International forest engineers eye New Zealand

FOREST ENGINEERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD WILL BE converging on Rotorua in April to discuss the latest industry trends.

The International Forest Engineering Conference is held every four years, always on a different continent and this sixth event is the first time it will have come to New Zealand.

One of the organisers, Canterbury University’s Rien Visser, expects to attract visitors from more than 20 countries with a strong background or interest in forestry. Around 150 people are expected to attend.

“This is a unique event and there will be a lot of interest from a New Zealand point of view because we don’t get this concentration of international expertise very often on a global basis, so it’s a real opportunity for locals to soak up knowledge first hand,” says Prof Visser.

There is a strong focus on research, he says, and the programme has been designed to be especially relevant to forestry in New Zealand, which is faced with a number of challenges, especially as more harvesting takes place on steeper ground in the future.

The conference kicks off on April 16 with a series of workshops across the day, showcasing some of the innovation taking place in New Zealand, from the development of harvesting and processing heads at Waratah to the winch-assist technology now being sold around the world by EMS and also the industry-leading research by Scion.

The main conference sessions will take place on April 17, with presentations from international and local speakers on a variety of forest engineering topics, followed the next day by field trips to various harvesting operations in the Bay of Plenty and a stop at the Port of Tauranga.

The conference concludes on April 19 with technical sessions on key forest engineering challenges, such as protecting the environment and how new machinery and systems are being employed on steep terrain.

Prof Visser says the organisers hope to facilitate the attendance of up to 30 students at the conference, as a way of engaging with foresters of the future. More details are at www.foresteng.canterbury.ac.nz/ FEC2018.shtml.

NZL