Best Wood Schneider GmbH with production site in southern Germany has released more details on their plans to build a state of the art, Euro 80 million sawmill in Meßkirch.

The new mill will produce up to 200,000 m3 of lumber and 100,000 m3 of CLT per year. The facility will be highly automated, with separate lines for small diameter and large diameter logs. Schneider will be relying on a mix of German, Finnish and Swedish manufactures for machinery.

For the log yard operation Schneider has chosen mechanization from Holtec and will only accept shorter length logs (up to 4m) to eliminate log sorting. Instead the logs are fed separately according to small and large diameters on two independent feeding conveyors. Beginning installation is planned for the summer of 2021 and commissioning in the winter of 2022.

At the last 2020 Oregon Logging Conference, Log Max presented to the public the next generation 7000XT Top Saw

This pre-series was due for testing under 2020 before a release later this year, there has been some delay due to covid-19 situation yet there is hope for the series production to start at the beginning of 2021.

The new log max 7000XT is a durable, easy-to-work, accurate, and intelligent workmate, ready for the toughest applications.

Weighing 2 270 kg (5,004 lbs) it has everything you would expect from a modern harvesting head and is designed to withstand the toughest applications no matter how or where in the world you use it. It offers accurate and precise length and diameter measuring and has many smartly designed features that greatly simplify service.

 What makes the 2020 7000XT Top Saw special :

– Durability : the frame is reinforced in many places to withstand the toughest jobs and increase lifespan.

– Cutting performance, the 7000XT Top Saw as new saw valves for both units that have been optimized to offer fast, trouble-free cutting.

– The measuring results, there is a high requirement for today’s harvester heads to deliver precise measurement results. The 7000XT measuring unit has been redesigned to meet these requirements.

– Simplicity & ease of access : It’s now even easier to perform regular maintenance and service on the head thanks to Improved accessibility, well laid out hoses and grease nipples makes life easier.

Strength and durability
To improve the frame’s durability and life span, the attachments for all the delimbing knives and for the feed roller arms have been strengthened. The lower knife has a new reinforced mechanical stop in both open and closed positions. In the open position, the inside of the frame has been strengthened, inside the oil tank. In the closed position, a mechanical stop has been integrated in the frame. To increase the lower knifes lifting capacity and improve the stem holding, the cylinder for the lower knife has been upgraded. Both the lower knife attachment and the knife itself are updated to work optimally with the new larger cylinder.

The frame´s design around the measuring wheel hole has been modified and the stoppers for the roller arms on the inside of the frame reinforced. A replaceable wear plate has been added on the frontside of the Top Saw box. Instead of wearing down the centerline of the frame, the new wear plate will take the hit.

The 7000XT Top Saw will, from now on, be equipped with a hydraulic top knife as standard. This feature allows the upper knife to automatically retract when the head feeds backward, a good way to protect the knife from damage. The 7000XT has new reinforced knives with welded knives edges. The knife-edge has an increased thickness and is interchangeable. The tip of the knifes have a smaller round tip, which makes them function more like a tweezer, making it easier to pick stems from a woodpile. The knives are also better suited for hardwood thanks to a steeper angle of the lower part of the knife helping to fend away thicker branching. The lower knife is reinforced to adapt to the new, more powerful cylinder.

Cutting performance
The head comes equipped with the 611 has the main saw and the 318 for the top saw. The saw 611 has a 60cc (3.66 cu.in) motor, manual chain tensioning and 3/4” chain, the top saw is the 318 with a 30cc (1.83 cu.in) motor and automatic tensioning.

To increase the performance and durability of the top saw, a new valve has been added. It has also been given a new position on the frame to simplify service and settings. The main saw also has a new valve that provides increased durability and better controllability of the saw. The valve has a new placement, directly mounted on the motor outlet, which minimizes the risk of cavitation. To improve cutting, the position of the main saw has been optimized. This modified geometry provides a faster cutting cycle and minimizes the risk of the wood splitting during cutting. This change in design of the saw box also provides extra room for the new, more powerful, saw cylinder.

Improved length measurement function & New contactless sensor
To offer the best measurement results, the length measurement function has been totally rethought. The design of the measure wheel cylinder, the hydraulic circuit have been improved and the measuring wheel arm and its attachment reinforced. The new measuring wheel unit includes a larger diameter measuring wheel. Altogether, the changes will allow the measuring wheel to follow the contour of the stem even better and provide the best measurement results. The new length measuring sensor is now contactless meaning that there are no mechanical moving components that will result in minimal or even service and maintenance free sensor. The spring-loaded sensor is placed in the arm and retained by a lock ring. An o-ring prevents it from turning, a magnet is fixed to the cover which is part of the wheel assembly. The measuring wheel assembly has also been equipped with a new bearing with tapered rollers which provides a more stable and stronger construction. To simplify the maintenance of the roller bearing, a lubrication point on the aluminium cover of the measuring unit has been added.

The heads come with many more improvements, such as the new laser find end sensor, the integrated safety pin attachment, hose protections that protects the base machine hoses from sticks coming from the front.

British Columbia government made changes to the Manufactured Forest Products Regulation (MFPR) around export requirements for sawn-wood products and lumber made from western red cedar or cypress go into effect Sept. 30, 2020. These changes are intended to increase the amount of processing of wood products done within British Columbia, leading to more B.C. jobs, rather than having that processing done after export.

Under the amended MFPR, the maximum dimension of lumber to be considered a sawn-wood product will be 0.1 square metres (approximately 12 inches by 12 inches). This will require further domestic processing of lumber prior to being eligible for export. Additionally, the regulation amendments will require that in the Coast area, lumber that is made from western red cedar or cypress must be fully manufactured. Products that do not meet these new criteria will require a provincial export permit and payment of a fee in lieu of manufacture to be eligible for export.

MFPR, introduced in 2003, defines the criteria that products must meet to be considered manufactured under the Forest Act. Under the current regulation, logs that are squared off up to a maximum dimension of 0.2 square metres (approximately 17 inches by 17 inches) are categorized as a sawn-wood product and may be exported without further manufacture.

These changes were initially set to come into effect July 1 but were postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. This additional time allowed the forest industry to recover from the challenges associated with the pandemic and to better prepare for the resulting market impacts.

Reinvigorating B.C.’s forest sector to improve both environmental standards and jobs for local communities is a shared priority between government, the BC Green Party caucus and Andrew Weaver, MLA for Oak Bay-Gordon Head, and is part of the Confidence and Supply Agreement.

Independent research from Airborne Research Australia (ARA) after the 2019-20 bushfires on Kangaroo Island has confirmed that plantations can act as a fire suppressant.

“From what I can see on our aerial imagery and Lidar it does not seem to support the opinion that the plantations were particularly bad in the fire situation. We have several examples where the native vegetation around, or even within plantations has burned, but the trees in the plantation are still alive,” said Professor Jorg Hacker, chief scientist at Airborne Research Australia.

ARA is a non-commercial, not-for-profit organisation that undertook aerial surveys of vegetation in the Adelaide Hills and Kangaroo Island after the summer bushfires.

KIPT Managing Director Keith Lamb said it was widely acknowledged that well-managed plantations without ladder fuels could act to suppress fire when it entered the plantation. Plantation timber comprised just 7 per cent of the area burnt in the summer bushfires – about 15,000ha of 210,000ha burnt.

“We’ve had several property owners come to us and tell us that the plantations actually saved their assets during the summer bushfires. And you can see at the back of a plantation like Jarmyn on the West End Highway, that there are unburnt trees after the Ravine fire, while assets over the road were not burnt,” Mr Lamb said.

Independent bluegum growers John and Cheryl Lewis confirmed that their plantation trees had protected parts of their farm during the Ravine fires in January.

“We are quite sure our house and sheds survived because of the bluegums. We had sheep that took shelter in native veg and they were burnt but the ones that sheltered in the plantation just wandered out the next day, unharmed,” Ms Lewis said.

West End resident Margi Prideaux confirmed the protective presence of the bluegums and said senior firefighters had agreed.

“Bluegums saved our vineyard. On January 3rd, if we had had nothing between us and the bush block next door we would have lost the vineyard. There’s a strip of plantation bluegums and you can see the fire hit it hard but then as you go through, the fire scar reduces. It absorbed the impact before it got to our vineyard,” she said. “We lost our home, but that was fire in a creekline of native vegetation,” Ms Prideaux said.

Photo: Burnt pasture and native vegetation at the Lewis bluegum plantation January 2020.

Seedlings – KIPT has completed its first replanting following the summer bushfires. The new crop of pine and blue gum, in a small 24-hectare compartment, was planned well before the devastating bushfires. The site in the Bark Hut Road precinct was harvested a decade ago by a previous owner and it had been part of KIPT’s plans to plant it out this year.

“This is the first plantation planting on island in more than 10 years and has served as a trial for new fencing and site-species matching. It’s a small but symbolic step for us which sends a clear signal to our shareholders and the Kangaroo Island community that we are here for the long term, and planning for the future,” KIPT Managing Director Keith Lamb said.

“This site is at the lower end of the rainfall band for our current estate, and lends itself well to pine. But we have also trialed blue gums to see how far east they can thrive on the island. It also helps us to trial some of our systems in preparation for the major replanting after harvesting the current fire-damaged crop.”

The site has been fenced by local contractor Bob Zinnack, using a Dingo Fencing solar-powered hot-wire system  to deter browsing by native wildlife, and a security system to deter theft. The fencing materials will later be recycled for other sites.

Photo: KIPT operations team leader Brian Stewart with the new seedlings.

The Company has signed a contract for the construction of the Kangaroo Island Seaport at Smith Bay.

The contract partners in the Early Contractor Involvement Agreement (ECI), led by Maritime Constructions (MC) from Port Adelaide, include KBR and WGA, two global leaders in the field of civil and marine construction.

The ECI Agreement establishes an innovative Alliance Agreement model, under which the Contractor will build a deep-water wharf at Smith Bay, Kangaroo Island.  The Alliance Agreement itself will now be prepared under the ECI Agreement terms and conditions.

Managing Director of KIPT Keith Lamb said he was pleased to formalise the long-standing strategic partnership with Maritime Constructions.

“There are many advantages for our shareholders in this ECI arrangement. In particular, we welcome the fact that this Alliance Agreement model allows KIPT and Maritime Constructions to share the financial risks and rewards of building the KI Seaport. We respect the skills and experience of Maritime Constructions and we are pleased that this ECI has the practical effect of establishing them as our development partner for the KI Seaport project,” Mr Lamb said.

MC is SA-owned and employs 130 people. KIPT has employed experienced engineer Alan Braggs as its KI Seaport Manager to work directly with MC on the project and the associated agreements and contracts.

“Alan comes with almost 30 years of experience in civil engineering in Adelaide, Perth and Singapore, and expertise in marine structures,” Mr Lamb said. “We are very pleased to have him on board and he has already brought significant value to the project and our shareholders.”

In another step forward, the company is also expecting submissions from a number of contractors expressing their interest for significant contracts for the provision of harvest and haulage services on island. This is essential to salvage the softwood logs, which are at most risk of deterioration if not harvested soon.

Mr Lamb welcomed the Federal announcement last week of the $10m Salvage Storage Fund – Securing Forestry Resources for Economic Recovery.

He said the fund, to help in establishing storage facilities for bushfire-affected timber, was timely for KIPT as its salvage harvest loomed, and could benefit Australian mills.

KIPT still awaits approval for its Kangaroo Island Seaport export facility.

“Kangaroo Island has received two major setbacks this year with the devastation of the fires, and now the COVID-19 pandemic, both of which have had a major impact on the lives and prosperity of Island residents.

“KIPT shareholders and the independent growers on the Island suffered significant losses from the fires, and the company is determined to push ahead with plans to build the Seaport and salvage what it can of the fire-affected logs before decay sets in and any chance of salvage is lost.”

Photo: KIPT’s Alan Braggs, centre, with MC’s Matt Haskett and Shane Fiedler

International technology group Andritz and Metsä Fibre have signed a preliminary agreement under which Andritz will supply two fully autonomous logyard cranes to the planned Metsä Fibre bioproduct mill in Kemi, Finland. Metsä Fibre will make the Euro 1.5 billion investment decision for the new mill in autumn 2020 at the earliest, and the new mill will take approximately two and a half years to build.

Included in the EPC delivery are two 2 x 25-ton cranes on a 540 m long runway with storage capacity of approximately 120,000 m3. The cranes will handle approximately 7,600,000 m3 wood/year shipped on trucks and trains as well as handling log storage and feeding the wood to the pulping process.

These Andritz cranes will be the first autonomously operated logyard cranes worldwide. They feature the latest in artificial intelligence, thus optimizing log handling, minimizing wood losses and securing environmentally friendly and cost-effective operation compared with traditional log-handling solutions. This agreement is a significant breakthrough for logyard cranes in Europe.

“We valued the low noise – considering the planned mill location – the energy efficiency and all-electric drives with no fossil fuels consumed, and also the advantages created by applying advanced robotics and artificial intelligence to achieve autonomous operation,” says Ismo Nousiainen, CEO of Metsä Fibre Ltd.

Metsä Fibre is a leading producer of biochemicals, bioenergy and other bioproducts. Planning of the new bioproduct mill is based on a high level of environmental efficiency as well as efficiency in terms of energy and materials used. The mill will not use any fossil fuels at all, and its electricity self-sufficiency rate will be 250%. If built, the Kemi bioproduct mill will produce 1.5 million tons of softwood and hardwood pulp a year as well as many other bioproducts.

The new H424 harvester head replaces the previous, best-selling H414. The H424 has a redesigned look. The changes based on customer feedback improve productivity, ease of service, durability, uptime, measuring accuracy and reduce daily operating costs. This model is also equipped with the new SuperCut 100S saw unit. The H424 harvester head is available for John Deere 1070G, 1170G and 1270G harvesters.

 The H424 is a medium-size harvester head designed for later thinning and final felling where the tree diameter at chest height is 150–430 mm. The H424 is also well suited for handling crooked wood and working on slopes. The harvester head’s robust structure, improved hose routing and easy access to service points have convinced customers.

H424 product improvements
The new PEVO valve improves the harvester head’s performance, adjustability and economy compared to its predecessor. Improved hose routing from loader to harvester head and from valve block to feed motors improves the durability of the hoses. The new hinged valve block cover makes daily maintenance easy. Grease points and the saw chain oil tank are also easier to access, and the greasing intervals have been extended compared to before.

The harvester head’s backwards tilt angle has been increased by 4°, which improves the grip of the stem in the grapple when feeding backwards and makes it easier to work on slopes. The fixed rear knife has been shortened for easier handling of crooked stems and hardwood. Also the placement of the rear delimbing knives has been changed to improve colour-coding accuracy. A more robust tilt frame for demanding conditions is available.

 Max. cutting diameter 620 mm

 Max. feed roller opening 640 mm

 Feeding force 27 kN

 Max. feeding speed 4.3-5.3 m/s

 Weight starting at 1100 kg

New SuperCut 100S saw unit for all John Deere harvester heads.
In 2020, all John Deere harvester heads will have the new SuperCut 100S saw unit. The saw unit’s next-generation chain tensioning unit, automatic chain tensioning, and mechanical bar locking give it added efficiency and reliability. The improved chain release makes it easier to replace the saw chain. The new saw unit enables also a bigger selection in terms of saw motors and saw bars.

John Deere harvester heads are known for their productivity, reliability and measuring accuracy.
John Deere harvester heads are high performance tools that meet the industry’s stringent quality requirements in all working conditions. Harvester head testing is part of John Deere’s product testing process. Each harvester head model has been field-tested for thousands of hours before the start of serial production. John Deere harvester heads are designed and manufactured in Finland.

Further information: Elina Suuriniemi
Communications Specialist
John Deere Forestry Oy
Tel. +358 400 466476
SuuriniemiElina@JohnDeere.com

John Deere now offers a dealer-installed Mulcher Hydraulics Conversion Kit for the 843L and 843L-II Wheeled Feller Bunchers. The base kit, which includes a new hydraulic pump and component updates, equips the machine for mulching applications, such as land clearing and right-of-way maintenance. Additionally, attachment manufacturer Fecon has worked with John Deere to launch a new mulching head designed specifically for the 843 machines, available for purchase through the Fecon sales channels.

MOLINE, Ill. (August 20, 2020) — To maximize the versatility of its machines, John Deere announces the availability of its Mulcher Hydraulics Conversion Kit for the 843L and 843L-II Wheeled Feller Bunchers. Installed by the dealer, the kit allows customers to equip their machines for mulching applications, expanding the capabilities of the 843 models. The field kit can be used with compatible mulching heads, such as the new Fecon RK8620 Mulching Head, which was built specifically for use on the John Deere 843L and 843L-II machines.

“This offering is exciting for our customers, as it expands the versatility of the equipment in their fleet so they can take on new jobs, such as land clearing or right-of-way maintenance,” said Brandon O’Neal, product marketing manager, John Deere Construction & Forestry. “Additionally, this kit is installed and supported by the John Deere dealer network, so customers can feel confident in the durability and reliability of the kit and its components.”

The Mulcher Hydraulics Conversion Kit includes a new hydraulic pump in addition to plumbing and valve updates. While the base kit allows for a single function and float, those needing a second function can upgrade with an add-on kit. Customers can purchase a kit through their local dealer, which can convert their existing 843L or 843L-II into a mulching head-ready machine.

Built with the John Deere 843 models in mind, the Fecon RK8620 Mulching Head is constructed from a stronger, lighter steel and features an 86-inch cutting width. The RK8620 is available with an FGT- or DCR-style rotor to enhance the cutting performance. With the DCR rotor, the reversible Viking knives are ideal for fast cutting in all materials. The knife performance is further enhanced by depth control rings, which provide fast cutting durability. The heavy-duty RK8620 offers a broad range of motion for felling and below-grade work. With this attachment, operators are able to process material faster with fewer passes. The RK8620 Head is available as a standalone purchase through the Fecon sales channels.

To learn more about the new Mulcher Hydraulics Conversion Kit, as well as the full line of John Deere forestry equipment, visit your local John Deere dealer.

About John Deere
Deere & Company (www.JohnDeere.com) is a world leader in providing advanced products, technology and services for customers whose work is revolutionizing agriculture and construction — those who cultivate, harvest, transform, enrich and build upon the land to meet the world’s increasing need for food, fuel, shelter and infrastructure.

Pezzolato has delivered  a PTH 1200/1000 Hacketruck drum wood chipper to Rimorini Legnami situated in Fusecchio, Italy. The wood chipper is driven by the truck’s VOLVO engine with 750 Hp power.

The maximum inlet passage is 1200 x 1000 mm. The cutting system consists of a staggered sections dum (1000 mm diameter) with 5 or 10 knives and it is capable of producing both small-sized wood chips for small boilers for domestic use and “big size” wood chips for large power plants.

The unloading system is equipped with a hydraulically adjustable fan that allows to produce less dust, reduce fuel consumption and optimize the loading of wood chips on the trucks, avoiding spreading of material on the ground.