Transmissions
By Julie McManus
Technical Shopping List: Forest Management Software and How It Can Help
Forest management software has been helping members of the forestry industry get the most out of their line of work for over 20 years. The list of companies selling this software is growing, and so too is the need for companies to save time and money Ð two features all forest management software promises.
The following overview of software options will be helpful to current forestry industry leaders who are looking to upgrade their current computer systems, or for smaller companies looking to expand their outreach and productivity.
Forest growth and land management modelling, compliance tracking, harvest scheduling, activity tracking, and mapping tools are the types of professional software tools D.R. Systems has been developing over the past 25 years. Its Phoenix Professional forest activity tracking system is one of the most widely used in British Columbia, and offers six add-on modules for a flexible, customized system.
Strategic land management has never been so complex, with changes in government regulations, changing market access, habitat conservation, the increased need for sustainability, and a litany of other issues creating constant flux in the industry. D.R Systems' OPTIONS program is an analytical land management tool that can be used to assess a variety of land-base problems such as grasslands management, urban/forest interface, and eco-tourism. The company also offers the RTS (referral tracking system) and SILVIRR (silviculture investment rate of return system), both providing easy to use, MicroSoft-certified software solutions for forest industry professionals. RTS was designed Òfor First Nations by First Nations,Ó to provide an automated and customizable referral tracking system that will track, monitor, and support land referral process decisions, and support First Nations in governance over resource management and the cumulative impacts of development. SILVIRR Òseamlessly integrates sophisticated tree level and stand level growth projection modelling and financial impact analyses as associated with user-defined silviculture prescriptions,Ó to allow land managers to analyze various silviculture investment options and determine which option provides the best return.
BCS Woodlands software company originated over two decades ago in Peace River, Alberta, and has been advancing its software ever since. The company offers programs in both French and English and combines accounting software with forestry management software, making the products versatile for small or large businesses. There are four components to this software including the Logger Tracker, Scalehouse Tracker, Woodland Tracker, and Mill Tracker.
Each program offers individualized features geared for assisting in different stages of the logging and administration processes. For example, the Logger Tracker is used before entering the mill and can Òtrack the harvesting of timber, while accumulating costs per cubic meter, tonne, board-foot, cord or ton.Ó The Scalehouse Tracker is a separate program useful for work being done at the mill as it is used to Òcalculate recovery, cull, trim/loss and profit/loss,Ó based on user inputs. Free demos of the colourful software are available from the BCS Woodlands' website, so those considering investing in a long- term forestry software solution can try before they buy. BCS Woodlands' software features drop menus similar to most computers' operating systems.
Another of the first companies to develop logging and log management software was ALDATA, which has spent the past 18 years developing a suite of programs Ð The Boss Line Ð that tracks costs and operating data, and manages weigh scale operations and the fibre procurement and management processes. The company also offers an on-board tracking and information collection system called TAGASIS that uses a computer to track and monitor the operation of mobile equipment, including loaders' stop, idle, and run times, and the GPS co-ordinates of the loading point.
The company's newest creation is the Custody Manager, which reduces the time used to manage ticket books and securing tags, and tracks GPS co-ordinates to prove wood origin and prevent timber theft and fraud. Contract and truck set-up data is imported electronically via satellite, and load data is entered in the field at the source, where it is validated against the contract information. The load record is stamped with GPS co-ordinates, which will show up on printable, bar-coded load slips to improve scale-house processing.
Primus Inc. came around later in 1994, and offers LOG Pro management software, a competitive product that can be easily customized to suit each company's needs. Anyone considering LOG Pro software can schedule an online demo and receive additional training sessions. Owners will be sent a questionnaire about their company with questions addressed to cover any specific requirements that one may want in their programs.
Services included in the Primus software package include several management tools relating to products, inventory, sources, scale tickets, contracts, and settlement processing. Best of all, LOG Pro is available as a complete package and is compatible with hand-held devices. The one drawback to the system is that there are no bilingual features.
Offering a wider range of stand-alone software components is FPInnovations, a company that has developed many different computer programs to help increase forestry outputs. Its Forest Engineering Research Institute of Canada (FERIC) division, whose goal is to Òimprove Canadian forest operations within a framework of sustainable development,Ó offers products that help users make decisions using logistics software. Some of these names are sound programs that have had staying power since they were introduced. They may sound familiar: GeoFor 2006 is completely dedicated to monitoring machinery; Interface 2003 estimates wood costs and regeneration success in various harvesting and regeneration systems, and Interface MAP 2007 makes it possible to directly simulate various cost and productivity scenarios using digitized forest maps. Other names developed by FPInnovations and FERIC include MaxTour, a program that helps reduce transport costs by avoiding empty return trips, and Opti-Grade, a program that determines areas requiring grading during unpaved road maintenance operations.
An American-based company, Remsoft, boasts that it has created Òthe world's leading resource management software for sustainable, spatial forest management planning and wildfire management.Ó It's called the The Remsoft Spatial Planning System optimization tool, and the company says over 500 million acres of forestland on five continents are managed with it. So what can it do? Remsoft Advanced Analytic Systems can help companies with Òflexible forest modelling, spatial harvest scheduling, optimal fibre allocation, cross asset trade-offs, resource allocation and scheduling, environmental compliance, and transparent, accountable, defensible plans.Ó
The Remsoft system works much like BCS Woodlands in that it merges separate components together into one accessible program. It doesn't offer immediate software demos, but it will allow current subscribers to update their software via downloads.
A more general resource for forestry management software and other types of computer programs is Upside Software, based in Edmonton, Alberta. The products are multi-lingual and come complete with multi-currency convertors. Upside products appeal to a wide range of business managers, but some features of interest to forestry managers include software that will help users negotiate and price goods and/or services, assess risk management, capture key contract related information, and perform complex calculations to address any pricing model scenario.
Most developers of business-related computer software are tailoring their products directly to customers' needs and are willing to work with clients individually. Remember that choosing one software over the other may seem intimidating, but unlike some important business decisions, it won't be a deal you will be locked into forever. Before investing, it's a good idea to call around to find out who has the best software package for your business needs, since pricing is rarely advertised and can vary drastically amongst companies.
For more info and to view a demo of these software ideas, find them online: