Deploying Mechanized Cut-to-Length Technology in Italy: Fleet Size, Annual Usage, and Costs

Abstract The authors conducted a survey of mechanized harvesting and processing machinery in Italy, with the purpose of understanding if the close-to-nature small-scale forestry typical of this country may prevent a reasonably intense utilization of modern technology, or entail a significant increase of its operating cost. Despite the challenging work conditions offered by Italian forestry, modern forest technology has already made significant inroads, as witnessed by a small yet substantial harvester and processor fleet, counting more than 80 units, 75% of which are mounted on general-purpose carriers. Usage levels are lower than those reported for northern and central Europe, but still in excess of 1000 machine hours year-1, at least for the prime movers. Insurance, repair, and maintenance costs are significantly lower than generally reported in current literature. However, empirical data on machine costs is very scarce, and most studies report estimates rather than measured values. Such estimates are often obtained with the same basic methods derived from agriculture, thus raising the question of whether their adaptation to forestry use should be further refined.