TIMBER COMPANY MANAGEMENT

Timber Company Management

Table of Contents

Executive Summary3

Introduction3

Problems and their Strategies4

A. Decreased Profits4

B. Increased Roadblocks6

C. Difficult Times7

D. Lobbying9

E. Employee Engagement10

F. Consumer Protection11

G. Environmental Protection11

H. Timesheet Management12

I. Transportation Logistics13

J. Transport System15

K. Safety16

Conclusion17

References19

Timber Company Management

Executive Summary

This paper would discuss the challenges and their solution strategies in the timber company. Various strategies are proposed as me being a CEO of a timber company called, 'Dream Timber Company'.

Introduction

Hardwood timber species such as oaks, gums, maples, hickories, walnut, etc. are located primarily in the East, while in the West 97 percent of saw timber is softwood. The common softwood species are Douglas-fir, Hemlock, true Firs, Pines, Spruces, Cedars, and Redwood. In the West, the forests tend to be larger in tree size and have more volume of timber per acre than forests in the East. (Allin 2002)

A second major difference between the Eastern Hardwood Region and the Western Softwood Region is in the type of forest ownership. Nearly 70 percent of eastern forest lands are privately owned; only 15 percent of western forest lands are privately owned. (Cortner 2003)

Another important difference is in how accessible forests are for loggers. The terrain in the East generally is not as steep and rugged as it is in the West, thus making the harvest of eastern timber easier.

Also, a difference exists in the way a forest regenerates after being harvested. Hardwood forests tend to regenerate themselves; softwood forests usually require some artificial reforestation actions. (Baumgartner 2001)

Finally, the products and by-products made from hardwood and softwood forests are different. For example, hardwoods are more commonly used for making furniture, flooring, veneer, and pallets. Softwoods are more commonly used for making construction lumber and plywood. Also, hardwoods generally are used for making printing grades of paper and softwoods generally are used for making paper and paperboard items requiring strength, such as bags and boxes. (Browne 2008)

This paper would discuss the challenges and their solution strategies in the timber company.

Problems and their Strategies

A. Decreased Profits

Given various observations of Dream trucks, they extract about 2800 - 3500 cubic meters per day, or 80,000 m3 to 105,000 m3 per month (800,000 - 1,100,000 m3 per year). 3000 m3/day, or 90,000 m3/month, seems to be the most generally agreed number. The average production of a large forestry company in Liberia is around 10,000 m3 per month, making Dream larger by an order of magnitude than anything Liberia is used to. In 1988, the peak production year prior to the war, the entire Liberian timber production came to about 1 million m3. All Dream production is exported and all is exported as raw logs. (Clary 2006)

These practices are in flagrant violation of Liberian law and FDA regulations, which stipulate that trees under diameters of 60 and 100 cm DBH (diameter at breast height), and in one case 50 cm DBH, may not be cut. Clearfelling large areas so to leave bare dirt, with all the consequent erosion problems, is entirely outside the spirit of FDA rules and renders the area useless for future forestry: ...