The T-WINCH traction assist machine was unveiled to local logging contractors at the HarvestTECH 2019 event in New Zealand few weeks ago. With the first cab-free T-WINCH machine already working in New Zealand, a new and larger model has just been developed which should be well suited to markets like ours. A forestry operation north of Gisborne has been operating …
Hi-tech shirt for forestry workers
A shirt with built-in sensors could help reduce fatalities in New Zealand’s forestry industry. Researchers at the University of Waikato are developing a hi-tech way to keep forestry workers safe on the job, with a ‘smart shirt’ the leading contender. Using sensors on the front of the shirt to monitor heart-rate variability and others on the back to measure perspiration, …
Wood derivative improves unsealed roads
Rugged, remote and astonishingly beautiful, Te Urewera is the largest wilderness region in the North Island, a primeval forest prized for its ecological systems, biodiversity and cultural heritage. The kaitiaki (guardians) of Te Urewera are Tuhoe, said to be descended from Te Mauna (the Mountain) and Hine-pukohu-rani (the Mist Maiden). Tuhoe – the Children of the Mist – are renowned …
Tree seedling deliveries by drone tested
David Herries from Interpine was able to open the minds of many of the harvesting contractors and forest managers who attended the HarvestTECH 2019 event a couple of weeks ago. The opportunities of using drones operationally in a raft of forestry activities was outlined to those attending. Already in New Zealand, some 118 foresters have successfully gone through the Interpine …
Truck platooning: New trials on the way!
Encouraged by what they learned during last year’s test campaign, FPInnovations and its partners plan to continue evaluating cooperative truck platooning technology in the coming months. This year’s goals are more ambitious. Researchers, in addition to confirming developments in the technology since last year, will be focusing on steering control in the following trucks. The data collected will be used …