The role of work studies in forest engineering: status and perspectives

Abstract

Forest engineers have used work studies for decades, with the main purpose of improving operational efficiency. However, a recent shift in the priorities of forest management and the availability of new study techniques may be changing this picture. A global survey was conducted in order to determine the main goal of the work studies conducted today, who funds them, what techniques are used to overcome specific methodological challenges, and the likely future of forest work study technique. Responses were obtained from 175 forest operations researchers. Although biased towards European university researchers, the survey covered all continents and all major research institutions dealing with forest work studies. The survey highlighted that the main goal of forest work studies has remained the same, but focus has shifted from wage setting to system optimization. Study scope is now wider than simple performance evaluation, and it often includes site impact assessment. National funding still plays an important role in supporting forest work studies. Forest work study researchers still use relatively basic techniques and instruments, although GPS devices and data loggers are increasingly used to integrate manual data collection. Very few believe that manual time studies will disappear in the near future. Most respondents think that classic time studies are crucial to promote innovation and maintain the competitive edge of forest industries. All in all, the survey describes a vital sector of forest engineering, where down-to-earth conservatism mixes with the propulsive energy of new ideas and technologies.

Keywords:

• methods
• engineering
• productivity
• harvesting
• operations

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the support of EU COST Action FP0902 for providing a strong network to start this study. Thanks are also due to the reviewers and to the 175 survey respondents.