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Publications

NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.

2011

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Abstract

Softwood sawmilling is important to the economy of many nations and huge volumes of softwood lumber are produced annually. Accordingly, the economic success of softwood sawmills, as they compete with substitutes such as steel and concrete, is of interest to various industry stakeholders, especially managers, and researchers. Given the strong connection between innovativeness and firm performance in the literature, this study investigates innovativeness in sawmills in Australia, Canada, Chile, Norway, and the USA. Mail surveys were used in each of the countries to collect data regarding product, process, and business systems innovativeness and firm performance. Findings suggest that sawmills focus equally on product and process innovativeness, firm size positively impacts innovativeness, and that overall, process innovativeness is what drives firm performance in this sector. Findings suggest that managers should focus on being innovative since this positively impacts firm performance.

Abstract

The theoretical potential for increased efficiency in early thinning by using accumulating harvester heads was investigated through simulation. Thinning was performed in corridors perpendicular to the strip road in 75 artificially generated stands with varying average tree size and density. The work pattern and work time in the crane work for five sizes of heads, with grapple diameters in the range of 10 to 50 cm, was estimated by the simulation model. The efficiency increased rapidly when the grapple diameter increased from two to four times the average diameter in the harvested stand, reducing the work time per tree by 15 to 50 percent compared to the single tree handling harvester head. Further increases in grapple dimension also increased the efficiency, but not at the same rate. In real work, the efficiency increase by an accumulating harvester head will probably be slightly lower due to less optimal harvesting conditions, operator skills and other non-productive work tasks that are not affected by work method.

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Abstract

In this study, natural polymers were tested as possible alternatives for conventional wood preservative in a two-step process. Scots pine sapwood blocks were impregnated with chitosan, tannin, propiconazole and Wolmanit and oil-treated afterwards with a modified linseed oil. Two different fixation parameters were performed. The treated samples were leached according to EN84. The outcome of trials shows that a two-step process reduces the leaching of the main active components. After leaching, the samples were exposed to fungal attack by Coniophora puteana and Trametes versicolor according to EN113. Mycological tests showed that most of oil treated samples were effective against wood decay.