International magazine - Komatsu Forest

I N T E R N AT I O N A L M A G A Z I N E No 2 • 2 0 0 5 

Timbco 

INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE 

SHOW 

TIME 

ELMIA WOOD 2005 

Investing 

in Valmet 

Germany’s largest pulp mill is 

investing in harvesting with, 

among other equipment, eight 

Valmet machines. 

Page 14 

Increased 

choice 

Valmet LoadFlex3 and the flexible 

bunk make it possible to load and 

unload more quickly. 

Page 4 

Read more 

A year with Komatsu Forest ..... 8 

Coordination 

in Central Europe .................... 16 

ProSelect 

– everything you need ............ 24 

New skidder ............................ 28

Q UALITY LEAVES A LASTING IMPRESSION 

We know the forest. 

We also know the challenges facing 

modern-day wood harvesting. 

We know that quality machinery demands 

tyres that live up to the task. 

We have developed and manufactured 

forestry tyres for several decades. 

We strongly believe that investing in quality 

is the sensible choice. 

Nordic Tyres ( UK ) Ltd 

Unit 24A 

Brampton Road 

Longtown, Cumbria CA65TR 

United Kingdom 

tel +44 (0)1228 792677 

Nokian Tyres Inc. 

339 Mason Rd. La Vergne 

TN 37086 Nashville USA 

Tel. 1 615 287 0600 

Fax 1 615 287 0610 

www.nokiantires.com 

Nokian Forest King F 

Nokian Tyres plc, P.O.Box 20 

FIN-37101 Nokia 

Tel. +358 3 340 7111, fax +358 3 342 0101

We’ve 

broadened 

our focus 

The time for the forestry industry’s 

most important conference 

is drawing near and 

Komatsu Forest will of course 

be in attendance. Elmia Wood is the 

world’s largest forestry fair with some 

50,000 visitors from all corners of the 

world and provides an important global 

show window. After a little more than 

a year with Komatsu as owner, it will be 

exciting to present Komatsu Forest to 

the international forestry industry as the 

complete supplier that we are. 

We’ve made our future objectives clear. 

We continually work to develop the company 

and strive to become even better. 

We achieve this through various 

efforts, such as placing a greater focus 

on quality, where our long-standing Japanese 

tradition of systematic quality 

assurance will be of great benefit. We’ve 

already taken a broader grip on quality 

assurance with our Total Quality Management 

System. Quality is something 

that now permeates our entire operation 

– from development, through production, 

to service and spare parts supply. 

We’ve learned that the forestry industry 

has strict requirements and that the conditions 

under which different customers 

operate can vary considerably. But one 

thing is clear. Our customers will always 

INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE 

Publisher: Roland Lundqvist 

roland.lunqvist@komatsuforest.com 

Editor: Anders Pauser 

anders.p@nordreportern.se 

Address: Just Forest, Komatsu Forest AB, 

Box 7124, SE-907 04 Umeå, Sweden 

Contact: Telephone +46 90 70 93 00, 

fax +46 90 19 16 52 

be able to rely on Valmet machines. 

We also strive to be a full-line supplier 

with global coverage. We are already 

a broad supplier as we can offer both 

Valmet’s forestry machines and Komatsu’s 

tracked construction machines to 

the forestry industry the world over. We 

would, however, like to offer our customers 

even more. This is why we will 

broaden our product offering in order to 

become a full-line supplier. 

Those of you who are able to visit us 

at Elmia Wood will see that we are well 

on the way. r 

Timbco 

Hideki Yamada 

Chief Executive 

Officer, 

Komatsu Forest AB 

Internet: www.komatsuforest.com 

Production: AB Nordreportern 

Writers: Gunnar Andersson, Anders Pauser, 

Roger C Åström 

Photographers: Gunnar Andersson, Anders Pauser, 

Nate Burton, Roger C Åström, Marcus Gustafsson 

Layout and design: Fredrik Lundell 

Printing: Tryckeri City, Umeå, Sweden 

Contents 

LoadFlex3 increases choice 4 

Tougher and more durable 6 

A year with Komatsu Forest 8 

Long-term quality assurance 10 

Clear strategy for success 

Germany’s largest pulp mill 

12 

invests in Valmet 14 

Coordination 

in Central Europe 16 

Bear hunting on 

a backwoods river 20 

ProSelect 

– everything you need 24 

Tailor-made 

e-commerce system 25 

New center strengthens 

product training 26 

New skidder 28 

Thin rapidly and profitably 29 

Tailor-made for steep terrain 30 

Lower pressure 

reduces barking 36 

Paper: Gotic Silk 130 gram 

Circulation: 33,000 

Languages: Swedish, Finnish, English, German, 

French, and Portuguese 

Contents may be quoted if source is stated 

JUST FOREST NO 2 • 2005 3

LoadFlex3 

increases 

choice 

To choose Valmet Loadflex is to choose 

freedom. This flexible bunk makes 

loading and unloading faster. 

Valmet LoadFlex3 is a 

flexible bunk system 

suited to all Valmet forwarders. 

The design is simple 

and completely mechanical, 

making it robust and very 

reliable. 

Basically, LoadFlex3 comprises 

parallel-controlled bunk 

stakes with extra joints that 

fold outwards to make the bunk 

wider than normal. The side 

walls also adjust so that the load 

volume can be maximized. The 

tailgate also extends outward 

so as to cover the wider bunk. 

With LoadFlex3, the forwarder’s 

bunk becomes 55 inches wider. 

Maxi builds bridges 

The forestry industry’s 

different production 

stages are no longer 

isolated islands. The indus- 

4 JUST FOREST NO 2 • 2005 

The bunk can easily be divided 

into several sections for different 

product sorts. 

Valmet LoadFlex3 contributes 

to faster loading and unloading 

as the boom operates in shorter 

cycles and bunk divisions keep 

the load in good order. Transport 

speed is also faster as the 

low center of gravity increases 

stability. 

The MaxiScale weighing program, 

which is bundled with 

LoadFlex3, helps optimize the 

forwarder’s load without exceeding 

the machine’s weight capacity. 

It can even report the exact 

volume of each sort in the load. r 

The forestry industry is putting increasingly 

tough demands on contractors. Valmet’s 

Maxi control system helps operators plan, 

revise, and report their production. 

try wants fresher timber and 

clients want more information 

about harvesting. Maxi is a collective 

name for Valmet’s con- 

trol and information systems. 

With these systems, the operator 

gains access to a number 

of programs for tasks such as 

machine control, price list management, 

GIS, and production 

and operation follow-ups. 

MaxiHarvester 3.7 is Valmet’s 

most recent Maxi system 

program package. The control 

system also offers the oppor- 

tunity to use quality assured 

harvester measurements to 

increase measurement reliability. 

This means that Maxi-Harvester 

randomly selects sample 

trees to be re-measured. 

The operator is first warned via 

the display that the tree being 

logged is a sample tree after 

some of the trunk has been processed. 

The operator then re-

measures the trunk with a caliper 

as with regular systems. 

MaxiHarvester has also been 

expanded with regression analysis 

which, simply put, provides 

more exact calibration 

over the entire diameter interval. 

Calibration is much faster 

and requires fewer caliper measurements. 

New MaxiHarvester 3.7 can 

also create individual production 

files, often called ’pri’ files 

because the file names end in 

’.pri’. These files are used to 

store production data, such as 

length, diameter, species, and 

quality, for each individual log. 

The MaxiA application, used 

to create and edit price lists, is 

now a fully integrated part of 

the Maxi system. The operator 

simply clicks in the menu to 

edit the price list. After changes 

are made, the file is saved and 

the crosscutting computer is 

automatically updated with the 

new price list. r 

Faster, 

easier, 

improved 

No longer need anyone manually lubricate 

Valmet forestry machines. With a 

central, automatic machine lubrication 

system, lubrication becomes easier, 

faster, and better. 

A 

centralized lubrication system that automatically lubricates 

is now available as an optional extra on all Valmet 

harvesters. As of the fall, it will also be available 

on all forwarders. Since the beginning of the year the lubrication 

system has been available as an optional extra for harvesters 

and customer interest has been great. 

The centralized lubrication system comprises a small tank 

of grease and a pump that delivers grease to all lubrication 

points on the machine at regular intervals. Five distribution 

points are found on the machine. From these points, grease is 

delivered to joints, pivots, and other moving parts with grease 

fittings, for example. 

The interval at which grease is pumped is easily set via a 

control on the lubricant tank. All hoses are routed through 

protected areas to avoid breakages. 

The automatic centralized lubrication system means that 

one no longer needs to perform manual lubrication with a 

grease gun. This saves valuable time. Moreover, lubrication is 

greatly improved with the automated system as the machine is 

lubricated more regularly and when in motion, which provides 

better lubricant distribution. r 


New additions to Valmet’s head lineup 

Tough and reliable .2s 

Four important new features 

1. New hydraulic hose routing 

between link and head. 

2. New hydraulic hose routing 

from feed roller motors to valve set. 

3. Improved hydraulic system. 

4. New recessed diameter sensor housing. 

We are now ready 

to present new 

versions of the 

Valmet 360 and 370 

to customers. With a 

long list of improvements, 

the Valmet 

360.2 and Valmet 

370.2 have become 

even more reliable 

forest companions. 

The Valmet 360 and 370 

are the backbone of 

Valmet’s comprehensive 

head offering. These heads 

are based on well proven basic 

designs that have been refined 

and modified over the years. 

We’re now ready to launch 

the next versions of these heads, 

the Valmet 360.2 and the Valmet 

370.2. Both are built from 

the ground up to be robust, reliable, 

and productive. Mountings, 

moving parts, and the 

motor mounts are all very solid 

and the valve set, hoses, and 

onboard computer are well protected. 


And this is the concept that 

Komatsu Forest’s designers and 

technicians have adhered to in 

further developing 32 aspects 

of these heads. Everything to 

make the heads highly productive 

with greater use of maximum 

capacity. 

One example is the new hose 

3 

2 

routing between the boom tip 

and the head, which provides 

greater hose protection and 

makes them easier to replace. 

The hydraulic hoses between 

the feed roller motors and valve 

set have also been rerouted to 

minimize the risk of breakage 

and wear. The hydraulic system 

4 

1 

has been improved in order to 

increase the life of the hydraulic 

motors, the cylinders, and other 

components. The recessed housings 

for the heads’ diameter sensors, 

which are located in the 

forward knife axles, have been 

fitted with controls to simplify 

adjustment and maintenance. r

A HEAD FOR EVERY NEED 

A thinning specialist THE VALMET 330.2, tailored to the Valmet 

In many places the 

need for thinning is 

great. With the new 

Valmet 330.2, thinning 

is both quick 

and easy. 

A head for the toughest jobs 

The Valmet 370E 

is a tough character 

primarily designed 

for tracked 

machines. In order 

to cope with difficult 

conditions this 

head is solid and 

robust. 

A new installation 

kit makes it possible 

to mount harvester 

heads on excavation 

machines. The kit 

provides a well-proven 

and complete solution 

that transforms a 

regular excavator into a 

forestry machine. 

The installation kit is specially 

adapted to Komatsu 

excavators and works 

with all harvester heads in the 

Valmet 300 series. The kit is 

supplied complete with installation 

instructions and hydraulics 

and electrical diagrams. 

The installation kit provides 

all necessary components – 

from the adapter between the 

901 harvester, is a light thinning head with 

speed and reliability as its major traits. 

The 330 head is available with only single 

grip knife arms or also equipped with 

grapple arms. 

Whichever the model, the new Valmet 

330.2 is a light and flexible thinning head 

that is easy to maintain. A simple design 

with robust construction guarantees it’s 

Flexible head with a perfect balance 

The lightweight 

Valmet 350 head 

combines strength 

and weight in optimal 

amounts. This makes 

the head a real allrounder 

– suited to 

thinning as well as final 

logging. 

THE VALMET 350 is a multifaceted head offering 

the perfect balance between strength, 

speed, and weight. This enables the head to 

easily cope with either thinning or final logging. 

In order to achieve this, the head has a 

powerful and compact design that provides 

the optimum relation between strength and 

weight. With its strong traction force, high 

performance, and short frame, this head is 

nimble and effective. 

THE VALMET 370E is a tough and reliable 

head based on the well proven technology 

of the Valmet 370.1. The 370E is primarily 

tailored for use on tracked machines. 

The 370E harvester head has a robust chassis 

and a sturdy construction, built to cope 

with the demands of running on tracked 

machines. 

The felling link is reinforced to handle 

thick forests. The feed roller motor mounts 

are especially sturdy, as are the mounts for 

all other moving parts. The hosing is well 

excavator boom and the harvester 

head to pipes and tubes 

for customizing the hydraulics. 

Moreover, the kit includes 

important details for increased 

operator safety. 

The boom tip is fitted with 

a special head adapter and four 

specially built hydraulic pipes 

bolted to the underside of the 

excavator arm. A protective 

used to the max. 

The Valmet 330.2 is now available 

with alternative feed roller motors, modified 

delimbing knives for improved contact 

and delimbing, and a more compact 

rotator, which is also equipped with a roller 

slewing. This has led to a greater tilt angle 

on the suspension linkage. In addition, 

the lubrication oil tank is integrated into 

the linkage. 

With three very effective feed rollers and 

four powerful feed motors, the feed is fast 

yet gentle. Added to this are four optimally 

shaped knives for good delimbing quality 

and great accuracy. The Valmet 350 also has 

a large cutting unit for fast felling and processing. 

And the stable frame with well protected 

components and a sturdy roller slewing 

bearing rotator guarantees it will be used 

to capacity. 

protected and the cutting unit is robust 

enough to cope with the physical challenges 

presented by the machine. 

The head has five custom-designed delimbing 

knives developed and tested in Brazil 

to handle the tough challenges associated 

with eucalyptus tree debarking. 

A top saw can also be mounted on the 

Valmet 370E. The ability to cut at both ends 

of the head further speeds harvesting. Special 

processing knives can be mounted too. 

Excavators soon made ready for the forest 

brace is then fitted to reduce 

the risk of damage. 

A durable and sectioned protective 

hood reduces the risk of 

foreign objects and dry leaves 

entering air intakes and the 

engine compartment. To further 

increase operator safety, the door 

is fitted with a safety switch and 

the front windshield is replaced 

with 0.6-inch thick safety glass. r 


A year with Kom a 

Komatsu Forest will continue to be independent and the cut-to-length system 

is the right path to follow, but it will take the forestry industry time to adopt. 

These are some of the experiences that Hideki Yamada has gained in his first 

year as CEO of Komatsu Forest. 

Just over a year has passed 

since Japanese construction 

machine manufacturer 

Komatsu Ltd took over 

as owner. The reason was that 

Komatsu wanted to move into 

the forestry industry and Valmet’s 

established brand was a 

ticket in. 

Hideki Yamada was the man 

the new owners entrusted with 

the responsibility of leading 

Komatsu Forest’s operations. 

“In Valmet Komatsu gained 


both technical expertise and 

important industry experience,” 

explains Hideki, CEO of 

Komatsu Forest. 

Komatsu’s previous experience 

of the Scandinavian mentality 

was limited, but Hideki 

thinks that collaboration 

between the Japanese and Scandinavians 

has worked very well. 

“I think there are many similarities 

between our corporate 

cultures,” he says. 

One major difference that 

Hideki has discovered is that 

customers within the construction 

and forestry industries are 

very different. The construction 

machine market is relatively 

mature while the forestry 

machine market is still experiencing 

broad expansion and 

rapid development. 

“This means that we continually 

receive input from forestry 

machine customers, providing 

us with additional development 

opportunities,” he explains. 

His first year in the forestry 

machine industry has convinced 

Hideki that Komatsu 

Forest must retain full responsibility 

for this segment within 

Komatsu’s organization 

In the future, he wants Komatsu 

Forest to gain a strong 

position as its own division in 

the Komatsu organization, at 

the same level as the other two 

divisions, construction equipment 

and mining equipment. 

At the same time, he can

tsu Forest 

see that Komatsu Forest’s localization 

to Umeå, Sweden is an 

obvious decision. Komatsu has 

an overall strategy that entails 

operating in the major markets. 

“Scandinavia is a large and 

important market, and much 

technological expertise important 

to Komatsu Forest is held 

in the region,” he continues. 

A VERY IMPORTANT factor 

is that the cut-to-length system 

originates from Scandinavia. 

This is the system that Hideki 

believes is the future. Komatsu 

had hoped that the cut-to-length 

system would break through in 

more markets relatively quickly, 

but has partially altered this 

strategy. 

“In the long-term, the cutto-length 

system is the only 

way to go in forestry machine 

development,” he says. “But on 

the way there, we must continue 

to develop machines for the 

whole tree method too, as well 

as products for modifying construction 

machines. We are to 

be a full-line supplier that presents 

a united front to its customers,” 

he says. 

This means that Komatsu 

Forest will broaden its product 

offering. 

The first year has also 

shown that there are many synergy 

effects from which we 

can benefit. Valmet forestry 

machines are sold via Komatsu’s 

established sales organization 

in markets that are new 

to Valmet. Places such as Indonesia, 

Chile, and Russia. But 

Komatsu can also benefit from 

Valmet’s strong position in Brazil, 

for example, and sell more 

construction machines. 

Other synergy effects are 

the consolidation of components 

in forestry and construction 

machines and cost savings 

through increased production 

volumes. But maybe the most 

important synergy effect concerns 

quality. W ith its Japanese 

industrial tradition of acknowledged 

quality assurance, Komatsu 

has a good reputation that 

can benefit Komatsu Forest. 

“We have raised the ribbon 

and made quality assurance 

more systematic with the 

help of Komatsu’s expertise and 

experience in the quality area,” 

explains Hideki. 

This means that quality is 

now seen in a broader perspective 

and that quality work focuses 

on everything from development 

to customer support. 

“One should be able to 

expect the same quality in a for- 

estry machine as in a construction 

machine,” he says. 

Komatsu Forest’s CEO 

thinks that the world market for 

forestry machines offers great 

development potential. Only 

about a fifth of the world’s forest 

harvesting is mechanized. 

Hideki believes that work conditions 

in manual logging comprise 

a factor that will drive 

mechanization forward. It will 

quite simply be difficult to 

recruit a work force to conduct 

manual forest work when taking 

into account safety considerations, 

for example. 

ANOTHER IMPORTANT factor 

driving forestry machine development 

is the fact that forestry 

companies are striving for 

greater profitability. 

“There will be a need for 

more effective techniques in 

order to meet customer requirements,” 

says Hideki. 

In this context, he sees Komatsu 

Forest’s localization to 

Umeå, Sweden as the optimal 

solution. 

“Scandinavia is still our primary 

market and here we also 

have good opportunities to 

invest in technical development 

by recruiting knowledgeable 

personnel,” he concludes. r 

New Chairman at Komatsu Forest 

Yoshinori Komamura has been 

appointed the new chairman of 

the board of Komatsu Forest. He 

has been responsible for Komatsu Construction 

and Mining Division in several 

overseas operations for many years, 

including his most recent position as President 

of Komatsu Europe until the end 

of March 2005. 

Yoshinori succeeds Kazuhiro Aoyagi, 

who has been chairman since Komatsu 

Forest was formed. 

News 

Massive project in the 

European forest sector 

The Swedish research 

foundation Skogforsk will 

act as coordinator for 

one of the EU’s largest ever research 

projects within the forest 

and forestry industry sector. The 

project, named Eforwood, will run 

for four years and is intended to 

produce tools to analyze opportunities 

to contribute to sustainable 

development within the EU within 

forests and the forestry industry. 

The project will involve 35 organizations 

from 18 countries and the 

planned budget runs to 19 million 

Euros, equivalent to about 24.6 

million USD. 

Extinguished fires 

slow greenhouse 

effect 

By effectively fighting 

and extinguishing forest 

fires, greenhouse gas 

emissions into the atmosphere 

can be reduced. So says Brian 

Stocks, a forest fire expert at Canada’s 

Forest Service, reports Reuters. 

The number of fires is gradually 

increasing due to campers, 

for example, or people intentionally 

starting fires in forests. Forest 

fires in Canada alone pumped 

150 million tons of carbon dioxide 

into the atmosphere – to be compared 

with 730 million tons from 

the country’s industry. Even worse 

were the extensive fires in Indonesia 

at the end of the 20th century, 

which released 2.6 billion 

tons of carbon dioxide. But it is 

possible to prevent fires with suitable 

forest stand planning, monitoring, 

education, and faster response 

times. 

New tool reveals 

timber freshness 

The extent to which timber 

has dried out since 

being logged often provides 

a good indication of how 

fresh it is. With the aid of a new 

forecast tool, the Swedish research 

institute Skogforsk can 

show how fast timber dries based 

on current weather data and the 

timber’s handling and storage. The 

forecasts will be updated each 

week throughout the spring. 


Jonas Järnö is responsible for quality assurance at Komatsu Forest in Umeå. 

LONG-TERM 

quality assurance 

Komatsu Forest is investing increasingly 

more resources in quality assurance. 

Komatsu’s broad quality assurance experience 

comes in handy here. 

“In general, we’ve adopted the Japanese 

way of working with quality issues,” says 

Jonas Järnö, Quality Assurance Manager at 

Komatsu Forest. 

Komatsu has 

worked systematically 

with quality 

assurance, or 

QA, since the 1960s. That experience 

now benefits Komatsu 

Forest greatly when investing 

in further development of our 

quality assurance efforts. The 

long-term goal is to be number 

one in quality control in the for- 


est machine industry. 

The quality control department 

is housed in the new customer 

support building at the 

plant in Umeå. One important 

part of quality assurance is taking 

care of all faults reported by 

dealers in a systematic way and 

ensuring that corrective measures 

are taken. 

“If it’s smaller faults, it’s a 

matter of finding a quick fix 

and implementing it,” says 

Jonas. “If a larger problem arises, 

we need a more comprehensive 

approach to solving the 

problem. We assign tasks to 

those parts of the operations in 

question, such as design, purchasing, 

production, or customer 

support, for example.” 

THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE 

that work with quality issues 

has increased since Komatsu 

came in as owner. Four people 

work with guarantee issues. 

Since major faults are often 

guarantee issues, it’s good that 

this function is within the QA 

department, which ensures that 

the problems are sent to those 

who can correct them. But qual- 

ity assurance comes into play 

much earlier in the production 

process. Four people check, for 

example, that goods from suppliers 

meet the stated specifications. 

In addition, there is one 

person who works as the quality 

control department’s right hand 

when it comes to quality assurance 

of suppliers. 

“We’re also improving 

the final check process of 

machines,” says Jonas. “This 

will give us comprehensive control 

over the quality of delivered 

machines.” 

INTENSIVE EFFORTS are 

being made to find better ways 

of handling responsibility in 

quality issues. The goal is to 

achieve faster response times 

and to ensure that information 

about the problem is quickly 

reported to the right person 

or department. Procedures for 

problem management are being 

established in every department 

in a more standardized manner. 

And there is always a quality 

manager for each segment 

of product development and 

manufacture. 

“It’s important that quality 

assurance is strengthened and 

that procedures are followed 

as early as the development 

stage of a product. Procedures 

are a tool that helps achieve an 

extremely good final result,” 

says Jonas. 

He feels that right now the 

mood is positive when it comes 

to employee commitment to 

focusing on quality issues. 

“Commitment is high and it 

feels good to have the support 

of Japanese Komatsu’s expertise 

in this area,” says Jonas. “And 

it’s not that hard, really. It’s just 

a matter of listening, measuring, 

analyzing, fixing, and following 

up.” r

Join us 

at Elmia Wood 

on Stand 818 

�� 

�� 

TRELLEBORG TWIN FORESTRY IS FOR REAL. EFFICIENT. COMFORTABLE. STRONG. 

With Trelleborg Twin Forestry on your machine you can carry 

out the job even more efficiently and smoothly and – at the 

same time – preserve the woodland. We test and develop tires 

in your working environment: snow and ice, stones and tree 

stumps, day and night. Whether you opt for complete wheels or 

new tires, you will obtain increased pulling power and lower 

operating costs as part of the bargain. 

Trelleborg Industri AB 

Business Unit Agri & Forest Tires Europe 

SE-231 81 Trelleborg, Sweden 

Tel: +46 (0)410 510 00, Fax: +46 (0)410 139 96 

www.trelleborg.com/wheelsystems

Thomas Hubert is a successful German contractor who has invested in helping his customers in the best possible way. 

Clear strategy 

for success 

With much stubbornness, forestry contractor Thomas Hubert from Bavaria, 

Germany has stuck to his guns in always putting the customer first. And by 

concentrating on employing skilled personnel the company has grown – in little 

more than 20 years – to 40 employees with 17 Valmets in the machine lineup. 

Things have moved 

fast for Thomas 

Hubert and his company 

Hubert Forst 

GmbH outside Munich. When 

he decided to invest in forestry 

machines and made his first 

investment of 600,000 Deutschmarks 

for a six-wheeled Valmet 

901 harvester in 1993, he’d 

stepped on a train with his family 

firm without really knowing 

the destination. All he knew 

was that you had to get in the 


game early when mechanization 

took speed. 

Today, 24 years later, chainsaws 

are still part of operations, 

alongside the company’s three 

Valmet 921s, three Valmet 911s, 

Valmet 901, and Valmet 801 

Combi. The explanations are 

many. Thinning, for instance, 

comprises 95 percent of the 

company’s work, and in German 

thinning roads may not be 

closer than 30 meters, which 

means the harvester can’t reach 

all forest areas. Furthermore, 

the steep terrain demands the 

use of chainsaws in certain 

areas. 

“Not all German contractors 

have personnel with chainsaws, 

but we want to do a really 

good job even if it’s a little more 

expensive,” explains Thomas. 

“Moreover, in some places the 

trunks are too large for the harvester 

to cope with.” 

A meeting with Thomas 

quickly leads to a discussion 

about how to run a company 

and the importance of customer 

focus. Thomas is clearly convinced 

and ever since his company’s 

beginnings he’s concentrated 

on a multifaceted concept. 

One of them is the belief 

that a private forestry contractor 

can only survive in the longterm 

if one’s customers are satisfied, 

which is why - as far as 

possible - one should act as an 

advisor as well. It’s important to 

provide good advice, not to sim-

ply try to earn as much as possible, 

but to instead build longterm 

relationships. Another facet 

is to be a completely independent 

company with no ties to a 

single large customer or some 

other conglomeration. In this 

respect, it’s important to have 

really good personnel. 

“I’ve invested in six team 

leaders so that we can really 

help our customers in the best 

possible way,” says Thomas. 

He’s also invested in being 

a complete company that works 

with a broad customer base 

from the German state to private 

individuals. In addition, 

they can work in the mountains, 

take care of transportation, 

and set up plantations. 

THE LONG-TERM perspective 

is very important to Thomas. 

That’s why he’s stuck with 

Valmet since he began investing 

in a machine system. 

There’s a Valmet dealer near his 

company, providing good service 

opportunities. 

“We were mostly after the 

best possible service and we’ve 

collaborated ever since,” says 

Thomas. “I’m of the opinion 

that if together we can solve 

problems that always arise in 

a good way, then why not continue? 

I’ll happily admit that 

sometimes I’m a bit tough on 

Komatsu Forest, but so far 

they’ve always solved things 

in a good way. It’s a fact that 

Bavarian forests place heavy 

demands on the machines and 

any customizations.” 

Thomas has generally invested 

in slightly smaller machines 

and his fleet of forwarders 

includes five Valmet 840s, two 

Valmet 830s, and two Valmet 

820s. Loaded, the Valmet 860 

and 890 are too heavy to use 

due to the 51 inches of annual 

rainfall in the area. On the 

other hand, a large harvester 

like the Valmet 941 could be 

of interest if the harvested volumes 

were sufficiently large in 

a stand, according to Thomas. 

“But the private stands we 

work with are mixed forests, 

and we often only harvest 200- 

250 cubic meters over two to 

three days before moving on,” 

he explains. “So such large 

machines would be unprofitable.” 

When we meet Thomas a 

dozen or so miles from Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 

a four 

year-old Valmet 921 is busy 

thinning in steep terrain 

together with a few men with 

chainsaws. Despite the slope, 

everyone seems to feel safe 

with the machine, which they 

find to be very stable. Thomas 

also emphasizes stability 

with the boom extended as one 

of Valmet’s major advantages. 

The forwarder hasn’t arrived 

yet though, as there was snowfall 

earlier in the week and the 

ground is too slippery for forwarding. 

Thomas’s company has 

grown continually, as each 

time they’ve needed to buy 

new machines it’s felt like the 

right thing to do. For Thomas 

it’s important to always move 

forward; whether it concerns 

growth or developing operations 

in some other way doesn’t 

matter. 

“The only trouble with growing 

is that you spend more time 

in your car and less time meeting 

customers,” he says. r 

Facts 

Hubert Forst GmbH 

Owner: Thomas Hubert and 

father 

Number of employees: 40 

Machines: Three Valmet 921s, 

three Valmet 911s, one Valmet 

901, one Valmet 801 Combi, 

five Valmet 840s, two Valmet 

830s, and two Valmet 820s 

Each work team has a 

spare parts truck from 

Komatsu Forest GmbH. 

Here we can also see 

team leader Wolfgang 

Ritter. 

Thomas Hubert (on the right) talking with harvester operator Anton 

Riegner and team leader Wolfgang Ritter. 

A Valmet 921 clearing in a forest near Garmisch-Partenkirchen. 

95 percent of German logging work is clearing. 


Zellstoff Stendal produces 550,000 tons of pulp a year. 

Germany’s largest 

invests in Valmet 

When Germany’s largest pulp mill, Zellstoff Stendal GmbH, recently opened, 

Komatsu Forest supplied eight machines for the mill’s own harvesting operations. 

The American Mercer 

Group is behind the 

venture to build Germany’s 

largest pulp mill in 

Stendal, west of Berlin, at a 

cost of one billion Euros. The 

plant was recently fully commissioned 

and has an annual 

production of 550,000 tons of 

pulp. The venture included creating 

job opportunities for the 

unemployed in Eastern Germany. 

560 people have been directly 

employed by the mill and 

on the transport and purchasing 

side, while at least twice 


as many have been employed 

by companies working with 

the mill. The 560 employees 

include 44 forwarder and harvester 

operators who operate 

the mill’s own fleet of 22 forestry 

machines, providing about 

ten percent of the 9,000 cubic 

meters of timber and chips consumed 

by Zellstoff Stendal each 

day. They work in the subsidiary 

ZS Holz GmbH, which is 

responsible for the transportation 

and provision of raw materials 

in the form of timber and 

chips, using the subsidiary’s 

own machines and trucks. 

HEAD OF HARVESTING and 

transportation, and thereby 

responsible for the forestry 

machines, is Martin Gehringer, 

who explains the investment 

in company-owned machines as 

the desire for greater flexibility 

and the ability to meet temporary 

increases in demand or to 

obtain certain materials. Moreover, 

the company wants close 

contact with loggers in order 

to better understand contractor 

conditions. The investment 

includes machines bought from 

the three largest manufacturers. 

Komatsu Forest has supplied 

four Valmet 840.2s, three 

Valmet 911.1s, and one Valmet 

901.3. 

“The soil is very sandy in 

Eastern Germany and the timber 

is small, so we wanted 

smaller machines,” explains 

Martin. “We’ve extended the 

Valmet forwarders by 23.5 

inches between the bogies in 

order to avoid an overhanging 

load and to gain space for two 

10-foot logs. This also means

Martin Gehringer, head of timber purchasing and timber transportation, flanked by 

his colleagues Ronny Pötzsch (on the left) and Ronny Köppen. 

pulp mill 

that the machines don’t rut the 

ground, reducing the risk of 

causing ground damage.” 

THE CONCEPT includes having 

three competing manufacturers, 

which ensures improved 

service. So far Martin is very 

pleased with Komatsu Forest’s 

service. Wisely enough, 

they have chosen the different 

geographic areas according 

to where the different manufacturers 

already had a strong 

service presence. For example, 

the Komatsu Forest machines 

are operated in the southern 

regions of the harvested area, 

the borders of which are 200 

miles long. 

“We also chose three suppliers 

because no single supplier 

could provide the 22 machines as 

quickly as we needed them. And 

we would have affected the market 

too much if we chose a single 

supplier,” states Martin. “As 

things stand now, we’ll continue 

to invest in all three brands.” 

HE THINKS THAT the Valmet 

machines generally have good, 

ergonomic cabs with good visibility. 

Martin also sees advantages 

with a cab and boom 

that rotate together. With this 

design, the operator always 

directly faces his work and his 

view through the right cab window 

is partially blocked by the 

boom rather than the view 

through the front cab window. 

“They’re good machines 

and they’re easy to operate,” 

says Martin. “We have a fully-equipped 

service pickup for 

each machine with a 100-gallon 

auxiliary fuel tank and so far 

Two of the Valmet machines bought by the Zellstoff Stndal 

pulp mill. 

service has gone very well.” 

He notes that the idea of 

having machines from three 

different manufacturers has 

attracted much attention in 

Germany, especially as they 

have also invested in training 

young drivers to operate 

the machines. This has created 

interest for many surveys. 

Since they began purchasing 

the machines in 2004, productivity 

– as expected – has risen 

steadily and they are now on 

their way out of the red and into 

the black. 

“We’re still developing our 

operators’ skills and teaching 

them to save more time, such 

as when they change shifts in 

the two-shift system,” explains 

Martin. “There’s still time to 

be saved, but generally speaking 

our operators are more than 

twice as productive as they were 

a year ago.” 

THE GOAL IS to reach a production 

level of twelve cubic 

meters an hour, but this will 

also be strongly influenced by 

how often they are forced to 

harvest smaller sized timber in 

tight stands, where a great deal 

of time is spent navigating the 

forest and removing poor quality 

trees in order to reach the 

good timber. 

“We still have a lot of development 

work to carry out and 

are working on a GPS system to 

make it easier for the log transport 

trucks to find the right forest 

roads,” says Martin. “Generally 

speaking, we’ve had to establish 

operations in a relatively 

short time, but now we’re well 

on our way.” r 


Bernd Rauser is responsible for Komatsu Forest GmbH and thereby also for Komatsu Forest’s ventures in Central Europe. 


an states. In order to meet this 

need, Komatsu Forest has coordinated 

its ventures in Central 

Europe, aside from the Baltic 

States and Russia, to the German 

sales company Komatsu 

Forest GmbH under the leadership 

of CEO Bernd Rauser. The 

basic idea is to be near the market, 

which harvests a total of 

180 million cubic meters a year. 

Germany alone harvests 46 million 

cubic meters of timber. 

“All in all, this involves a 

market comprised of 25 countries, 

17 of which are EU members, 

18 languages, and 13 currencies,” 

says Bernd. “For us it’s 

important to be able to coordinate 

our efforts, such as demonstrations, 

brochures, and - 

naturally – support. We shall be 

seen as and act as a single company 

within all our markets.” 

KOMATSU FOREST GmbH 

currently has 34 employees who 

work primarily with the German 

market. In most other 

markets the company works via 

dealers, who have good knowledge 

of their markets. Bernd 

Rauser and Komatsu Forest 

GmbH support the dealers. 

Komatsu Forest GmbH is 

responsible for spare part deliv- 

Vöhringen 

Coordination 

in Central Europe 

Since the end of 2004 Komatsu Forest’s venture into the Central European market has 

been managed from the German sales company in Vöhringen under the leadership 

of Bernd Rauser. The logic behind this is the company’s central location and proximity 

to the market, which means spare parts reach customers faster. 

Mechanization of the 

European forestry 

industry is becoming 

increasingly rapid. Not least 

in the former East Europe- 

Facts 

Komatsu Forest GmbH 

Location: Vöhringen outside 

Stuttgart in Germany 

CEO : Bernd Rauser 

Numbers employee: 34 

Spare part maintenance : 

In eleven countries in Central 

Europe there Komatsu Forest 

exists 

eries in many of the countries 

in Central Europe, something 

which has successively been 

moved from Umeå in Sweden 

to Vöhringen in order to save 

time. The spare part warehouse 

in Vöhringen holds 11,000 

parts and can provide nextday 

deliveries to customers on 

orders received before 4.30 in 

the afternoon. 

Several markets are experiencing 

growth, but the current 

dominant market is still 

Germany, where 700 Valmet 

machines are in operation. 

“We’re strong in Germany in 

terms of numbers of machines,

ut our best market share is 

held in Austria, at 40–50 percent,” 

says Bernd. 

THIS YEAR Bernd predicts 

an all-time high in Germany, 

although future potential 

is considerably greater. This is 

mainly due to the relatively low 

degree of mechanization. Only 

about 40 percent of logging is 

conducted with machine systems, 

compared with 95 percent 

in the Scandinavian countries. 

Researchers believe, however, 

that 70 percent mechanization 

is possible in Germany - 

greater than this is not possible 

due to large trunk diameters and 

steep terrain. 

The forests are often tightly 

packed and sometimes coarse, 

with 300–350 cubic meters per 

hectare, something that places 

tough demands on harvesters 

and, even more so, harvesting 

heads. Bernd is happy 

to praise the Valmet 941 as 

a machine made for the coarser 

trees found in Central Europe. 

The best selling machine, however, 

is the all-round Valmet 

911.3 harvester. 

The future ambition is to 

grow and penetrate many markets 

in order to become less 

vulnerable to the economic 

fluctuations of the different 

countries. Objectives include 

increasing sales volumes for 

both new and used machines 

and introducing new products 

to the market, such as the new 

skidder from the US. 

“We also see a great advantage 

with Komatsu as owner as 

we have begun selling Komatsu 

excavators fitted with harvester 

heads, such as the Komatsu 

PC228 with the Valmet 370E,” 

says Bernd, who views the 

future with much optimism. 

ANOTHER challenge is the former 

East Bloc states, where the 

degree of mechanization is low. 

Markets where volumes are still 

small but where there is growth 

potential, even though a number 

of obstacles must be overcome 

and it will take time. 

“The global paper, pulp, and 

sawmill industry has, however, 

begun to invest in these countries 

and this will drive development 

forward,” says Bernd. r 

Volker Wolz is the longest serving 

mechanic at Komatsu Forest 

GmbH. He’s been with the company 

for almost 16 years. 

Follow the timber flow with Lukas 


in Germany has developed 

an Internet-based 

platform called Lukas 

that makes it possible to 

follow timber flow from 

forest to end-customer. 

Those connected to 

Lukas can follow the 

harvesting process via 

their computers. 

Tests are underway with 

Lukas among 78 users 

in Germany. Rüdiger 

Staib, development head for 

Lukas, hopes that everything 

will be completed in time to 

launch the program at the end 

of the summer. 

Lukas is an acronym of the 

German “Logistik und Kommunikationsplattform 

zur 

Arbeitsprozesssteuerung”. It’s 

based on GPS technology, databases, 

and digital maps wherein 

a forest area to be harvest- 

ed is entered with a work order 

containing logging details, timber 

volume, product types, and 

landing location. The team 

leader, for example, can sketch 

where the log transport trucks 

shall collect the logged timber 

and different protected areas. 

“In the ideal situation, the 

team leader can also estimate 

what products can be extracted, 

as well as how much is to be 

harvested,” explains Rüdiger. 

When the work team arrives, 

they can download the information 

to their computers and 

start logging. When the timber 

is subsequently harvested, 

the other parties in the timber 

flow, such as the sawmill, can 

see what is ready and can quickly 

collect interesting products. 

Previously they were forced to 

wait for the final inspection by 

the team leader. With Lukas 

much time can be saved. Even 

the log transport truck drivers 

know where to go and save time 

as they know when a certain 

volume is ready for collection. 

“It’s sufficient if the harvester 

and forwarder download the 

day’s operations into the system 

each evening,” says Rüdiger. 

Similar systems to Lukas are 

already available on the market, 

but none are Internet-based and 

independent of the machine 

brand used. The advantage of 

this platform is that the timber 

flow is better managed and 

time thereby saved. In turn, 

this means that all parties 

involved in the timber flow will 

earn money from Lukas. r 

The computer 

screen shows 

everyone connected 

to Lukas 

how the harvesting 

work is progressing. 


The full tank is lifted and emptied in two minutes. In trials a Valmet 840 forwarder was used, just the right size and able to handle ten-ton loads. 

Chipping head 

– new market for combis 

Successful trials with the Valmet 801 Combi equipped with a chipping unit have been 

conducted in Finland. With productivity of at least 24 cubic meters of chips an hour, a 

new market is opened in a country where the need for biofuel is fast on the increase. 

Trials with a combi 

and chipping head 

have been underway 

for some time 

in Finland – with very good 

results. Essentially, the concept 

is based on a Valmet 801 

Combi equipped with a chipper 

attached to the front, a 12-inch 


pipe through which the chips 

are forced with compressed air 

to a 28-cubic meter chip tank 

mounted on the bunk at the 

rear. 

“All the components are easily 

mounted and dismounted 

with standard connectors,” 

explains Antero Siuro, infor- 

mation officer at Komatsu Forest 

Oy in Finland. “We’ve developed 

this new concept with a 

chipping unit together with 

Sakari Kulju and there are a 

number of patented solutions.” 

The head can both saw broader 

trees and cut thinner trees. 

It’s fitted with an addition- 

al device for handling multiple 

trees and can grip up to ten 

smaller trees at once. Two different 

cutting units housed in the 

same head just 1.8 inches apart 

and well protected is revolutionary. 

The head sits on the combi’s 

36-foot boom, which feeds the 

logged trees into the chipper.

“The combi and chipping 

unit have exactly the same characteristics 

as a regular combi 

and make a very good thinning 

machine,” says Antero. 

“It’s well suited to Finland, but 

also to other markets where the 

need for thinning is great and 

where there’s a need for wood 

chip biofuel. 

When the tank is full, it’s 

raised 13 feet and emptied in 

two minutes into a forwarder by 

releasing two bolts in the bottom 

of the tank. In trials a Valmet 

840 forwarder was used, 

just the right size to handle 

ten-ton loads. The setup also 

includes 42.5-foot trailers or 

containers for transport to one 

of the many existing combined 

power and heating plants or to 

a plant nearing completion. 

One feature of the chipping 

unit, in combination with the 

combi, is that there are no extra 

hydraulics or motors. Instead 

the combi’s hydrostatic motor is 

used solely to power the chip- 

per while the machine is stationary, 

or more sparingly when 

in motion. This means that the 

chipper runs continually, but at 

different power settings, so that 

chipping even can take place 

while on the move. 

“Productivity has proved 

to be very good and has never 

dropped below 24 cubic meters 

of chips an hour despite the 

thinner forests found in northern 

Finland. Further south we 

expect to be able to reach productivity 

levels of up to 36 cubic 

meters of chips an hour,” says 

Antero. 

According to calculations, 

the bottom line for profitability 

is a production rate of 17 cubic 

meters of chips an hour. Another 

advantage is that production 

is possible all year round. 

Antero emphasizes that the 

Valmet 801 Combi is the right 

machine for chipping and that, 

in principle, it takes only an 

hour to fit the chipping equipment. 

The head feeds the logged trees into the chipper mounted on the front. 

“We know that a mediumsized 

combined power and 

heating plant needs between 

100,000 and 200,000 cubic 

meters of chips a year,” states 

Antero. “A combi with a chipping 

head can produce about 

50,000 cubic meters a year, 

which means that just a few 

machines are required to supply 

a combined power and heating 

plant. So it’s not surprising that 

we’re receiving a lot of interest 

in this machine concept.” r 

Facts 

Chips in Finland 

Bioenergy use is on the increase 

in Finland. In 2001, 20 

percent of all energy in Finland 

was produced using fuel harvested 

from the forests. The 

number of combined power and 

heating plants that can be fired 

with a mixture of 80 percent 

peat and 20 percent fresh wood 

chips is currently being expanded. 

The addition of wood chips 

increases the energy extracted 

from the peat, despite the fresh 

chips’ 50 percent moisture content. 

New legal requirements on 

thinning will encourage this development, 

and enable a considerable 

increase in the use of 

wood chips. 


Remote and quiet. Such is the wilderness of northern Canada. 

Bear hunting on 

backwoods rivers 

Bear hunting in the Canadian wilderness entails a lot of things, but one has 

to ask oneself whether Lars-Gunnar Mårtensson might not have had an 

experience beyond the norm when he shot his first black bear in Canada. 

“There are 80,000 black bears 

and 4,000 wolves in Alberta,” 

said Oscar, our guide, when our 

helicopter landed after a 70-mile 

flight straight out into the wilderness 

from Fort McMurray in 

Northern Alberta, Canada. 

There were four hunters in 

our party, and two guides. Ten 


days of canoe paddling, hunting, 

and wilderness life lay 

before us. A new kind of hunting 

for all of us. None of the 

Swedish hunters had ever shot 

a bear before. 

THE HUNTING TACTICS were 

actually very simple. In the 

afternoon we sat in the canoes 

and paddled or drifted with the 

current on the lookout for black 

bears that might appear along 

the shore. Since we had three 

canoes we started at about halfhour 

intervals. At about eight 

in the evening, we stopped paddling 

and made camp. Then we 

had the opportunity to sit and 

watch by the river until dark. 

At about four in the morning, 

it was light enough to sit 

on watch for another couple of 

hours. In the middle of the day 

it was time to sleep and rest 

before the canoes were once 

again put into the water for a

new and exciting leg of the trip 

with rifles at the ready. 

The first morning I paddled 

together with Lars-Gunnar, 

upstream along the Firebag 

River. The stretch of water 

was calm and slow moving and 

it was easy to move against the 

current. In the distance we 

heard the ringing sound from 

Tom-Erik Fredriksson’s bird 

call. Tom-Erik had paddled the 

Richardson River for ten days 

and then joined out group after 

just one day of rest. A late cancellation 

in our group would 

have posed major problems for 

us if Tom-Erik hadn’t agreed to 

join us. 

WHEN WE RETURNED to 

camp, Ulf Österby, a young 

hunter from Halmstad, Sweden, 

had something to tell. 

He had stayed in the camp on 

guard and from his position on 

a sand hill he could look out 

over all the surrounding terrain. 

On the other side of the 

river there was a lake and one 

of the guides, Oscar, and Tom- 

Erik had paddled there in order 

to try to find wolf and bear. 

Half an hour after they had 

stopped trying to call them out, 

Ulf saw a wolf come sneaking 

up. The wolf discovered the 

hunters’ canoe and immediately 

disappeared into the safety of 

the forest. 

“The wolf is amazingly 

shy,” said Oscar. “When you 

see a wolf, you can be sure it’s 

already seen you. If you see 

a wolf 300 yards away, shoot 

immediately.” 

Two times every year bear 

and wolf are hunted on the Firebag 

River. Sometimes, when 

the water is low or there are 

many hunters booked, hunting 

also takes place on the Richardson 

River. The Richardson 

is a bit further north and runs 

through flatter terrain that 

gives hunters a greater chance 

to survey the surrounding area. 

The majority of the woods 

we went through during 120 

miles of paddling were completely 

untouched by modern 

forestry. On the other hand, forest 

fires had taken their toll on 

the woods. Electrical storms, 

not accompanied by rain, commonly 

occur in the wilds of 

Canada. When these storms 

occur during warm periods, the 

risk of forest fires is great. 

AFTER THREE DAYS OF paddling 

and intensive still hunting 

in the mornings and evenings, 

the desire to see a bear 

was becoming incredibly 

strong. In the mornings and 

evenings we saw bear and wolf 

tracks, but not a single living 

bear had been seen by us hunters. 

The hard wind held steady 

and we decided to stay put 

another night if the wind didn’t 

let off. As if on command, the 

wind began to calm that afternoon 

and about four in the 

afternoon the weather was perfect. 

The canoes were placed in 

the water and the first one out 

on the river was Lars-Gunnar 

with guide Jordan. 

I went in the last canoe 

together with guide Oscar and 

we hadn’t paddled for more 

than an hour before it was time 

for our first bear contact. 

“Shoot the first bear you 

see,” was the advice given by 

the man who had arranged the 

trip, Raimo Kanninen, before 

we parted company. 

I did as he said and with a 

shot from almost head on, the 

first bear of my life dropped like 

a stone. The distance was about 

40 yards and it was a small bear. 

We loaded it into the canoe and 

continued to paddle. 

About ten minutes after I had 

shot, Lars-Gunnar spotted a 

bear that lay sleeping on the riverbank. 

Jordan and Lars-Gunnar 

had paddled past the bear when 

Lars-Gunnar discovered it. Jordan 

managed to turn the canoe 

in the current and paddled 

frantically so as not to miss 

their chance at a shot. The bear 

was completely unaware of what 

was about to happen. 

Lars-Gunnar tried frantically 

to wake the sleeping bear, 

Lars-Gunnar Mårtensson boils rocks in order to get rid of 

the last moisture from his boots. 

but after four whistles with 

no effect, Jordan took his paddle 

and hit it hard against the 

water. The black bear awoke 

and looked dazedly out towards 

the rapids. The shot from Lars- 

Gunnar’s Weatherby 300 hit it 

in the throat. 

“It was about 70 yards,” 

stated a beaming marksman 

when we others arrived at the 

site of the shooting. The bear 

remained where it was and 

Lars-Gunnar fired a kill shot 

when he got on dry land. 

NATURALLY, black bears can 

be dangerous. Their behavior is 

unpredictable to say the least. 

A story about two Norwegians 

who had shot a bear and loaded 

it onto the canoe was the highpoint 

of the week. After paddling 

a while, the one hunter 

says to the other, who is sitting 

with his back to the bear: 

“It’s breathing!” 

The bear wasn’t dead and 

the chances of shooting a kill 

shot successfully in a plastic 

canoe aren’t very good. With 

great haste, the guys made it 

to land and unloaded the bear 

Oscar Agnemark, Canadian hunting guide and 

cook, took care of most things in the camp 

during the hunt. 


efore putting it down for good. 

The next canoe stretch 

was filled with various wilderness 

experiences. After an 

hour’s paddling, Lars-Göran 

saw a lynx splashing around 

the water’s edge. Directly after 

a bend in the river we passed 

close by a moose cow lying on 

the banks with a new born calf. 

IN THE EVENING when we 

had made camp, I took the 

opportunity to go up on a high 

bank to scout after bear with 

binoculars. After a half hour 

I saw a movement along the 

water’s edge a couple of hundred 

yards away. A wolf! After a 

couple of exciting minutes, the 

wolf came into range. The wolf 

fell from the shot, but unfortunately 

rolled down into the 

rapids and disappeared into 

the waves. Since I was standing 

on one side of the river and 

the wolf was on the other side, 

there was no chance to rush in 

and try to save my prize. The 

guys at the camp had heard the 

shot and stood like living question 

marks when I called out 


from the distance that the wolf 

had disappeared in the current. 

THE GUIDES PUT a canoe in 

the water and crossed to the 

other side. The roar of the rapids 

made it difficult to communicate 

and the Canadians 

thought that the wolf was 

wounded and alive. It took 

a while before I managed 

to scream myself heard and 

explain the situation and finally 

Jordan found the wolf approximately 

a hundred yards downstream 

from where I shot it. 

The wolf was under three feet 

of water. It turned out to be 

an old Timberwolf. The wolf 

weighed close to 180 pounds 

and was almost 8 feet from 

nose and tail, an enormous 

predator. 

THE LAST TWO days of the 

trip were through a relatively 

calm part of the Firebag. After 

almost 120 miles of paddling 

we had seen four bears and shot 

two. Two of the bears were spotted 

by Tom-Erik, but he had his 

sights on bagging a larger bear 

A temporary windbreak and a proper fire managed to keep the hunters 

warm and drive the worst of the damp from their clothes. 

and so let those go and satisfied 

himself with video filming 

them instead. In the evening 

we watched wide-eyed the bears 

on the video camera screen and 

had some difficulty understanding 

how he could let one of 

them go, since we thought it 

was quite large. 

All agreed that we had experienced 

something truly special 

and had some fine hunting. 

The feeling of being in the wilderness 

is perhaps what we will 

remember best of all. The feeling 

of being bound to the river 

as the only possible way out 

of the wilderness is something 

that you just can’t experience at 

home. The feeling of for once in 

you hunting career being able 

to roam more some 200 miles 

without seeing a single clear-cut 

area is also worth a great deal. r 

Lars-Gunnar Mårtensson with his fine black bear. The result of ten days of canoe paddling on the Firebag River in Northern Canada.

Major investment 

in boom control 

Computer regulated 

boom control with a single 

joystick can soon be a 

reality in both forwarders 

and harvesters. An 

additional USD 1 million 

for Umeå University’s 

research project on boom 

control is set to speed 

development. 

Research on computerized 

regulation 

systems for boom 

control is being 

performed within IFOR, Intelligenta 

Fordon Off-Road (Intelligent 

Off-Road Vehicles), which 

is a collaboration between the 

Umeå Institute of Technology, 

the Swedish University of Agricultural 

Sciences, the Skogforsk 

research foundation, and 

manufacturers and users in the 

region, such as Komatsu Forest. 

The primary aim of the 

boom control project is to 

increase forestry machine productivity. 

With intelligent boom 

control, researchers believe 

boom operation will be speeded 

and operators less tired - two 

important factors for increased 

productivity. 

“And of course it will 

become much easier to operate 

forestry machines, which 

means a shorter learning process. 

With this solution alone 

we’ve made boom control so 

easy that even a small child 

can cope,” says Kalle Prorok, a 

researcher and the project’s laboratory 

coordinator. 

So far the boom control project 

has mainly involved finding 

geometric solutions in a laboratory 

environment. The laboratory 

contains a 16.5-foot forwarder 

boom and sensors and detectors 

in the boom joints are connected 

to a computer. Researchers 

have found out how to get 

the boom, with the aid of sensors 

and detectors, to calculate 

its position. This information 

specifies the boom’s spatial 

coordinates. 

“We’ve had test operators 

from Komatsu Forest here,” 

says Kalle. “The feedback we 

got was that control wasn’t good 

enough. Among other things, 

the regulator caused small 

swinging motions.” 

The laboratory tests also 

showed that the concept needed 

further development in order to 

increase productivity if it’s to be 

commercially viable. 

The next step in the project 

is therefore to find a more 

advanced solution that takes 

into account additional factors, 

such as machine load and terrain. 

This will first be done in 

the laboratory environment. 

Facts 

Project: Intelligent boom for forestry use 

Then there will be at least two 

years of field tests before - 

hopefully - a final solution of 

interest to manufacturers is 

available. 

“If we find a solution, it will 

demand more powerful forestry 

machines computers and a new 

control system,” says Kalle. r 

• The project is included in the IFOR venture for intelligent off-road 

vehicles. 

• Komatsu Forest invested USD 280,000 in the initial project phase. 

• The project has now been awarded a further USD 978,000. 

• Project manager is Anton Shiriaev, professor at the Department 

of Applied Physics and Electronics. 

• The project group also includes Kalle Prorok, laboratory coordinator, 

researcher Anders Sandberg, and research fellows Pedro Xavier, 

Miranda la Hera and Uwe Mattin. 


MEETING 

PLACE 

Coming events 2005 

Europe 

NordCon 

May 26–28 

Jönköping, Sweden 

www.elmia.se/nordcon 

Elmia Wood 

June 1–4 

Jönköping, Sweden 

www.elmia.se/wood 

InterLes 2005 

June 14–17 

St. Petersburg, Russia 

Asturforesta 

June 23–25 

Tieno Asturias, Spain 

www.asturforesta.com 

Foire de Libramont 

July 29–August 3 

Libramont, Belgium 

Forstmesse Luzern 

August 18–21 

Messegelände, Switzerland 

www.fachmessen.ch/forst 

WoodTec 

September 7–10 

Sopron, Hungary 

Bioenergy in Wood Industry 

2005 Conference 


Jyväskylä, Finland 

Les 5èmes Forestières en Limousin 

Massif de Chabrières 


GUERET (Creuse), France 

Rossiiskij Les 2005 

December 9 

Vologda, Russia 

North America 

Midw Sawmill Woodlot & Logging 

Equip Expo 

June 3–4 

Youngstown, Ohio, USA 

Expo 2005, Forest Products Expo 

Atlanta 

June 23–25 

Georgia, USA 

LOGFOR 


Quebec City, Canada 

Lake State Logging Congress 


Marquette, Michigan, USA 

South America 

Forestry Seminar 

June 

Belo Horizonte, Brazil 

Expocorma 

November 10–14 

Conception, Chile 

www.expocorma.cl 


Komatsu Forest is 

now launching a 

broad offering of 

accessories and 

consumables under 

the name ProSelect. 

The range will 

provide professional 

forestry contractors 

with everything 

they need to 

maintain and optimize 

work with their 

machines. 

ProSelect 

– everything you need 

ProSelect will be presented 

to dealers 

and machine owners 

at the Elmia Wood 

trade fair. The range is currently 

far from complete, though 

the goal is to have a competitive 

range available at most service 

shops by year-end. 

Heading this venture is Jörgen 

Nilsson, with experience 

from purchasing as well as 

spare parts sales. 

“We want to offer ‘one-stop 

shopping’ with products of the 

highest quality, such as grapples, 

bars, filters, filter kits, and 

oils. Global coordination means 

we can offer very competitive 

ProTec will be introduced as an accessory in the ProSelect range. 

prices.” 

One of the most interesting 

products in the ProSelect range 

is ProTec. With its protected 

hose passages, this solution 

eliminates hose breakage at the 

boom tip. ProTec has previously 

only been available on new Valmet 

machines, but is now being 

introduced as an accessory that 

can be fitted to all makes of 

boom and grapple. 

PROTEC IS A GREAT step forward 

as hydraulic hose breakage 

usually occurs at the boom 

tip. With ProTec you can wave 

goodbye to all the unnecessary 

standstills and oil spillages 

associated with hose breakage. 

Jörgen is looking forward 

to the successive expansion of 

the range of ProSelect products. 

Among other things, he’ll 

interview a large number of 

sales company representatives 

and dealers about their accessory 

and consumable needs and 

requirements with the aim of 

tailoring the range as it’s introduced 

throughout 2005. 

“There’s always a need to 

optimize machine work,” he 

says. “And this is where the 

ProSelect range will help out. A 

large part of the range will even 

be well suited to other machine 

brands.” r

Tailor-made e-commerce 

system improves service 

Komatsu Forest is to 

have its own, new online 

system, Valmet eSupport, 

for dealers and 

their workshops. The 

system provides quick 

answers about prices, 

stock levels, and specifications 

for spare parts 

and accessories. 

Komatsu Forest has 

long worked to develop 

a new Internet-based 

e-commerce system for its sales 

companies and dealers the 

world over. The idea has been to 

produce a solution independent 

of the business systems used 

by the various companies and 

offered in several languages. 

Orders are to be managed with 

minimum administration delay. 

The system is already in 

use in Sweden and the UK. In 

August it will go online in the 

US and Germany, and somewhat 

later in the other countries 

where Komatsu Forest operates. 

“Valmet eSupport is an 

online system for which users 

can be assigned different authorization 

levels,” explains Lars 

Örtengren, the project manager 

at Komatsu Forest. “This means 

that the user can quickly access 

information about spare parts 

and accessories 24 hours a day. 

If an order is placed, a delivery 

report is sent by e-mail. 

Each user is given a user ID 

and password and can then use 

Valmet eSupport via any computer 

with an Internet connection. 

The dealers assign access 

to users, providing a smooth 

and decentralized system. 

Valmet eSupport is designed 

to be fast as well as easy to 

use and navigate. To this end, 

it includes search engines for 

a long time for a contractor to 

travel around looking at possible 

buys and there are no specialized 

Internet sites for used 

forestry machines. This is the 

reasoning behind Komatsu Forest 

GmbH in Germany opening 

a used machines center outside 

Chemnitz, near the border with 

Poland and the Czech Republic, 

this fall. 

“We’ll gather the machines 

in one place. We hope to have a 

showroom with space for 15-20 

machines,” says Bernd Rauser, 

CEO of Komatsu Forest GmbH. 

standard items and accessories. 

It provides a specification 

archive and the electronic spare 

parts catalog, ESS, is an integrated 

part. 

“With Valmet eSupport we 

have a tool to help improve our 

service offering,” says Lars. 

“In the long-term, our customers 

will benefit greatly 

from Valmet eSupport.” r 

New used machines center 

Demand for used machines is great in several 

of the growing markets in Central Europe. As 

a result, Komatsu Forest GmbH in Germany will 

establish a central sales point outside Chemnitz in 

Eastern Germany for used machines. 

Interest in used machines 

is considerably greater 

in Central Europe than 

in Scandinavia. In Scandinavia 

used machines are usually 

traded in when new machines 

are sold. And Komatsu Forest 

dealers sometimes have trouble 

finding a market for these 

used harvesters. In Central 

Europe, in particular the former 

East Bloc countries, the 

situation is reversed. Contractors 

prefer to start out with a 

used machine and buy a new 

machine when the business is 

better established. The demand 

for used machines is therefore 

quite high. 

At the same time, it takes 

The new used machine showroom 

will be maintained by a 

single employee. The machines 

will be gathered from several 

different markets and, for example, 

the Scandinavian market 

may require help in shifting an 

influx of used machines when 

the work to clear windthrown 

forests after the severe January 

storms is complete. 

“The center will provide an 

important support function for 

machine demand in the Central 

and East European markets,” 

says Bernd. r 


New center strengthens 

product training 

The new Training 

Center at Komatsu 

Forest’s plant in 

Umeå, Sweden is 

now complete. The 

new, spacious training 

center also 

houses a workshop 

for technicians. 

Personnel 

working with quality 

issues and technical 

support are also 

found in the new 

building. 

The new premises provide 

a positive, fresh 

impression. One end 

houses two stories of bright, 

glazed offices with a light garden. 

At the other end we find a 

large staffroom, a lecture room 

that can be divided in two with 

a sliding panel, and an airy 


workshop where machines can 

be demoed when training technicians. 

The Training Center 

is home to a number of simulators 

as well. The total floor 

space is 10,333 square feet. 

“Our task has been to spread 

knowledge to the sales companies 

and to train their technicians 

on an ongoing basis,” 

explains Erik Anens, head of 

technical support and training. 

The Training Center has 28 

offices, a bonus for the personnel 

who previously sat in open 

plan office space in a corridor. 

At present there are four people 

working directly with training 

and twelve associated with technical 

support and service, as 

well as a number of people in 

the growing quality assurance 

and guarantees department. 

THE NEW Training Center is 

adjacent to the plant grounds. 

This makes it very easy to drive 

new machines directly from the 

plant to the demo workshop. 

“Proximity is important 

because we work in close concert 

with production and design 

and are involved in new projects 

from an early stage.” 

In total about 200 people 

will be trained each year. The 

technicians will mostly come to 

Umeå for training twice a year. 

New technicians also do their 

first few weeks of basic training 

here. 

“It feels good to have access 

to a large, modern workshop 

where there’s still space 

even with a machine in place. 

The old premises were far too 

small.” 

“Machine development 

moves pretty rapidly today, 

making ongoing training even 

more important.” 

Erik finds the good work 

environment one of the main 

advantages of the new building, 

which has also been designed 

with the environment in mind 

Erik Anens is head of technical 

support and training at Komatsu 

Forest’s plant in Umeå, Sweden. 

Here Erik shows the simulator 

room in the new Training Center. 

The lights, for example, are 

activated by motion detectors to 

save electricity. 

“The Training Center provides 

a really comfortable and 

stimulating environment.” 

When we meet three of 

the four people with primary 

responsibility for training, they 

tell us how they too are pleased 

with their new workplace. 

“It’s great that service and 

technical support, guarantees, 

and training are all under 

the same roof and close to the 

plant,” says educator Roger 

Sandemo. “It really simplifies 

things.” r 

The new machine workshop is 

very roomy. Here we see educators 

Martin Isaksson and Roger 

Sandemo.

1 2 

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ECO-TRACKS from Olofsfors are the world’s most popular tracks for forestry 

machinery and a very easy way of optimizing your investment in machinery. 

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ps.pondus:

NEW SKIDDER 

Komatsu Forest has 

expanded its product 

range with a 

skidder, the Valmet 

765, and there’s 

already much interest 

in this powerful 

machine. 

The Valmet 765 is 

Komatsu Forest’s 

first skidder and 

a part of the company’s 

strategy to broaden its 

product range to meet different 

market needs. This model 

is available in two versions, single 

function arch or dual function 

arch. 

“There’s a great demand for 

skidders in the American market 

where we’ve had customers 

inquiring after different alternatives,” 

says Leif Magnusson, 

CEO of Komatsu Forest LLC. 

The Valmet 765 is a machine 

that fulfils the requirements of 


whole tree harvesting. 

The machine can be delivered 

with two different grapple 

sizes; a standard grapple 

measuring 123 inches with an 

11.7-square foot load area, and 

a 127-inch grapple with a load 

area of 14.9 square feet. The 

grapples can rotate 360 degrees 

and are nimbly operated. And 

there’s no external hosing that 

can break. Both arch alternatives 

have a well protected (timing 

bar) single cylinder system 

for both grapple claws. 

The Valmet 765 is a stable 

machine with a low center 

of gravity – something 

which the long wheelbase and 

broad wheel axles contribute to. 

Ground clearance is 25.5 inches 

with standard 30.5 x 32 tires. 

The skidder’s articulation joint 

makes for very nimble maneuvering. 

This is a powerful machine 

driven by a Cummins QSB 5.9L 

engine developing 205 gross 

horsepower at 2,200 rpm. Max- 

imum speed is 18 mph with 

six forward speeds and three 

reverse speeds from the torque 

converter, power-shift transmission. 

The right and left sides of 

each axle are fitted with dual 

brake discs for effective braking. 

The Valmet 765 is very fuel 

efficient and is available with 

a 78-gallon main tank and a 

50-gallon auxiliary tank. 

This model has the same 

cab standard as all Valmet 

machines with, among other 

things, climate control and very 

good visibility due to the sloping 

hood and large windows. 

All controls and buttons 

are ergonomically positioned 

in order to make operation 

as comfortable as possible. 

The cab meets all requirements 

of the applicable safety 

standards. Fire safety is also 

good. The optional, pressurized 

water system for fire suppression 

includes valves, hoses, and 

regulator to quickly extinguish 

a fire with reduced risk to oper- 

ator and machine. 

The Valmet 765 is simple to 

service and the cab can be tilted 

for easier access to the transmission 

and driveline. 

“The Valmet 765 is an exciting 

product with components 

selected to withstand with the 

toughest conditions,” states 

Leif. “Moreover, we’ve invested 

a great deal to offer a good operator 

environment with a well 

designed, insulated cab.” r 

Technical data 

Valmet 765 

Engine: Cummins QSB 5.9L 

Power: 205 hp at 2,200 rpm 

Wheelbase: 151 inches 

Wheel axles: 128.5inches 

Ground clearance: 25.5 inches 

Tank: 78 gallons, 

auxiliary tank 50 gallons 

Max. speed: 18 mph

With its three wheels, the Valmet 603 is a quick machine for tight thinning. Kevin and Kyle Pack run Pack Brothers 

Logging in North Carolina, USA. 

Thins fast 

and profitably 

Pack Brothers 

Logging in North 

Carolina, USA is 

pleased with its 

first Valmet 603, 

an economical 

machine used, for 

the most part, for 

tight thinning. 

Pack Brothers Logging 

operates in the 

heart of the south in 

the North Carolina 

Smokey Mountains. The company 

has long been a Komatsu 

Forest customer and owns, 

among other machines, three 

Timbcos – a 430, a 445c, and a 

445d. The owners, Kevin and 

Kyle Pack, have run their company 

along the lines of the traditional 

American model for six 

years, with feller-bunches, skidders, 

crane loaders, and grinder/delimbers. 

They also have six 

logging trucks and an excavator 

for road construction in their 

machine lineup. They currently 

have eight employees. 

THE NEWEST addition to the 

lineup is the three-wheeled 

Valmet 603, which can be 

described as a feller-buncher 

that is driven up to trees to 

fell them with its large, 18-inch 

saw blade rotating at 1,150 rpm. 

The trees are then piled up in a 

bunch ready to be transported 

by skidder to the landing where 

the timber is delimbed and 

loaded on log transport trucks. 

“We saw the Valmet 603 seven 

months ago at a demonstration 

in Arkansas and realized 

that it offered better performance 

than the machine we 

were previously using for thinning,” 

explains Kyle Pack. “We 

were very impressed by the traction 

force in felling and the 

603’s nimbleness in mountainous 

terrain.” 

When we meet them sev- 

en months later, they’re still 

pleased with the machine, 

which has mostly been used 

for thinning on plantations 

where it works nimbly thanks 

to its single rear wheel and 

light weight. The Pack brothers 

report that they’ve seen a 

ten percent increase in production 

for narrower timber 

and that this, together with 

the machine’s lower price, has 

increased profitability considerably, 

despite rises in fuel prices. 

It’s easy to see this is the 

case when one sees the fast rate 

at which the operator works 

and how the 603 is in constant 

motion in order to keep up with 

the skidder collecting the timber. 

So far service needs have 

been minimal and standstills 

seldom seen. They’ve mostly 

involved replacing saw teeth 

in the 300-500 hour interval, 

which is part of regular maintenance. 

Replacement takes four 

to six hours. 

“The Valmet 603 is easy to 

operate with its simple controls 

– two pedals and two joysticks,” 

says Kyle. “It’s fast and stable, 

even on steep inclines. There’s 

never been any risk of it toppling.” 

ON A GOOD DAY, the 603 can 

produce about ten truck loads, 

the equivalent of about 216 tons. 

The weekly average is 1,100 tons, 

which provides good profitability 

even if timber prices in the area 

have dropped in recent years. 

Today Pack Brothers Logging 

is a profitable company, 

but still faces many major challenges. 

One of these challenges 

is the continual squeeze on prices, 

which constantly demands 

increased productivity. Another 

is that the large forest owner 

the company mostly works for is 

selling his land. 

“We’re looking at different 

solutions, but our reputation is 

good enough that we won’t have 

any problems finding new clients,” 

says Kyle. r 


The Valmet 911 X3M is well suited to steep Scottish terrain. 

Tailor-made 

for steep terrain 

There is much interest in the Valmet 911 X3M in Scotland. G Booths & Sons is the first 

Scottish forestry company to invest in the X3M model for logging in extremely steep 

terrain, where its relatively low weight enables high productivity. 

Beautiful Scotland 

doesn’t only captivate 

visitors with its 

marvelous panoramas 

and barrenness – it also 

places tough demands on visitors 

with its physical challenges. 

The steep terrain provides a 

difficulty to be mastered by the 

country’s forestry contractors, 

who are expected to work highly 

productively. That the inter- 


est in tracked machines is so 

great is understandable, since 

tracked machines offer considerably 

greater mobility in steep 

terrain than their wheeled counterparts. 

THE VALMET 911 rubber tire 

harvester has sold very well in 

Scotland, and now interest is 

increasing in the customized 

tracked version, the 911 X3M, 

pronounced ‘911 Extreme’. 

One company that has realized 

the advantages of this 

machine is G Booth & Sons, 

run by Stewart and Gordon 

Booth. They have long 

been faithful Valmet customers 

and ordered, among other 

machines, a Valmet 941 on 

the spot when they visited the 

Umeå plant in April. 

In July 2004 they bought 

their first 911 X3M, a machine 

we saw last fall when we were 

looking at final logging in 

steep terrain outside Glencoe in 

northern Scotland. 

ONE INDICATION OF the 

machine’s good mobility in 

steep terrain was the trying and 

wet hike up the mountainside 

to interview operator Jim Melvin 

about the machine.

“The Valmet 911 X3M is considerably better in steep terrain than all the wheeled machines I’ve operated,” 

says Jim Melvin of G Booth & Sons. 

“The 911 X3M is considerably 

better in steep terrain 

than all the wheeled machines 

I’ve operated,” says Jim when 

we meet him high up on the 

mountain. 

“I’ve been able to work on 

slopes of more than 30 degrees 

with no problems when the 

ground conditions are right 

and the surface doesn’t give. 

The traction of the geared 

down machine is an impressive 

40 tons, which is more than 

enough for the steepest terrain.” 

Jim even emphasizes the 

machine’s excellent stability, 

which has been achieved by, 

among other things, extending 

the contact area with the ground 

by 50 percent by replacing the 

wheels with tracks. At the same 

time, the three-ton weight of the 

tracks has lowered the center of 

gravity, further improving stability 

despite a 6-inch (15-centimeter) 

increase in ground clearance. 

Jim is pleased with his 

machine, although he’d like a 

slightly bigger cab. When the 

machine is stationary, conditions 

in the cab are better than 

in the wheeled machine. Things 

are, however, a little shakier during 

operation. 

Jim finds the automatic leveling 

a big advantage. 

“The tracks are considerably 

better for the ground and 

cause less damage than wheeled 

machines,” says Jim, with personal 

experience of how easy 

it is to rut the light, red Scottish 

soil. 

ANOTHER explanation for the 

lower levels of ground damage 

is that despite the track 

weight, the machine is lighter 

than most competing tracked 

machines. This reduces damage 

as the machine slips and 

spins less. 

According to Jim, the X3M is 

a very productive machine and 

is easily maneuvered through 

the terrain. He praises the joystick 

design, which he’s very 

pleased with. The smooth handling, 

the boom’s ample reach, 

and the machine’s ability to 

climb have all contributed to 

high productivity. Jim has managed 

to produce 80 tons a day 

when thinning and 100 to 150 

tons a day in final logging, 

something which he’s satisfied 

with despite relatively long 

workdays of ten to twelve hours, 

six days a week. 

“I’m very satisfied with the 

machine and the good visibility 

that makes it easy to operate 

the CRH 18 boom,” says Jim. 

“We’ve only had the machine 

for three months, but from my 

experience, I think that many 

other companies ought to buy 

a 911 X3M if they’re logging in 

steep terrain.” r 

Technical data 

Valmet 911 X3M 

A modified 911 4wd 

40-ton traction force 

Handles 80 percent incline 

High productivity of 14–28 m3 /h 

MAY WE 

ASK... 

…TORE WAARA, 

CEO of Komatsu 

Forest A/S in 

Norway. 

I understand business 

has been good 

this year? 

During the past six months 

we’ve had considerably better 

sales than in any other 

six-month period. One explanation 

is that the extreme price 

fixation of recent years is 

tending toward more regular 

cost-orientation and another 

reason is, of course, the healthy 

economy. But there’s also 

great interest in our products. 

Do you have any 

other explanations 

for this success? 

The major lift we got after our 

long demo road show with 

the 921’s successor, the Valmet 

911.3 with a 360.1 harvester 

head. Both the machine 

and the head have received 

great reviews. When rumors 

started to spread in the 

market about the machine’s 

capacity and features, many 

more people made their interest 

known. 

There’s also talk of more thinning, 

so there may be a new 

spring for the Valmet 901.3 

and 840.2. 

What does the 

immediate future 

hold? 

We’re going to recruit a new 

administrative service assistant 

in order to free up more 

time for our technicians to 

work with our customers. This 

will even provide improved 

administration and following 

up of incoming assignments 

from customers. 


The Scandinavian forestry industry has long awaited what 

will be the future communication solution for rural areas. 

The answer may be a new digital cellular network that is 

now challenging the established GSM network. 

Rural 3G 

challenges 

GSM 

Accessibility to broadband 

and digital cellular 

telephony is an 

important factor in 

making the Scandinavian forestry 

industry’s mobile communications 

more effective. So far, 

the GSM network has been the 

predominant solution for voice 

traffic in particular, but a major 

problem is the lack of coverage 

in rural areas. 

The company Nordisk 

Mobiltelefon now hopes to provide 

rural areas in Scandinavia 

with mobile telephony and data 

communication. The company 

has already obtained a license 

to establish digital cellular networks 

in Norway and Sweden 

and now hopes to secure a 

license in Finland. At the time 

of writing, the allotment of 

Finnish licenses is still undecided. 

THE NEW DIGITAL cellular 

network, which is being called 

the rural 3G, will replace the 

analog NMT network that was 

put into operation in Sweden in 

1981. This network is already 

closed in Finland and will close 


in 2007 in Sweden. 

This rural 3G will be located 

on the 450 MHz bandwidth 

and will cover almost all of Norway 

and 80 percent of Sweden. 

Coverage in Finland is still 

unknown. 

The analog NMT network 

still has approximately 130,000 

customers in Sweden. The 

entire Scandinavian forestry 

industry comprises an important 

customer group for Nordisk 

Mobiltelefon. The idea is 

that this rural 3G won’t be used 

solely for telephone traffic, but 

also for data traffic. 

In Finland the idea is taken 

even further so that rural 3G 

will be primarily used for wireless 

broadband in rural areas. 

The existing GSM network, 

which was launched at the 

beginning of the 1990s, still 

doesn’t have enough coverage, 

particularly in Swedish rural 

areas. It does have good coverage 

in Finnish rural areas, but 

in Sweden the GSM network 

covers just 70 percent of the 

country, and then primarily in 

densely populated areas. Urban 

3G, which is still under con- 

struction, will only cover about 

25 percent of Sweden’s area and 

even less in Finland. 

The threat from rural 3G 

has speeded the promise of the 

expansion of the GSM network 

in Sweden. TeliaSonera has 

promised to expand its Swedish 

GSM network to 90 percent coverage 

within four years. In addition, 

they will supply GSM networks 

with Edge technology in 

order to increase the speed of 

data transfer. This provides the 

possibility of data speeds of 200 

KB per second for reception and 

about 100 KB per second for 

transmission. 

ONE ADVANTAGE OF THE 

GSM network is that there are 

already mobile phones that support 

GSM, Edge, and urban 

3G. So you only need a single 

phone. 

The technology in rural area 

3G is a variant of the Ameri- 

can CDMA 2000 and is called 

CDMA 450. This provides faster 

data speeds than GSM networks 

with Edge technology, 

but there are currently no telephones 

that can handle GSM, 

urban 3G, and CDMA 2000 in 

the same unit, and even when 

such phones do become available, 

the choice will be smaller. 

Whether the expansion of 

the GSM network is a promise 

to customers or a warning shot 

to slow the progress of rural 3G 

remains to be seen. Hopefully, 

at least one digital cellular network 

with high availability in 

rural areas will be available in 

the near future.r

Forestry industry a winner 

Two competing telecom 

operators in rural 

areas could create a 

win-win situation for 

the forestry industry in 

Scandinavia. 

“It hasn’t looked too 

bright, so if they keep 

their promises it could 

turn out really good,” 

says Bertil Lidén, 

researcher in logistic at 

the Swedish Skogforsk 

research institute. 

Until not too long ago, 

the chances of good 

future cellular telecommunications 

in rural areas, particularly 

in Sweden, was not too 

promising. But with Nordisk 

Mobiltelefon as a new player in 

Norway and Sweden, and perhaps 

also in Finland, this situation 

has quickly changed. 

There is now a chance that 

Facts 

Digital 450 network 

• The digital 450 network is 

currently found in more than 

20 countries, including China, 

Russia, Rumania, Poland, Portugal, 

Brazil, and Tibet. 

• The technology that will be 

used is called CDMA 450 and 

is based on the American 

CDMA 2000 technology. 

• Band frequency is 450 MHz. 

• Data speed will start at 150 

kilobits per second. 

• Services offered, in addition 

to voice and data, are typical 

additional services such as 

SMS, MMS, e-mail, and wap/ 

web surfing. 

rural areas will gain two functioning 

systems. In addition to 

the establishment of rural 3G, 

as the new digital 450 network 

is referred to, in Norway and 

Sweden, Finland already has a 

GSM network with good coverage. 

Moreover, TeliaSonera is 

now promising an expansion of 

the Swedish GSM network. 

“The way I see it, competition 

is good. If only the operators’ 

plans are realized then 

there will be two systems that 

can meet the needs of the forestry 

industry,” says Bertil. 

The forestry industry in 

Scandinavia has, according to 

Bertil, three basic needs when 

it comes to mobile communication. 

First there must be access 

to telephones at all workplaces. 

Second, it should be possible to 

use e-mail. Third, there should 

be access to mobile internet 

Coverage in 

Scandinavia 

• Nordisk Mobiltelefoni promises 

that rural 3G will 

have 80 percent coverage 

on a county basis in 

Sweden. In Norway they 

promise even better coverage. 

• TeliaSonera has promised 

that the GSM network in 

Sweden, after expansion, will cover almost 90 percent of the country. 

In Finland the GSM network has 97 percent coverage and in Norway 

coverage is also high. 

• Urban 3G will cover approximately a quarter of Sweden when fully 

expanded. In Finland and Norway coverage will be even lower. 

with a transmission speed of 

at least 144 kilobits per second, 

which is the limit for 3G. 

“Basically, we need voice 

communication for such things 

as safety in the forest, but just 

as important is the opportunity 

to transmit data in mobile environments,” 

states Bertil. 

The current coverage for 

mobile communication is a major 

problem in Scandinavian rural 

areas, even if the situation is better 

in Finland than in Sweden. 

“The forestry industry prioritizes 

coverage, since there is a 

major need for communication 

everywhere that forests grow. 

When it comes to data transfer, 

there are currently no large 

amounts being sent, so speed is 

not yet a problem,” he explains. 

But in the future the ability 

to transmit data rapidly can 

be important. For this reason, 

Norway 

Sweden 

Finland 

the different technical solutions 

that the GSM network and rural 

3G are based on are not unimportant. 

The GSM expansion 

will take place with Edge technology 

while rural 3G will be 

based on a variant of the American 

CDMA 2000 technology, 

called CDMA 450. 

“From a purely technical perspective, 

CDMA 450 is a more 

genuine 3G, while GSM with 

Edge technology is what one 

could call 2.5G,” says Bertil. 

There is a risk that the GSM 

network will be outdated in 

a few years, since the forestry 

industry’s demands for rapid 

data transfer will most likely 

increase. 

“Technically, CDMA 450 has 

more development potential 

and is deemed by many to be 

more future-safe,” Bertil concludes.r 


Snags left in clearings make excellent habitats for many threatened (red listed) beetles. 

Snags good for insects 

Snags left in clearings 

are good for biodiversity. 

A new report from 

the Swedish forestry 

industry’s research 

institute Skogforsk and 

the Swedish University 

of Agricultural Sciences 

shows that snags are 

used by a large number 

of insects, many of them 

rare. 

Deadwood is an important 

factor in the survival 

of many wooddwelling 

insects. At the same 

time, modern forestry techniques 

mean that very little 

deadwood is left in the forest. 

As a result, at the beginning 

of the 1990s the Swedish forestry 

industry started to leave 

snags in clearings. A snag is a 

tree stump at least 5 feet (1.5 

meters) tall left standing during 

logging. The stump should 

preferably be the remains of a 

thick tree with a quality fault in 

the rootstock. 

The theory was that since 

windthrown trees left in place 


become home to a rich insect 

life, snags left in place should 

also improve matters for many 

insects. It was also known that 

areas exposed to the sun and 

containing deadwood are beneficial 

to many insect species. 

“It was very much based 

on chance, as we knew that of 

the 2,000 forest-dwelling species 

that are red listed, 500 

are wood-dwelling beetles,” 

explains Jan Weslien, head 

of the Nature & Environment 

research program at Skogforsk 

and one of the contributors to 

the new report. 

THE REPORT, based on six 

scientific publications and 

twelve years of studies, also 

shows that the snags theory 

has worked better than anyone 

expected. The method was 

established very rapidly in Sweden 

and in one study 300 different 

beetle species were found, 

40 of which were red listed. 

“We now know that snags 

from both deciduous trees and 

coniferous trees act as develop- 

ment environments for a large 

number of wood-dwelling beetles,” 

says Jan. 

RESEARCHERS HAVE found 

most rare species in aspen 

snags. They were also found in 

other types of less common tree 

and Jan therefore underlines 

the importance of not only leaving 

snags from the most common 

trees (in Sweden spruce, 

Scotch pine, and birch). 

Another point is that it can 

take time before certain species 

appear. In the first clearing 

with snags in Grangärde, Dalarna, 

Sweden, for example, a very 

rare species of beetle appeared 

after ten years. 

Based on studies of snags, 

researchers can now also 

see an opportunity after the 

recent severe storms in Sweden 

to benefit biodiversity and 

wood-dwelling insects. All the 

windthrown trees provide natural 

snags in many places. 

“The opportunity to leave 

these natural snags ought to be 

taken by forest owners, espe- 

cially if splitting and other 

damage makes the wood worthless,” 

says Jan. “Moreover, our 

studies have shown that the 

harmful spruce bark beetle 

propagates poorly in snags.” 

Finally, Jan emphasizes that 

snags are but one of many measures 

to benefit biodiversity. 

There are many species that 

thrive in environments other 

than snags exposed to the sun. r 

Advice for those 

leaving snags 

• Leave different tree types 

• They should be at least 5 feet (1.5 

meters) tall 

• Try to choose trees with quality 

faults in the rootstock 

• Choose really thick stumps if several 

thin stumps can’t be found 

• Choose stumps in clearings and at 

the forest edge to encourage species 

seeking warmth and sunlight 

• Clear around the stumps and they’ll 

be good for insects for many years 

• It’s unclear how many stumps are 

needed to ensure biodiversity, but 

the more the better

Settings for reliable printouts 

SINCE 2004 Valmet harvesters have 

been equipped with color printers. 

The installation carried out at the factory 

enables the printer to send information 

about cartridge ink levels. The 

disadvantage of this installation is 

that communication with the printer 

can sometimes fail if the right measures 

aren’t taken. 

All new harvesters from Komatsu 

Temporary measure to retain 

ink level monitoring 

1 

1 

Open the printer 

properties page. 

2 

Forest are equipped with HP Deskjet 

450 color printers. As standard, the 

printer is installed at the plant using a 

port called LPT1. However, it can also 

be connected via a virtual port called 

Dot4. The Toolbox program makes it 

possible to read the cartridge ink levels. 

One disadvantage of this is that 

the computer sometimes loses communication 

with the printer so that 

Open the Toolbox program, select ‘hp deskjet’ from the menu, and 

then ‘hp deskjet 450 printer Toolbox’. 

Open the window for 

printers and faxes. 

TIPS AND ADVICE 

Just Forest plans to use this space to publish practical tips and advice for users of Valmet foresting machines. 

The editors are happy to publish any ideas you may have. Please submit any tips or questions to info.se@komatsuforest.com. 

2 

3 

printouts are locked. 

This isn’t a serious problem and is 

easily remedied. In principle, this can 

be achieved in two ways, with the 

easiest way being to take a temporary 

measure in the Toolbox program’s 

print queue, thereby retaining monitoring 

of ink levels and printer status. 

The other measure is to disable the 

ink monitoring function and in this way 

Measures to completely disable 

printer status and ink cartridge 

level monitoring 

Click ‘Try again’ 

in the ‘HP dj450 

toolbox’ window 

to initiate communication. 

Communication 

should be back, 

earlier printouts 

should be printed, 

and the status 

should be as 

shown here. 

4 

5 

3 4 5 

Select the tab for ports 

where the ‘Dot4’ port is selected. 

Scroll up the list on the 

right to LPT1 and check 

this selection. Click Apply. 

avoid the need for future measures. 

However, the advantage of ink level 

monitoring is that you need not worry 

about not being able to print due to 

a lack of ink. 

Below we’ll use screen shots of 

the computer interface to describe the 

two different methods. 

If the printout still fails, check the 

print queue. 

Restart the documents that couldn’t 

be printed. Another alternative is to 

clear the print queue and make new 

printouts. 

Test the printer by printing a 

test page. 


G8 fights illegal 

logging 

News 

Trade in illegal timber 

from Africa is worth 

about 15 billion dollars. 

40 percent of the timber 

is exported to the G8 countries, 

that is, Canada, France, Italy, 

the US, Germany, Japan, Russia, 

and the UK. The secretaries of 

the environment and development 

assistance in these countries 

are now encouraging measures 

to stop this illegal trade. 

Russian wood 

product industry 

growing 

The production of wood 

products is expected to 

increase by five percent 

during 2005 and 2006. The factors 

behind this rise are exports 

to China and timber demands 

in Russia, where the economy 

is growing fast. The country 

is to invest in highly refined 

forestry products to be exported 

to the EU, and the export 

of sawn timber, plywood, and 

board products to China, the 

rest of Asia, and the US. 

Russia has about a quarter 

of the world’s forestry reserves 

and harvested 81 million 

cubic meters in 2004, which is 

about 25 percent of the possible 

harvest. 

Ancient monuments 

protected with new 

technique 

In Sweden more than 

half of all ancient monuments 

are damaged 

by forestry practices. But with 

modern technology, the damage 

can be limited. At a recent 

conference in Sweden, Lars Ohlin 

from the company Korsnäs 

explained how forestry machine 

operators can avoid damaging 

objects worthy of protection. 

Korsnäs has a system 

that uses GPS and regularly updated 

map data. The company’s 

planners add measures to 

help operators make the right 

decisions. 



reduces barking 


on feed rollers 

and knives reduces 

barking. This 

is shown in a new 

study from the 

Finnish forestry 

research institute 

Metla. 

The Finnish study has 

been done in collaboration 

with forestry 

machine manufacturers, 

including Komatsu Forest, and 

the forestry companies Metsäliitto, 

Stora Enso, and UPM- 

Kymmene. The study shows 

that by reducing the pressure 

on the feed rollers and delimbing 

knives one can considerably 

reduce barking. With the lowest 

possible pressure and cor- 

rectly shaped and sharpened 

delimbing knives barking can 

be halved. 

Barking reduces the timber’s 

refinement value through natural 

or mechanical damage. When 

the feed rollers and delimbing 

knives pass over the timber’s 

surface, the bark is sometimes 

torn away. Blunt knives can also 

lead to limbs actually being broken 

rather than cut off, with the 

bark often in tow. 

IN SCANDINAVIA the problem 

with barking is encountered all 

year round, but is most noticeable 

when the trees are producing 

sap, which is from May to 

midsummer. At that time barking 

reaches its peak, as cohesion 

between timber and bark is 

at its least. 

The study was conducted 

by Harri Liiri, Antti Asikainen, 

and Ari Erkkilä and was 

based on digital photo analyses 

and delimbing under laboratory 

conditions. 

THE RESULTS SHOW that it was 

mostly reductions in the feed 

roller and knife pressures that 

led to reduced barking. Knife 

pressure was of most importance. 

If this is reduced by a 

third from the normal setting, 

barking can be almost halved. 

The lower knife pressure had no 

significant negative impact on 

delimbing quality. By reducing 

the delimbing force, barking is 

reduced. The delimbing knife’s 

cutting angle and shape affect 

the cutting force. By increasing 

the delimbing knives’ cutting 

angles from zero to 30 degrees, 

the cutting force required was 

reduced by 25 percent. Sharpening 

the lower part of the knives 

can also reduce the required 

cutting force. r

What type 

are you? 

Traditionalist 

Is your magazine delivered 

to the wrong address? Has 

your magazine failed to turn 

up? Or do you simply know 

more people who wish to 

receive Just Forest? Please 

contact your nearest sales 

office. 

ANECDOTAL 

Under this heading, Just Forest will print anecdotes and stories from then and now. The editor will be happy to receive 

ideas for publication. Send your tips or stories to info.se@komatsuforest.com. 

Economist 

Change of address 

Australia 

Marina Kirpichnikov 

marina.kirpichnikov@komatsuforest.com 

Fax +61 2 9647 2540 

Brazil 

Marilia dos Santos 

marilia.lucia.santos@komatsuforest.com 

Fax +55 41 6673100 

Chile 

Alfonso Solar 

alfonso.solar@komatsu.cl 

Fax +56 41 92 53 55 

Denmark 

Michael Husfeldt 

Michael.husfeldt@valtra.com 

Fax +45 7634 3201 

Environmentalist 

Passive 

owner 

AGE: Old Young Young Varies Varies 

England 

Stewart MacGregor 

stewart.macgregor@komatsuforest.com 

Fax +44 1228 792388 

Finland 

Antero Siuro 

antero.siuro@komatsuforest.com 

Fax +358 32658324 

France 

Martine Thuriault 

mthuriault@komatsu.fr 

Fax +00 33 130 905 144 

Italy 

Fabrizio da Fré 

fabriziodafre@imai.it 

Fax +39 0438 430115 

Norway 

Mona Andersson 

mona.andersson@komatsuforest.com 

Fax +47 62572954 

Broadbased 

PROPERTY: Inherited property Large property Purchased property Inherited property Inherited property 

FUTURE: 

Wants the children 

to take over 

Can consider selling Can consider selling Uninterested 

Wants the children 

to take over 

LIVES: On the property On the property In town Not on the property On the property 

OBJECTIVE: 

ECONOMY: 

Inspired to pass on 

a beautiful forest 

Less than ten percent of 

income from the forest 

Now you can finally find out what type of forest owner you are. A thesis from the Swedish University of Agricultural 

Sciences has established that Swedish forest owners can generally be sorted into five different categories. 

Take a look to see whether you’re a traditionalist, an environmentalist, an economist, a passive owner, or a more 

broad-based owner. 

Economy always 

most important 

Forest represents 

major share of income 

Cultural and environmental 

protection 

Very little income 

from the forest 

None 

Small income from 

the forest 

Environmental protection 

and financial return 

Major share of income 

from the forest 

Portugal 

Antonio Ramalho 

sefoeste@mail.telepac.pt 

Fax +351 244 685959 

Spain 

Cesar Sanchez 

cesar.hitraf@retemail.es 

Fax +34 986 58 23 89 

Sweden 

Veronica Kjellen 

veronica.kjellen@sweloghb.com 

Fax +46 171 41 67 80 

Germany 

Silke Brückner 

silke.bruckner@komatsuforest.com 

Fax +49 7454 960218 

USA 

Nate Burton 

nate.burton@komatsuforest.com 

Fax +1 715 524 7833 


Wheeled product line 

Production units 

Komatsu Forest AB 

Phone: +46 90 70 93 00 

www.komatsuforest.com 

Komatsu Forest LLC 

North America 

Phone: +1 715 524 2820 


Timbco 

Sales companies 

and dealers 

EUROPE 

AUSTRIA 

Karner und Berger GmbH 

Phone: +43 2769 84571 

www.valmet.at 

BELGIUM 


Phone:+49 74549 6020 

www.komatsuforest.de 

CROATIA 

Iverak d.o.o. 

Phone: +385 1 291 0399 

www.iverak.hr 

CZECH REPUBLIC 

Komatsu Forest 

Phone: +420 272 701 621 

www.komatsuforest.cz 


DENMARK 

Valtra Denmark A/S 

Phone: +45 76 343 2000 

www.valtra.com 

ESTONIA 

Ami Logging OU 

Phone: +372 562 41192 

www.komatsuforest.fi 

FINLAND 

Komatsu Forest Oy AB 

Phone: +358 3265 8311 


FRANCE 

Komatsu Forest, Devision of 

Komatsu France s.a. 

Phone: +33 1 30 90 51 00 


GERMANY 


Phone: +49 74549 6020 

www.komatsuforest.de 

HUNGARY 

Kuhn 

Phone: +36 128 980 80 

www.kuhn.hu 

ITALY 

Imai 

Phone: +39 04 38 43 0171 

www.imai.it 

LATVIA 

Silva Serviss Ltd. 

Phone: +371 50 21754 


LITHUANIA 

Lifore Ltd 

Phone: +370 5 2602 061 


NETHERLANDS 

W. van den Brink 

Phone: +31 3184 56 228 

www.lmbbrink.nl 

NORWAY 

Komatsu Forest A/S 

Phone: +47 62 57 8800 

www.komatsuforest.no 

POLAND 

Agrex Arcon Sp. z o.o. 

Phone: +48 226 410 505 

www.agrex-arcon.pl 

PORTUGAL 

Sefoeste Lda 

Phone: +351 244 68 91 00 


RUSSIA 

Komatsu Forest Oy Ab 

Phone: +7 095 258 1428 


SLOVAKIA 


Phone: +49 7454 960 20 

SPAIN 

Hitraf S.A. 

Phone: +34 986 582 520 

www.hitraf.com 

SWEDEN 

SweLog Skogsmaskiner HB 

Phone: +46 171 41 67 70 

www.sweloghb.com 

SWITZERLAND 

W Mahler AG 

Phone: +41 1 763 5090 

www.wmahler.ch 

Not all products are available in all markets 

901 901 

801 Combi 830 

860 860 890 

330 330DUO 350 360 370 370E 

380 385 395 

UNITED KINGDOM 

Komatsu Forest Ltd 

Phone: +44 1228 792 018 


UNITED STATES 

ALABAMA 

Cotton-Hutcheson, Inc. 

Phone: +1 251 578 1812 

www.cotton-hutcheson.com 

G&S Equipment 

Phone: +1 334 365 5192 

Warrior Tractor Equipment 

Phone: +1 255 233 1914 

ARIZONA 

Dodd Diesel 

Phone: +1 800 821 5921 

ARKANSAS 

Warrior Tractor Co. 

Phone: +1 870 367 3497 

CALIFORNIA 

Sierra Machinery 

Services Inc. 

Phone: +1 916 655 3077 

www.sierramachinery.com 

COLORADO 

Dodd Diesel 

Phone: +1 800 821 5921 

CONNECTICUT 

Barry Equipment Co., Inc. 

Phone: +1 508 949 0005 

FLORIDA 

Cotton-Hutcheson, Inc. 

Phone: +1 334 578 1812 

www.cotton-hutcheson.com 

IDAHO 

Modern Machinery 

– Pocatello 

Phone: +1 208 233 5345 

www.modernmachinery.com 

Modern Machinery – Boise 

Phone: +1 800 221 5211 


KENTUCKY 

Lyons Sawmill & Logging 

Equip Inc – Circleville OH 

Phone: +1 740 474 6028 

LOUISIANA 

Warrior Tractor Co. 

Phone: +1 870 367 3497 

MAINE 

The Oliver Stores 

Phone: +1 207 778 6595 

www.theoliverstores.com 

MASSACHUSETTS 

Barry Equipment Co. 

Phone: +1 508 949 0005 

MICHIGAN 

Roland Machinery 

Company 

Phone: +1 906 786 6920 

www.rolandmachinery.com 

MINNESOTA 

Road Machinery and 

Supplies 

Phone: +1 218 741 9011 

www.rmsequipment.com 

MISSISSIPPI 

Power Equipment – Saltillo 

Phone: +1 662 869 0283 

www.powerequipco.com 

Waters 

Truck & Tractor-Meridian 

Phone: +1 601 693 4807 

www.waterstruck.com 

MONTANA 


– Billings 

Phone: +1 406 252 2158 



– Missoula 

Phone: +1 406 523 1100 


NEBRASKA 

Black Hills Timber 

Equipment 

Phone: +1 605 578 2003 

NEW HAMPSHIRE 


Phone: +1 508 949 0005 


Phone: +1 800 339 6595 

www.theoliverstores.com 

NEW MEXICO 

Dodd Diesel 

Phone: +1 800 821 5921 

911 

840 

NEW YORK 

CJ Logging Equipment Inc. 

– Boonville 

Phone: +1 315 942 4756 


Equipment Inc. – Little 

Valley 

Phone: +1 716 938 9175

945 960 

OHIO 


Equipment Inc. – Circleville 

Phone: +1 740 474 6028 

OREGON 


– Eugene 

Phone: +1 541 688 7321 



– Portland 

Phone: +1 503 255 7841 


PENNSYLVANIA 

Lyons Sawmill & 

Logging Equipment Inc. 

– Brookwood 

Phone: +1 814 849 4073 


Equipment Inc. – Allenwood 

Phone: +1 570 538 2504 

RHODE ISLAND 


Phone: +1 508 949 0005 

SOUTH DAKOTA 

Black Hills Timber Eqpt 

Phone: +1 604 291 6021 

TENNESSEE 

Power Equipment 

– Knoxville 

Phone: +1 865 577 5563 


941 

840 

890 

Model 233 


– Nashville 

Phone: +1 615 213 0900 



– Memphis 

Phone: +1 901 346 9800 



– Chattanooga 

Phone: +1 423 894 1870 



– Kingsport 

Phone: +1 423 349 6111 


UTAH 

Dodd Diesel 

Phone: +1 800 821 5921 

VERMONT 


Phone: +1 508 949 0005 


Phone: +1 800 339 6595 

VIRGINIA 


Equipment Inc. 

Phone: +1 304 765 3810 

WASHINGTON 


– Chehalis 

Phone: +1 360 748 4421 


Tracked Product line Timbco 

911 X3M 

425 

425 

Modern Machinery – Kent 

Phone: +1 253 872 3530 



– Spokane 

Phone: +1 509 535 1654 


WEST VIRGINIA 


Equipment Inc. – Sutton 

Phone: +1 304 765 3810 

WISCONSIN 

Roland Machinery 

Company 

Phone: +1 906 786 6920 

www.rolandmachinery.com 

WYOMING 

Black Hills Timber 

Equipment 

Phone: +1 605 578 2003 

CANADA 

ALBERTA 

Coneco Equip – Edmonton 

Phone: +1 780 451 2630 

www.coneco.ca 

Coneco Equip – Calgary 

Phone: +1 403 569 1109 

Coneco Equip 

– Grande Prairie 

Phone: +1 780 532 9410 

Coneco Equip – High Level 

Phone: +1 780 926 2501 

EX10 

Harvester 

425 EX 

Harvester or Feller 

445 EX 


475 EX 


Coneco Equip 

– Fort McMurray 

Phone: +1 780 791 0616 

Coneco Equip – Red Deer 

Phone: +1 403 340 8343 

BRITISH COLUMBIA 

Terratech Equip – Langley 

Phone: +1 604 532 8324 

www.terratech.ca 

Terratech – Campbell River 

Phone: +1 250 286 0694 

Terratech – Cranbrook 

Phone: +1 250 489 1715 

Terratech – Kamloops 

Phone: +1 250 374 6961 

Terratech – Prince George 

Phone: +1 250 564 8841 

Coneco Equip – Fort St. John 

Phone: +1 250 785 8161 

www.coneco.ca 

Coneco Equip – Fort Nelson 

Phone: +1 250 774 3215 

MANITOBA 

Terratech Equip – Winnipeg 

Phone: +1 204 487 1050 


NEW BRUNSWICK, PRINCE 

EDW. ISLAND & NOVA SCOTIA 

Equipement Fédéral 

– Fredericton 

Phone: +1 506 457 5544 

www.federal-equip.com 

NEWFOUNDLAND 

& LABRADOR 


– Paradise 

Phone: +1 709 782 2151 


ONTARIO 


– Timmins 

Phone: +1 705 264 4300 


603 

Terratech Equip 

– Thunder Bay 

Phone: +1 807 939 2262 


QUEBEC 


– Quebec 

Phone: +1 418 654 0245 


SASKATCHEWAN 

Terratech Equip – Saskatoon 

Phone: +1 306 931 0044 


Terratech Equip – Estevan 

Phone: +1 306 634 3108 

Terratech Equip – Regina 

Phone: +1 306 359 3121 

NORTH WEST TERRITORIES 

Coneco Equip – Yellowknife 

Phone: +1 867 669 0738 

www.coneco.ca 

415 EX 


425 EXL 


445 EXL 


475 EXL 


YUKON 

Coneco Equip – Whitehorse 

Phone: +1 867 667 7368 

www.coneco.ca 

SOUTH AMERICA 

BRAZIL 

Komatsu Forest Ltda. 

Phone: +55 41 667 2828 


CHILE 

Komatsu Chile S.A. 

Phone: +56 419 253 01 

www.kch.cl 

OTHER MARKETS 

AUSTRALIA 

Komatsu Forest Pty Ltd 

Phone: +61 2 9647 3600 

NEW ZEALAND 

Komatsu NZ 

+(64)-9-277-8300 

www.komatsu.com.au 

SOUTH AFRICA 

Barlows Equipment Co. 

Phone: +27 8332 74 17 

SOUTHEAST ASIA 

Komatsu Forest Pty Ltd 

Phone: +61 2 9647 3600 


INDONESIA 

PT United Tractors Tbk 

Phone: +62 21 460 5959 

www.unitedtractors.com

International magazine - Komatsu Forest

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