Abstract

In forests, the simultaneous presence of machines and the people responsible for using them creates problems. Serious and even fatal accidents regularly occur with felling equipment, and more precisely with equipment using a mechanized head. Very little information is available for making these machines safe in a simple and rapid way. The authors of this study documented the reasons and the ways that the operators and mechanics intervene on these multifunctional felling heads and they collected information on maintenance, existing safety devices, the training available, and the accidents that have occurred. The data analysis identified possible solutions and research scenarios for making the maintenance of these machines safer and for making recommendations to the CSST’s joint sector-based committee for the forestry sector. These recommendations are included in the report.