Influence of forest machine operator work practices and operator assistance systems on the efficiency of fully mechanized timber harvesting systems

Abstract

who agreed to be part of the thesis committee. Furthermore, special thanks go to Dr. Lorenz Breinig for agreeing to support the research project and the thesis progress. Another great "Thank you" is dedicated to all of my co-authors, first and foremost DI Dr. Marian Schönauer, whose support and experience contributed to improving my publications and presentations in the past years.The subject and the goals of the thesis are related to the objectives of the international research project AVATAR. Thanks go to all Scandinavian and German project partners from Skogforsk, Nibio, Skogkurs, Optea, IfADo, the Northrhine-Westfalian State Forest Service and the University of Göttingen, with whom I was able to experience some exciting years. The cooperation was characterized by trust, honesty and friendliness, which in retrospect made many things easier for me.Full funding for doctoral students throughout the course of the doctoral project is not common.Therefore, I would like to thank not only Prof. Dr. Dirk Jaeger, but also Mr. Thilo Wagner from the Northrhine-Westfalian State Forest Service, Center for Forest and Timber Industry, Forest Education Center. Both supervisors ensured that I was able to hold a fully financed position during my work.Access to forest machines and machine operators for our studies was ensured whenever we needed.Without this support, the preparation of this work and data collection would have been noticeably more difficult. In this context, I would also like to thank Mr. Michael Thätner from the Lower Saxony Forest Education Center in Münchehof for also providing machine operators and forwarders. I would like to thank my parents Andrea and Berthold, my sister Annika and all of my friends for their mental support. Finally, thanks go to my beloved wife Anja for her support during the past years.Without her taking care about our children and putting her own professional needs aside, this work would not have been possible. Someday, our children Friedrich and Klara Marie will maybe read these lines and I would like to tell them that the two were and are an incredible empowerment for me. Every II day since their birth they have shown me what really matters in life. My dog Bilbo was and still is a faithful companion and provides mental support to me, especially on game hunts after office days.