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FROM SKOGFORSK. NO 4 | 2014 | RESEARCH FOR TOMORROW’S FORESTRY

ORS K T E

XT28 WITH HYDRAULIC DRIVELINE

TOUGH CHALLENCE REDUCING FUEL CONSUMPTION STILL NO DECISION ON HEAVIER TRUCKS WOOD VALUE: COLLABORATION THE RIGHT WAY HEROES GATHER AT UKONF

ShortCuts | News

PHOTO: SVERKER JOHANSSON/BITZER

Walking the dog. XT28 rolls out.

EXCITING PROTOTYPE FLEXES ITS LIMBS Developed by Skogforsk and Extractor AB, the exciting prototype machine XT28, with dampened chassis and a fully hydraulic driveline with pendulum arms, has now seen the light of day. But not until the summer will we see it on the Skogforsk test track and possibly also in the forest. The aim of the project is to improve forwarding productivity while reducing whole-body vibrations and ground impact. And the expectations are high: l Double speed, which is estimated to increase production by 20 percent. l Ground damage reduced by 50 percent, as the weight is distributed more evenly. l Whole-body vibrations may be reduced by up to 80 percent. l Fuel consumption estimated to fall by as much as 30 percent per m3sub, because of the more 2

ShortCuts | 4 | 2014

efficient driveline and greater production. The project also involves some clear commercial aspects: to verify the commercial benefit of the new forest machine and its new components, and to analyse the business potential and the return that the project investment could generate over a production cycle for the participating manufacturers. “This part is vital in order to implement the technology,” says Björn Löfgren, who leads the forestry sector’s strategic imple-

Four stages

mentation initiative at Skogforsk. “If we want to speed up the dissemination of good technical solutions, we must learn more about the business benefits of development projects in forestry. This is an important step in building up the knowledge base.”

CONTACT: Björn Löfgren +46 (0)18-188581 bjorn.lofgren@ skogforsk.se

The XT28 project is divided into four stages: Mechanical design, programming, demo and evaluation. Extractor is responsible for mechanical design, and Bosch Rexroth, Linköping University and KTH Royal Institute of Technology are responsible for programming. Skogforsk will be carrying out most of the demonstration operations and evaluations of the prototype. The initiative is funded by the forestry sector’s strategic focus on implementation.

RESEARCH FOR TOMORROW’S FORESTRY

News | ShortCuts

STILL NO DECISION ON HEAVIER TRUCKS Will the forestry sector be able to operate with bigger payloads and heavier trucks from the turn of the year? We still do not know. After a question from the Moderate Party, the Swedish Government announced in November that the proposals from the Swedish Transport Agency and the Swedish Transport Administration are still under preparation. The forestry sector’s hopes for

heavier vehicles and payloads of up to 64 tonnes on conventional trucks have been turned into an uncertain wait for a decision from the new government.

Reports from the authorities have been circulated for comments, and around 70 responses have been submitted to the Ministry of Enterprise, Energy and Communications.

The government is now preparing the proposals, according to the Minister for Infrastructure, Anna Johansson, in response to a question from the Moderate MP Sten Bergheden in the middle of November. The previous government had commissioned the Swedish Transport Agency and the National Transport Administration to prepare for vehicle combinations with a gross weight of up to 74 tonnes to be permitted

HEROES GATHER

“We’re not solving the world’s problems, but together we can take a few development steps towards a better future. And, of course, we who work in the forest play a key role in how good the future can be!” for Skogforsk’s traditional development conference, which takes place at various locations in Sweden in February and March. And potential participants will need to be on their toes before Christmas – the final date for registration for the first conference (Västerås) is 2 January! ‘Heroes of the Future’ – what do you mean exactly?

“That we who work in the forest can accomplish very important things if we work together,” says Helena Gålnander. “We’re facing a tremendous challenge in

the transition to a sustainable society, and the forest is an extremely important resource in this adaptation. Doing the right things today will make the future better – and we can start already now by using the expertise at the conference.” Can you give any tangible examples?

“Of course! We give tips on how to improve the efficiency of transports to reduce their impact on the climate. We can use more genetically improved plants – their flexibility provides us with many options ahead of the climate change, the nature of

RESEARCH FOR TOMORROW’S FORESTRY

CONTACT: Niklas Fogdestam +46 (0)18-188528 niklas.fogdestam@ skogforsk.se

Come to Ukonf!

AT UKONF Helena Gålnander is responsible

on the public road network. On 15 August, the Swedish Transport Agency submitted a proposal for a revision to the statutes. The uncertainty is caused by the stand taken by the new government.

Together, you say. Does that mean the participants will be able to contribute?

Helena Gålnander gathers the heroes of the future. Check out www.skogforsk.se/ukonf15

which we don’t know exactly. At the same time, genetically improved plants are efficient solar collectors – they’re better at storing solar energy than ordinary plants. And we’ll be discussing with the participants how to reduce the environmental impact of forestry, how to avoid damaging important ecosystem services, such as water. At the same time, smarter planning shortens transport distances in the forest terrain.”

“Absolutely! Forestry is full of brilliant ideas – many of Skogforsk’s most important projects have grown from an idea out in a logging hut or in a car on a business trip. So we’ll be trying to capture the participants’ best ideas, and get a discussion going about how we can do something really positive for the future – together!

Register for UKONF15: Västerås 3-4 February (NB. Final date for registration 2 January) Sundsvall 10-11 February Umeå 24-25 February Växjö 4-5 March ShortCuts | 4 | 2014 3

ShortCuts | Fuel consumption

RISING FUEL CONSUMPTION

A TOUGH CHALLE Harvesters and forwarders are becoming more powerful and consuming more fuel. A Skogforsk study shows that, in the past six years, fuel consumption has increased by approximately nine percent. Text & photo: sverker johansson | [email protected] Translated to the entire Swedish forestry sector, the fuel consumption increase means approximately 11,000 cubic metres of diesel per year or an increase in emissions of approximately 27.000 tonnes CO2 TTW (tank to wheel). And the total cost to the sector of the greater fuel consumption is approximately SEK 120 million. In 2012, Skogforsk collected fuel data from 230 forest machines (see Vision/ShortCuts 4/2013). In relation to 2006, when the first survey was carried out, fuel consumption has increased by nine percent per cubic metre of timber harvested – or from 1.71 to 1.86 l/m³sub. “Whatever the reasons, the trend is in the wrong direction,” observes Skogforsk’s Torbjörn Brunberg. “A decrease would have been in line with the ambition of the forestry sector to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels.” Bigger machines and engines

His assessment is that two-thirds of the increase is due to bigger machines and more powerful engines – engine power and fuel consumption have an almost linear relationship – but more snow and greater use of heavy bands also contribute to the increase. Fuel comprises an increasing proportion of operating costs. Today, diesel costs approximately SEK 11 per litre, and the increased fuel consumption entails a greater cost to the sector of approximately SEK 120 million. Nevertheless, the fuel cost is relatively small for forest machines compared with, for example, haulage trucks. “It’s around 15–20 percent,” says Torbjörn Brunberg, “so a slight cost increase may be tolerable when other aspects – such as robustness, utilisation rate, and work environment – improve with machine size. Many causes

“Fuel consumption has been increasing for a while because of interacting factors: machines are becoming bigger and more robust, but engines are also increasing in size in response to society’s efforts to cut NOx emis4

ShortCuts | 4 | 2014

towards larger harvesters, such as the JD 1470 and the Komatsu 941, which SCA Skog wants its contractors to use, according to the company’s manager for technical development, Magnus Bergman. “When the bigger machines were used, we saw that fuel consumption per cubic metre was about the same for thicker average stems, and only marginally higher in stands with small-dimension trees. A large logging company would generally have seen better productivity and lower total cost. One way of reducing consumption is to include multitree handling on the harvesters used in final felling. This reduces consumption by around 15 percent in stands of small-dimension trees.” Many tools needed

Magnus Bergman, SCA Skog

sions and particles. For a number of years now, this trend has required new and more powerful engines. The latest European emission regulations, Euro IV, may result in reduced fuel consumption because manufacturers have incorporated ways to vary engine power according to the prevailing need of the machine.” Difficult equation

At a Skogforsk conference, Vision/ShortCuts asked Volvo’s engine expert, Rolf Westlund, to comment on the forestry sector figures. He also believes that engine development is an important factor. “If machines are getting bigger, then of course this is an important factor, but reducing the quantity of particles currently increases fuel consumption. This is a difficult equation for the engine manufacturers to solve.” Together with Skogforsk, SCA Skog has recently been studying the importance of machine size for productivity. The trend is

According to Magnus Bergman, the forestry sector needs to work with many different tools in order to reverse the trend. “We must continue our dialogue with the manufacturers to develop more fuel-efficient engines. And we would like to see forwarders with a greater it – load index has remained unchanged for a long time now. “Our own challenge is to increase productivity on machines that are already in operation. The RECO training is having effect, at least for the contractors that maintain their focus on the issue. They’re reducing consumption per m3. “Planning is also becoming more efficient now that we’re getting laser-scanned data over the entire landscape. We’re very hopeful about, for example, Skogforsk’s BesT project, with optimised proposals for base roads. This could reduce costs by several percent. Many contractors already do this intuitively, but this type of decision support can lift the entire collective.” Right machine in the right place

“And then we must have the right machine in the right place. Of course, machines are also needed that can handle different sizes, but generally we believe more in using specialised large harvesters for final felling and specialised groups just for thinning. We as clients must move out of our comfort zone of just having agreements involving all-round machines. This requires good forward planning in the stand bank. The contractors must also be prepared to help by moving when the RESEARCH FOR TOMORROW’S FORESTRY

Fuel consumption | ShortCuts

+9 % +11,000 m3 diesel +27,000 tons CO2 +120,000,000 SEK

ENGE forest does not suit the machine. We would rather have a trailer invoice. “If we’re successful, both the quality of the thinning work and the wood value increases. The loggers develop within their specialist areas.” Technological advance required

Can a higher proportion of biodiesel be the solution?

“Possibly, in the long term. We ourselves tested Ecopar a few years ago, but unfortunately it’s sensitive to extreme cold and biological growth in the tanks. As things stand, I don’t think we have any contractors that use biodiesel.”

’’

“But I think that a real break in the trend won’t come until there is a technological step forward. I’m very hopeful about the forestry sector’s project with BAE Hägglunds to develop a band-driven machine and the XT28 project (see news pages) in Skogforsk’s strategic initiative.” The current move towards larger machines is increasing fuel consumption. Does this mean the trend will continue? “No, I hope that, with all the tools I’ve mentioned, we can reverse the trend instead. All the tools are important but, most of all, I’m hoping for a technological breakthrough.”

We must continue our dialogue with the manufacturers to develop more fuel-efficient engines. And we would like to see forwarders with a greater load index – it has remained unchanged for a long time now.”

Directive 97/68/EC Particles (PM) (g/kWh

0,54

0,2

The quest to reduce emissions has, in the development steps Euro 1-4, given us cleaner engines but has increased fuel consumption. RESEARCH FOR TOMORROW’S FORESTRY

0,025

EURO III 2006

2014 EURO IV 0

1,0

EURO II 2002

EURO I 1999

2011 EURO IIIB 2,19

4,0

6,0*

NOx + HC (NMHC (g/kWh) *NOx only

9,0*

ShortCuts | 4 | 2014 5

ShortCuts | Fuel consumption

“A WORRYING DEVELOPMENT”

FUEL CONSUMPTION

IN TIMBER TRUCKS

STILL HIGH A Skogforsk survey shows that Swedish timber trucks use as much fuel today as they did 12 years ago, and consumption has only fallen by three percent in the past 16 years. “It’s worrying that we haven’t been able to reduce fuel consumption more in practical driving,” says Skogforsk’s transport expert Claes Löfroth. Text & photo: sverker johansson | [email protected]

0,58 l/km

Smart drivers Good roads Traction 6 x 2 Wind deflectors

68%

More crane driving Shorter transport distances Poorer-quality roads ‘Michelin Men’

Skogforsk has been studying fuel consumption on behalf of Swedish hauliers since the end of the 1990s. Average consumption was 0.6 litres/km in 1998 and, since then, little has changed. Fuel consumption was 0.58 litres/km in both 2008 and 2013. The same applies to consumption per ton-km, so transports are not becoming more fuel efficient. “It’s remarkable that fuel consumption has not fallen more over ten years,” says Skogforsk’s transport expert Claes Löfroth. “The truck manufacturers have developed smarter gearboxes and drivers are trained in ecodriving, yet we see no improvement in the hauliers’ fuel consumption.” One explanation is that the sector is buying trucks with increasingly powerful engines – today they are around 750 hp, but in reality the timber trucks do not need more than 500 hp, according to Claes Löfroth. “Engine size is chosen on the basis of the final five percent of driving conditions – long hills, ice, anything that can cause problems. Nobody can afford to have a vehicle out of operation, even if this is rare. But the cost of this is higher average fuel consumption.” EU regulations take effect

4

5

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6

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Worrying trend. Average fuel consumption for roundwood vehicles per km. 6

ShortCuts | 4 | 2014

8

The main reason is the EU regulations on lower particle emissions, which also affect forest machines (see previous article). The engines use more fuel if they are not driven very economically… which they are not. “The drivers are trained in fuel economy driving, but the regulations on taking breaks mean that trucks are driven faster to get the job finished quickly and to ensure profitaRESEARCH FOR TOMORROW’S FORESTRY

Fuel consumption | ShortCuts

JOHAN SUNDBERG, SUNDBERGS ÅKERI

“IN REALITY, FUEL CONSUMPTION HAS INCREASED EVEN MORE!” bility in the operation,” says Claes Löfroth. This is also confirmed when Vision/ShortCuts checks with several hauliers. Naturally, they are not prepared to admit that their own trucks use as much fuel as indicated by the survey, but they do express concern at the traffic tempo. “It’s become much more hectic on the roads,” says the CEO of a leading haulage company. “There’s a reluctance to stop and, instead, drivers are forced to increase speed. It’s not good when road safety is, in practice, jeopardised because the drivers’ time regulations have such a wrong effect.” A wake-up call?

Today, the fuel cost for a timber truck exceeds the labour cost of the drivers. Fuel makes up approximately 35 percent of the truck transport cost. Claes Löfroth hopes that the study will be a wake-up call for vehicle buyers in the forestry sector and for the automotive industry to seriously focus on reducing fuel consumption. “I hope we can carry out the same type of survey on timber trucks already in three years, and then there should be clear indications of reduced fuel consumption. Or at least reduced CO2 emissions.”

How Skogforsk monitors fuel consumption trends Skogforsk carries out a survey of fuel consumption every five years, and the results are presented in l/km, l/ton and l/ton-km. Fuel consumption is based on haulier’s own records, and is measured when driving loaded and unloaded, when loading is done using a crane on the truck and, to a lesser extent, when the truck’s crane is used for unloading. Nearly 400 of Sweden’s approximately 1800 roundwood timber trucks are represented in the survey responses.

RESEARCH FOR TOMORROW’S FORESTRY

“In reality, fuel consumption has increa-

sed even more than is shown in the survey,” says Johan Sundberg, owner of Sundbergs Åkeri in south-western Sweden. He systematically monitors his fuel consumption, and helps manufacturers with some practical tests. “The AdBlue mixture is up to 10 percent for the Euro 6 engines, which today use around one percent more diesel than Euro 5. AdBlue is easily overlooked in the discussion because it gives lower emissions, but overall it increases costs for the hauliers by 3-4 percent.” Smaller engines?

While Johan Sundberg notes from his follow-ups that smaller engines use less diesel, he does not feel this is necessarily the road to go down. “Yes, there’s a difference between 500 hp and 750 hp. The smaller engine uses 5-10 percent less fuel, depending on the terrain where the truck is driven. But hauliers choose engines according that final, tough part of the driving. If my truck gets stuck a few times, or the payload volume is reduced by a couple of percent so that I can drive using less power – well, someone has to pay for that.” Biodiesel next

Johan Sundberg believes that alternative fuels are needed to reduce emissions. “Today we use a mixture including seven percent tall oil. You can also choose RME – but only in half of Sweden. If the temperature drops below -15°C, RME doesn’t work, and switching between fuel types depending on the time of year seems to be a hassle. But here in Götaland, it usually works well, so some operators use it. “It’s about SEK 2.60 cheaper than diesel, but on the other hand the service costs at Scania are perhaps an extra krona,” he says. “In a Volvo, the service cost is around three kronor more, so RME is not even profitable. Then there’s the question of whether rape oil-based RME is the right way to go, since it practically involves running vehicles on food.”

PHOTO: SUNDBERGS ÅKERI

Claes Löfroth hopes for new tests in a couple of years.

Believes in HVO

He is more optimistic about HVO, a biodiesel made from forest materials. HVO is not yet approved as an ecofuel for transport, but extensive testing is under way, involving companies such as OKQ8, Volvo and DHL. A standard for HVO will be proposed by the start of 2015. There will then be approximately three months of referrals and consideration, so HVO could be approved in the first half of 2015. The reservation is that the diesel manufacturer Preem and the partner Sveaskog (through Sunpine) are concerned that the game rules regarding alternative fuels are still unclear. Will there be tax on HVO or not? The new government has still to make a decision. Possible step forward?

“With HVO, a possible scenario is that the forestry sector takes a step forward by providing hauliers with an infrastructure for filling up at their mills. Södra already does this today with RME,” says Johan Sundberg. “HVO is around a krona cheaper than diesel and reduces emission of fossil CO2 by 85 percent. This is already within reach, unlike, for example, hybrids, which are heavy and difficult to get out in the forest.” ShortCuts | 4 | 2014 7

WOOD VALUE COLLABORATION THE RIGHT WAY

INITIAL SORTING IN THE FOREST – FINAL SORTING AT THE SAWMILL

With prediction functions and data on stand age, the harvester computer may be able to calculate heartwood diameter for individual pine and spruce logs during bucking. This would permit more efficient flow of heartwood products for exclusive, environmentally sound construction components. Heartwood is marketed as an organic alternative to pressure-impregnated wood.

Lars Wilhelmsson, Skogforsk.

logs,” says Lars Wilhelmsson. “This means that manufacturers of window frames can order products that reduce their costs and improve quality, because they can use knot-free wood for finger joints. Fresh or dry knot and knot thickness can also be calculated using this type of prediction.”

PHOTO: SETRA GROUP

PHOTO: SVEN TEGELMO, SKOGFORSK

Heartwood from pine is marketed as a finer-quality wood for use in building, for example, terraces – an organic, natural alternative to pressure-impregnated wood, which often involves inferior qualities. Spruce heartwood can also be used for weather-resistant exterior panels because, unlike sapwood panels, it resists water. “In our predictions, average error of heartwood diameter is around 15 mm for pine and around 20 mm for spruce,” says Skogforsk’s Lars Wilhelmsson, who works on prediction functions for various wood properties and integration between forest and industry. Consequently, the forestry sector can very accurately increase the proportion of correct quality timber from selected sites – and the method can be developed into automatic heartwood bucking. “We can also get good predictions for the distance between the whorls on second and third

Sorting at intake

As yet, this sorting by quality is not done out in the forest but at the sawmill intake. Setra Group produces heartwood pine products in various dimensions for beams, floors, stairs and rails. “We identify and sort heart-

wood using X-ray equipment in our measuring frame,” says Jonas Björnståhl, business area manager for sawn wood products. “The greatest benefit is that we can select fresh knots, but it also allows us to detect quality defects, so that’s something we do anyway. But actually I wasn’t aware that the sorting could be done already in the forest.” More offensive?

Lars Wilhelmsson would like to see more offensive collaboration between forest and sawmill.

“The forestry sector must definitely learn more about the new process control methods being developed in industry, but the same also applies in the other direction,” he says. “Choice of logging site and smarter control of production to produce the desired combinations of length and diameter can be developed along with other value-generating properties. If this is done in the right way, the overall value can be increased much more than the costs.”

RESEARCH PROGRAMMES

UPPSALA (Head Office) Uppsala Science Park, SE-751 83 Uppsala, Sweden Phone: +46 18 188500 EKEBO Ekebo 2250, SE-268 90 Svalöv, Sweden Phone: +46 418 471300 UMEÅ P.O. Box 3, SE-918 21 Sävar, Sweden. Phone: +46 90 2033350 www.skogforsk.se

FOREST OPERATIONS & PRODUCTS

FOREST ENERGY

TREE IMPROVEMENT NORTH

Rolf Björheden [email protected] ph. +46 18 188509

Mia Iwarsson-Wide [email protected] ph. +46 18 188599

Bengt Andersson [email protected] ph. +46 90 203 3358

OPERATIONAL PLANNING & LOGISTICS

SILVICULTURE & ENVIRONMENT

TREE IMPROVEMENT SOUTH

Gert Andersson [email protected] ph. +46 18 188567

Isabelle Bergkvist [email protected] ph. +46 18 188595

Bo Karlsson [email protected] ph. +46 418 471305

Editor in chief: Jan Fryk | Form: Pagarango | Editor: Sverker Johansson, Bitzer Productions AB | ISSN: 2000-2726 Photos: Sverker Johansson unless otherwise stated | Translated by: Leslie Walke, CommunicAID | Printed by: Gävle Offset, 2014