Harvesting simulator to provide many benefits for the Burns Lake community, featuring the Burns Lake Community Forest!

The Burns Lake Community Forest has just taken possession of a forwarder/harvester simulator video package designed to teach people the fundamentals of single tree selection without having to introduce them to the logging practice on the real thing.

Community forest general manager Frank Varga hopes the simulator can be included into an existing secondary school forest industry educational component and also be incorporated within the natural resources and forest technology certificate program at the College of New Caledonia.

“It would also be of benefit to employers. They would have potential employees already having training. Would you want a trainee starting out on a piece of equipment worth $1 million to $1.5 million?” Varga continued.

He’s already had two contractors used by the community forest, Zebe Holdings and Tahtsa Timber, interested in the prospect of taking on people who have had a basic understanding of equipment operations provided via simulator.

The system purchased from Ponsse, a major logging equipment manufacturer, contains a large screen, software and controls which, when manipulated, provide a person with a real-time response played out on the screen.

That harvesters which can precisely take out single trees at a time and a forwarder which can then transport trees via vehicle so they don’t have to be dragged along the ground also gives the community forest the chance to demonstrate the technological advances within the logging industry.

“This really helps fulfill our vision to the community of management and innovation within the industry,” said Varga.

“Now we have something we can actually show to the community that helps fit that vision.”

“It’ll help demonstrate that we are getting away from clear cuts, that we are into a different management style — single tree selection,” Varga continued.

While the simulator controls are specific to Ponsse’s equipment, the principles of how harvesters and forwarders work are fairly universal, making the simulator applicable to other types of machinery, Varga added.

He’s already come across literature indicating that people trained on simulators prior to working with machinery as their training continues have an immediate 20 per cent increase in efficiency.

Simulators of the kind sold by Ponsse can cost between $130,000 and $150,000 but Varga said the community forest received a healthy educational discount given the intended multi-purpose use.

“We hope to have high school students here in early spring,” Varga said, adding the coordinator of the high school forest education component is quite excited about the prospect.

And he’s been in conversation with College of New Caledonia officials as well about making the simulator part of its certificate-granting resource technology program.

Varga believes the Burns Lake Community Forest is the first entity in B.C. to purchase a simulator of this kind.

“Am I surprised at that? Not really. Innovation costs money and it requires a leap of faith, really. But that’s part of our vision — our management — and now we can bring it to a visual setting for the community.”

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IMAGE: Manager of Burns Lake Community Forest, Frank Varga tries out the simulator as Paul Davidson, a Board of Director for BL Comfor, looks on. (Laura Blackwell photo)