Production Equations for Tower Yarders in Austria

Cable yarding has been used for many years in mountainous forests in central European countries. Tower yarders are common cable yarding systems in Austria. The goal of this study was to develop a general time prediction model for two kinds of tower yarders used in Austria. The multiple regression method was applied. The average production rate was 9.30 m3/PSH0 with a cost of US$25.48/m3. The results also showed that the production rate for downhill yarding was less than uphill yarding using the Syncrofalke tower yarder. The developed time production models can help forest engineers estimate production of tower yarders in similar logging operations.