The profitability of transporting uncomminuted raw materials in Finland

In recent years the transportation of uncomminuted energy wood raw materials has been on the increase in Finland. As a result of the low bulk density of unprocessed raw material, the size of the load is usually limited by volume rather than mass capacity. In this study, the profitability of transporting uncomminuted raw materials is evaluated. A follow-up study was done to gather time consumption and load size data. In this study, we piloted a monitoring system installed in computers of trucks combined with GPS. In the beginning of the year 2004, the average load size of loose residues was 52 MWh and the moisture content 47%, with stumps 67 MWh (37%), with bundles 73 MWh (50%) and with forest chips 85 MWh (46%). The average total weight of loads was kept under the maximum weight limit, 60 tonnes, for all uncomminuted raw material types. There was some 10 tonnes of potential load capacity left. The most likely improvements in the transportation of the loose raw materials will involve increasing the load size and decreasing of the terminal times. Especially the truck–trailer combinations with extended trailers are becoming more common in Finland.