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Evaluation of roll-off trailers in small-diameter applications

Informally Refereed

Abstract

Concern about wildfire in overstocked forests of the western U.S. has led to increased emphasis on extraction of small-diameter material. Removing this material improves forest health, reduces fuel loading, and may generate value that can be used to offset the costs of operation. However, the cost of small-diameter operations (both in-woods and secondary processing) are often prohibitive due to handling and transport. This is a particular problem with small-volume niche markets that cannot absorb the productive capacity of conventional forest products transportation systems. This project studied the performance and costs of an innovative wood transport system using roll-off pallet racks to facilitate handling of small-diameter thinning material. Elemental studies defined the transport cycles and cost analysis compared the economics of the new system with conventional transport technology.

Citation

Rummer, Bob; Klepac, John. 2003. Evaluation of roll-off trailers in small-diameter applications. In: Proceedings of the 2003 council of forest engineering 26th annual conference. Bar Harbor, Maine: University of Maine, New England Regional Council on Forest Engineering: 5 p.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/7331