In addition to their use to harvest crops on a farm, harvesters also are used for felling trees and maneuvering logs in forestry applications. They are effective for leveling moderately steep terrain for clearcutting areas of forests. These heavy machines are built on all-terrain vehicles, such as wheeled, tracked on walking excavators. They also may be articulated for turning around obstacles. They are typically used in conjunction with a forwarder, which hauls the logs to a roadside landing.
A typical harvester head consists of: a chain saw; delimbing knives; feed rollers; diameter sensors and a measuring wheel. These functions can be controlled by one operator in the vehicle’s cab. Harvesters are routinely available for cutting trees up to 35 in. in diameter, built on vehicles weighing up to 22 tons, with a boom reaching up to 33 ft. radius. Larger, heavier vehicles do more damage to the forest floor, but a longer reach helps by allowing harvesting of more trees with fewer vehicle movements.
Forestry crews need equipment that can deliver exceptional performance in difficult environments. Control downtime and drive productivity with the robust, dependable and fuel-efficient Komatsu PC230F-11 processor.
Kesla, an independent manufacturer of harvester heads and forest machine cranes launched a completely new harvester crane KESLA 875H.
Waratah Forestry Equipment debuted the HTH618C Series-III — a new generation of its HTH618C harvester head built for increased productivity, reliability, uptime and more.
The Tigercat 570 harvesting head is now available with a fixed wrist for applications where positive control for felling and processing is required.
Ponsse has launched a completely upgraded H8 harvester head with a powerful feed, firm grip and solid yet agile frame.
John Deere has introduced new options and updates to the M-Series tracked feller bunchers, harvesters, and shovel logger.
For a harvester operator, an easily operated crane is important for ensuring a productive working day.
Forestry equipment operates under difficult and demanding conditions. Engineered for the rugged terrain of forestry and logging work, Komatsu now offers two new machines, the 931XC-3 8WD harvester and the 855-3 forwarder.
Tigercat has released the 822E series feller bunchers and harvesters with the latest features and upgrades.
John Deere's new, small-size H423 harvester head and the large-size H425 and H425HD replace the previous H413, H415 and H415HD models.