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The work of the wood harvest machine operator is an important variable for the performance of a forestry company, impacting the operation quality, productivity, and profit. However, the lack of skilled operators with the desirable profile for machine operation is a current challenge. This research proposes a method to evaluate the operational skills required of forest machine operators to increase the quality of the selection and training processes and to improve their subsequent performance. Focusing on a forestry company in Brazil, we developed assessments for cognition, behavior, memory, focused attention, and motor skills to measure the worker's efficiency with each mechanism used for operation of the harvest machine. The outcomes data were analyzed by principal component analysis and factor analysis to understand how every variable was responsible for the operators' scores, attributing values to operator's classification by cluster analysis. Results showed that all capacities evaluated were relevant, with variations among operators, with these key factors for feller bunchers versus skidder operators: cognition (26.5%, vs. 31%), behavior (38% vs. 37%), memory (18% vs. 13%), focused attention (5% vs. 6%), and motor skills (9% vs. 11%). Based on these data, the operators were classified into three distinct profiles. Conclusions were that the proposed assessment of individual characteristics was able to identify variations in the operators' profiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Machine availability and timber harvest productivity in commercial forestry are influenced in part by operator performance. This work aimed to evaluate the behavior of these two variables, machine availability and productivity, during the training period for harvester operators. The study was conducted at a forestry company situated in Brazil. Productivity and machine availability data were collected for 30 individuals who were trained over an 11-month period. Monthly mean data for both variables were compared using Tukey's test. The analysis revealed a significant difference in productivity and machine availability during the training period, with productivity increasing until 6 months of harvester operator training while machine availability simultaneously decreased. Productivity began at a mean of 9 m3·PMH0−1, reaching 24 m3·PMH0−1 at its peak, and stabilizing around 20 m3·PMH0−1, where PMH0 is productive machine hours. Machine availability started at 84%, decreased to a mean of 78%, and increased to around 88% until the present. Both variables demonstrated a tendency toward stabilization until 9 months of harvester operation training. Given that the harvester operator training period had a significant influence on machine availability and productivity, this study's results support careful operational planning, staffing, and resource use during this training period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wood harvesting should be planned to reduce environmental impacts by minimizing machine traffic, increase productivity and reduce costs. In this context, the aim of this study was evaluate the effect of working range on operational performance of a harvester and forwarder in a Eucalyptus saligna stand under a clear cutting regime. The study was carried out in Paraná State, Brazil, in a cut-to-length system in cutting and wood extraction operations in two working ranges: T1 - width of 12 m with a cut of four planting lines; and T2 - width of 18 m with a cut of six planting lines. A time and motion study was performed to determine work cycle times, productivity, production costs, and machine traffic, with working ranges compared by the t-test (a = 0.05) for independent samples. The results showed that the wood processing and loading elements consumed the longest operating cycle time in cutting and wood extraction. The harvester machine presented higher productivity (61.05 m? PMH0-1) in the T1 working range, while the forwarder was superior (48.32 m³ PMH0-1) in the T2 working range. Regarding the wood harvesting system, it was observed that the T2 working range enabled a reduction of 1% in production costs, which is important when considering the large scale production of the company, while there was a 33.4% reduction in traffic. Therefore, an increase in machines' working range can provide operational and environmental benefits to wood harvesting operations in forest plantations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mechanized coffee harvesting is one of the main technological advances that benefit producers, but problems with planning for planting and crop development and faults in harvester adjustment can reduce the efficiency of the operation, making it more stressful for the crop than manual harvesting. Thus the present study was carried out in the municipality of Patos de Minas, MG, Brazil with the objective of assessing the damage in the vegetable part and the quality of the mechanized harvesting of coffee cropped in a circular planting system under a center pivot, with two rod vibration frequencies and statistical control of the process. It was observed that the negative biennially on the crop reduced the initial coffee load eliminating the effects of the insolation conditions. The harvest quality indices were distributed asymmetrically and the samples varied greatly and only the stripping efficiency was influenced by the axles assessed and were shown to be stable by the statistical control. The damage to the plants by the harvester presented desirable values and did not vary in function of the factors analyzed, but was considered under statistical control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]