Fatigue is a big risk in forestry, especially for manual tree-fallers. Fatigue can hurt because tired people are more likely to make poor decisions. So, it’s really important to manage fatigue and there are many different ways to do that.
Recently we caught up with Alan Paulson, to talk about how he manages the risk of fatigue in his manual felling crew. Alan, who owns Tairāwhiti Timber Training, is a Safetree Certification faller and runs a specialist manual felling crew that employs three other fallers. He also assesses workers for the Safetree Certification scheme, so he knows his stuff.
His approach to managing the risk of fatigue for himself and his crew focuses on working smarter, not harder. It includes investing in different equipment, restricting working hours, backing workers to stop when they need to, and working with good clients that support his philosophy.
Alan says he and the crew are constantly on the lookout for different types of equipment or new ways of working that will help reduce fatigue.
For example, they now work with lighter, smaller saws that have been modified for more power. The crew run Stihl 500 chainsaws that have been ported – modified with things like aftermarket filters and exhausts to give that extra bit of power. The crew say they find these light, more powerful saws are great for getting around the hills.
They also use longer, lighter bars. This means that on steeper faces they can do all their cuts from one side of the tree. This is safer, Alan says, because often they’re working in big timber where they can't easily get up and walk around the tree.
“Having a lighter saw with more power and a bigger bar can make a big difference to the amount of energy a faller uses up when working on a steep face,” he says.
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