Utilization and Cost of Log Production from Animal Logging Operations

Forest harvesting with animals is a labor-intensive operation. It is expensive to use machines on smaller woodlots, which require frequent moves if mechanically logged. So, small logging systems using animals may be more cost effective. In this study, work sampling was used for five animal logging operations in Alabama to measure productive and non-productive time elements to determine utilization with respect to operators, functions (felling and processing of trees, skidding, loading, and forwarding of logs), animals, and machines. Cost of log production was calculated from the figures reported by owners and the crew members. Average utilization of crew was 58 percent, animals (horses and mules) were utilized only 22 percent and the machines were utilized from 5 to 74 percent of scheduled time. Average cost of log production per m3 was $11.28. There appears to be an opportunity to reduce cost of log production by coordinating functions, increasing scheduled work hours, utilization of machines and animals, and reducing labor cost

Koldioxidavtryck & Konsumentköpbeslut Online

Sustainable consumption is used to describe consumer behaviors which aim to reduce environmental impact. One way of measuring sustainable consumption is by tracking products’ carbon footprint. Today however, there is limited research on how carbon footprint information is influencing consumers online, and few online tools which allow consumers to track carbon footprints for specific products before the point of purchase. The purpose of the thesis is to design a sustainability tool which contains product level carbon footprint information as well as to test and evaluate how the information affects sustainable consumption. Theory from the fields of Human Computer Interaction and Carbon Footprint research was used in a multi-method qualitative study. Expert interviews and qualitative usability tests were conducted during the thesis as means of collecting empirical data. The study concludes that carbon footprint information should be introduced in the search phase of the consumer journey. The information should then progressively become more detailed as the consumer approaches the point of purchase. The study found that displaying carbon footprint information affects sustainable consumption positively in the tested online environment. However, personal preference and cost constitute a large part of consumers' choices as well. The study extends the research on carbon footprints by including results from an online environment. Future research should be conducted using quantitative methods to validate the results of this study on larger samples. Other product categories should also be tested as a way of investigating if the same consumption patterns emerge across different product categories.Hållbar konsumtion används för att beskriva konsumentbeteenden med syfte att minska miljöpåverkan. Ett sätt att mäta hållbar konsumtion är genom att spåra produkters koldioxidavtryck. I dag är dock forskningen kring hur koldioxidavtrycksinformation påverkar konsumenter online begränsad, och få verktyg tillåter konsumenter att spårasina koldioxidavtryck för specifika produkter innan köp. Syftet med studien är att designa ett hållbarhetsverktyg med information om koldioxidavtryck på produktnivå samt att testa och utvärdera hur informationen påverkar hållbar konsumtion. Teori från områdena Människa-datorinteraktion samt Koldioxidavtrycksforskning användes i en kvalitativ multimetodstudie. Expertintervjuer samt kvalitativa användbarhetstester genomfördes under studien som ett sätt att samla in empirisk data. Slutsatsen från studien visar att information om koldioxidavtryck bör introduceras i sökfasen av konsumentresan. Koldioxidinformationen bör sedan successivt bli mer detaljerad när konsumenten närmar sig köptillfället. Studien påvisar att koldioxidavtrycksinformation påverkar hållbar konsumtion positivt i den testade onlinemiljön. Dock påverkar även personlig preferens samt kostnad konsumenternasval. Studien utökar forskningen om koldioxidavtryck genom att inkludera resultat från en onlinemiljö. Framtida forskning bör utföras med hjälp av kvantitativa metoder för att validera resultaten av denna studie på en större urvalsgrupp. Även andra produktkategorier bör testas som ett sätt att undersöka om samma konsumtionsmönster uppstår över olika produktkategorier