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Columns::September 16, 2002
Parting thoughts: Provost reflects on successes, challenges of her tenure at UGA
The forest and the trees
Fiber artist’s exhibition challenges stereotypes about ‘women’s work’
Helping hands
University Council will consider domestic partners policy at first meeting
Sound science
Campus Closeup
Two curators, deputy director join Georgia Museum of Art
Newsmakers
Good vibrations
Campus News
Southern forest products industry loses $430 million
By Helen Fosgate
hfosgate@smokey.forestry.uga.edu
New research shows the Southern forest products industry loses an estimated $430 million a year by operating timber
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Dale Greene
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harvesting systems at only two-thirds of full production capacity.
Forest scientists at the University of Georgia, the University of Maine and Louisiana State University surveyed loggers and mills in Georgia and Maine to determine the full wood production capacity in these states and the causes behind lost production.
Overall, market factors were seen as the biggest obstacle, followed by inclement weather and a lack of planning.
“Of course, not all of this inefficiency could be removed, even under ideal circumstances,” says Dale Greene, professor of forest engineering at UGA’s Warnell School of Forest Resources and principle author of the study. “Conservative estimates project the potential profits from increased efficiency between $135 million and $300 million per year--and that’s a lot of money saved.”
Funded by the Wood Supply Research Institute, the study is the first large-scale effort to collect production information from both loggers and mills. Researchers say it’s an important first step in pinpointing problems in a system subject to constant change and competing interests.
“In the world of wood procurement and supply-chain management, there are conflicting objectives,” says Mike Clutter, UGA professor of forest finance, who also was involved in the study. “Mills want a consistent supply of wood at a low cost. Loggers want available markets for their services and decent contract rates. But when prices are low, like they have been lately, mills operate at a lower capacity, which means loggers have less work. The data from this study will show how to better balance the needs of loggers and mills.”
Southern loggers cited mill-imposed quotas, weather, and mill handling or closures as major problems, followed by mechanical failure and other issues with land tracts or stands. Maine loggers listed weather as a major cause of lost production, followed by road conditions, equipment failure and, thirdly, mill-imposed quotas.
Researchers also found that logging crews identifying themselves as “preferred suppliers” were more efficient.
“The preferred-supplier system is well established and works well,” says Greene. “Over half of the logging companies responding to the Southern survey and 48 percent of all study participants reported having a preferred-supplier relationship with a mill.”
Researchers say a lack of planning, cited third in the survey, accounts for at least some of the weather-related loss as well. Since planning is typically a shared responsibility, the scientists say better communication among loggers, wood dealers and mills could improve efficiency through shared decision-making, a cornerstone of effective supply-chain management.
The study also suggests that relationships among loggers, dealers and mills are complex and ever-evolving. And because the characteristics of mills, logging companies and dealers vary enough by region and location, researchers believe system improvements will have to be specific and local in nature to be effective. |
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