps to address systems of fatigue and remain safe.

workday is done. Foster an attitude of vigilance, so everyone continues watching for hazardous situations even when the main work tasks are completed and/or the workday is done.

5. Defensive driver training is critical when workers drive as part of their job. Valuable techniques such as emergency braking and steering should be taught and practiced.

Regular training reinforces hazards involved with driving and prevents drivers from becoming complacent.

6. Be a professional passenger. Don’t distract the driver.

Practice good habits by acting as an additional set of eyes and helping the driver spot hazards. This is especially helpful on busy highways, resource roads and long trips.

4. Vigilance is an important part of good safety programmes.

Workers may relax and let their guard down when the

7. Critical incident stress after a major incident or injury can be significant. Watch out for co-workers, family members and others in the community as they may be struggling. Critical incident debriefing or counselling should be available for all those affected. Recovering mentally after a serious incident can be a long process.

Looking out for those affected can help prevent an additional tragedy.

Check out the Safetree Resources around this topic and a great video — an oldie but a goodies! safetree.nz/resources/driving-and-forestry

Prue Younger CEO, FOREST INDUSTRY CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION

YOUR VOICE.

GOVERNMENT ADVOCACY FOR CONTRACTORS AND WIDER INDUSTRY ISSUES

WHAT DOES FICA DO? As the voice of contractors, FICA aims to partner with other forestry entities and work in collaboration to support the growth, capability and promotion of the forestry industry throughout New Zealand. Here are some of the latest programmes and initiatives FICA is delivering and/or contributing to.

NATIONWIDE RECRUITMENT CAMPAIGN

MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING INITIATIVES INCLUDING BE A MATE IN FORESTRY NATIONAL PROGRAMME

INDUSTRY TRANSFORMATION PLAN INVOLVEMENT

SAFETREE CERTIFICATION GOVERNANCE GROUP INVOLVEMENT

join today FICA.ORG.NZ

November 2023 | NZ LOGGER 53

Managing Driving Driving is one of the identified high-risk tasks within forestry operations, as we all have to travel from home to our work sites each day in differing driving conditions.

One thing that has always stuck in my mind when discussing the risk associated with driving is when you think about it with a Health and Safety hat. Thinking about level of exposure to risk, you would be absolutely mad to get behind the wheel of a vehicle and drive. To manage the risk associated with driving on the open road at 100km/hr in our death trap on four wheels we paint a line on the road that will separate our death trap from an oncoming death trap. We rely entirely on the skill fatigue level of a complete stranger driving towards us that they will not make a mistake which could result in serious injury to ourselves or worse. Imagine how we would get on with forest management companies if we took the same approach to managing other high-risk tasks such as manual tree felling.

Forest managers and WorkSafe wouldn’t have a bar of it. The difference is that driving is a socially acceptable practice that we all do and because it is socially accepted, we don’t perceive the risk associated with driving as being as high as we sometimes should.

We need to ensure we adequately manage driving within our businesses. Things we can do to manage driving can include:

If E-Road is fitted to vehicles, ensure you periodically monitor the system, log in and produce speed reports of the vehicles. This can make for interesting reading and, in some cases, drivers who you think are your better ones can actually turn out to be the drivers who have the heaviest foot in terms of speeding.

Ensure work vehicles are in WoF condition all the time and tyres have adequate tread on them. This doesn’t affect speeding but helps to manage the risks of driving, knowing your workers are travelling in a vehicle that is in good condition. Where possible, ensure work vehicles are late model with good safety ratings.

Fatigue management plans and policies should include how to manage workers that drive alone and a process to follow if that worker becomes fatigued while driving alone.

Set the standards you expect your employees to follow, lead by example and actively manage driving in your business to ensure your employees arrive home safe and well after each workday.

Brady Clements HEALTH AND SAFETY CONSULTANT

Introducing our FICA Board for the 2023-2024 season FICA is coordinated by CEO Prue Younger and governed by a volunteer board made up of representatives elected at our Annual General Meeting. Learn more about our board at fica.org.nz/team

PRUE YOUNGER

NICK TOMBLESON

DALE EWERS

KEVIN IHAKA

NATHAN TAYLOR

BLAIR COOPER

MANDIE SKIPPS

CHRISTINE AXTENS

FICA CEO

BOARD MEMBER Mechanised Cable Harvesting Limited

54 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

CHAIR Tombleson Logging

BOARD MEMBER Southern Cross Harvesting

BOARD MEMBER Moutere Logging

BOARD MEMBER Skipps Logging Ltd

BOARD MEMBER FPS Forestry

BOARD MEMBER MHE Ltd

STEVEN YEOMAN

BOARD MEMBER Volcanic Plateau Logging

your voice FICA.ORG.NZ

FICA.ORG.NZ

your voice The voice of forestry contractors since 2002

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East Coast vibes Safety/performance/quality

AND THE GOOD VIBES FROM THE EAST COAST continue!

Not to be outdone by other parts of the country, this issue we continue with a few more photographs from top achievers on the East Coast.

Given the challenges being faced, it is important that professionalism and achievements continue to be acknowledged and promoted.

We hear a lot about achievement in any profession often being a battle of the top three inches. I don’t see this as any different for folk in our profession.

Often, what makes an individual stand out or rise above others is the way they apply themselves to a role. Identical tools, identical locations and identical support – it can be what drives the individual that makes the difference.

That’s what we see over time with assessments.

That’s what we think makes a real difference.

So, congratulations again to our top achievers and those that support them in being their best!

Ka mau te wehi! Awesome individuals, awesome teams and awesome people behind the scenes supporting them in what they do!!

Our ongoing thanks to: Rayonier/ Matariki Forests, Wenita Forest Products, Ernslaw One, OneFortyOne New Zealand, Crown Forestry, Forest View Contracting, Makerikeri Silviculture (2020), Mitchell Silviculture, Puklowski Silviculture, Gutsell Forestry Services, Johnson Forestry Services, McHoull Contracting, Wayne Cumming Contracting, Howard Forestry Services, IntaWood Forestry, Heslip Forest Contracting, Otautau Contractors, X Men Forestry,

Proforest Services, FM Silviculture, Tane Mahuta, Waikato Forestry Services, Rai Valley Silviculture, Thomassen Logging, Forest View Logging, Griffin Logging, Penetito Forestry, Pride Forestry, Mangoihe Logging, CMH Contracting, Kaha Logging, Roxburgh Contracting, Te Waa Logging, Mike Hurring Logging, Bluewood Logging, Storm Logging, Onward Logging, Down and Out Logging, Forest Pro Logging, Eastside Logging, Lahar Logging, Moutere Logging, JD Harvesting, Whisker Logging, Kimberly Logging, Dewes Contractors, Dempsey Logging.

Into safety?

Into performance?

Into quality?

Contact Shane Perrett on 0274 781 908, 07 3483037 or at primefm@xtra.co.nz. NZL

Sponsors – they don’t have to do this but they choose to!

Awesome companies, awesome people and awesome support!

They back you and your workmates to succeed as professionals, so why wouldn’t you support them?

They believe in what we do and what you do.

So, a big ongoing thank you to our Strategic Partners – STIHL and NZ Logger and sponsor SWAZI. The best way to keep our industry working is to get out and support those businesses that support New Zealand.

Participating companies This competition wouldn’t be what it is without our participating companies who have all participated in or continue to influence the way in which we operate.

We understand the commitment it takes from them to be part of Top Spot and value their ongoing support and feedback.

56 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

From left: Eastside Logging’s Gabriel Hooper with Marty Strybosch.

Safety/performance/quality

The crew from Raywood Logging.

POOR FELLING TECHNIQUE

The photos show poor felling technique from people who are supposedly competent. This really highlights the need for good training and ongoing management.

Note: These do not relate to any Top Spot participants but are recent and real – taken in privately owned forest in New Zealand.

Richard Mason of Forestpro Limited.

Johno Mackey of Kimberely Logging.

November 2023 | NZ LOGGER 57

NEW MACHINERY FOR GOODMAN LOGGING Goodman Logging has taken delivery of a new PC270HW. Nicky and Kelly Goodman, pictured with QC assistant Nugget, say they are happy with its ability to get around the forest. The PC270HW 's goat-like ability is renowned in the bush.

NEW CAT FOR H & R HARVESTING This Cat 336GC, a new addition for H & R Harvesting, has been put to work in the company’s Rotorua-based operations. The unit is PFS guarded and runs a Woodsman 750. The 336GC is equipped with the latest Cat Next Gen technology, boasting a smooth and responsive hydraulic system.

Unit sold by Mark Costello, Terra Cat Territory Account Manager Forestry.

LOG MAX 10000 XT FOR THE TREE PEOPLE Peter, of The Tree People, has taken delivery of a new Log Max 10000XT and Hyundai FX3230G. Both are preforming well in the Dargaville region. Sold By Quadco Group, Rotorua.

NEW MACHINERY FOR STEWART LOGGING Stewart Logging, located in the Berwick Forest near Mosgiel, recently took delivery of a Volvo Falcon Winch Assist, pictured here.

58 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

NEW CAT FOR THOMASSEN LOGGING Thomassen Logging has added a Cat 330GC to its crew. The 330GC is working for NZ Forest Managers, and is being used for fleeting, and loading. It is guarded

by Woodsy Engineering and runs a 1730 grapple. Combined with the Cat GC configuration and all new technology, the new 330GC is proving to be a good all-round forestr y package. Machine sold by Mark Costello, Terra Cat Territory Account Manager Forestry, Rotorua.

ANOTHER KOMATSU FOR NEWTON LOGGING Newton Logging, Rotorua, has taken delivery of another Komatsu PC300HW, standard boom and arm with an Ensign live heel and grapple. The Komatsu backup was a major consideration in this purchase.

JOHN DEERE FOR FAST FRONTIER Fast Frontier hardwood loggers Crew 62 are pictured with their new John Deere 1910E forwarder, working for Oji Fibre Solutions harvesting Eucalyptus in the Kinleith forest. The 1910E with its rotating and levelling cab, is 21-tonne load-rated and features John Deere’s Intelligent Boom Control (IBC). Posing for the crew pic are Graeme, Codie, Ged, Levi, Karly and Dave.

November 2023 | NZ LOGGER 59

November 2023 | NZ LOGGER 61

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brandt.ca/nz 62 NZ LOGGER | November 2023

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