Why accurate and accessible information is the key to successful forest asset management

Learn how information control is critical at a time when compliance and governance requirements are more demanding than ever

In recent years, we have seen efforts to deal with the creation and recording of information within a routine of activities that still allows for flexibility. With a system like this in place, everything that is produced generates a record or document that permits the retrieval of this information whenever needed.

It is well known that companies in the forestry industry who do not follow a strict control methodology invariably face issues arising from poor resources management, be they human and/or material.

In forest asset management, “improvisation” is more common than one might think. Adjustments are made here and there: forest volume below the expectations, input stock showing non-compliance, an error in an operation that needs to be omitted, a cost that has not yet been determined, and so on.

These seemingly small adjustments can compound to create a relaxed culture within companies, who get used to mending problems—often wrongly—and pushing the dirt under the rug. Hoping that no one will discover these tricks, the company often holds a feeling that “the end justifies the means”.

These tricks are often carried out with good intentions, but they can be considered illicit or unacceptable within a company—and even more so at a time when compliance and governance requirements are more demanding than ever.

The implementation of internal management software, which integrates the business areas with no breaches or possibility of deceitfulness often proves to be a reality shock for the employees. These new tools are usually badly perceived in the productive environment because they prevent, at different levels, the employees acting as they please.

Even today, it is possible to see large forest companies err when it comes to control. There are large volumes of incoherent, inaccurate and fragile data that simply do not match or connect accurately.

Fortunately, experience shows that the initial difficulties during the implementation of new tools are fleeting. Over time, the new practices are absorbed by the teams, who adapt to the new reality and, most of the time, embrace the idea and even defend it.

A modern forest asset management system integrates all the data related to:

• Land management
• GIS
• Data registration
• Silviculture
• Harvesting
• Infrastructure and logistics
• Forest inventory
• Nursery of seedlings
• Human resources.

Furthermore, it can generate all of the economic data from the company’s management. It is up to those who are on the front line to have a well-defined plan of what is being tracked and to ensure that all the information needed to improve and control the plan’s schedule is being handled and recorded correctly.

Modern technologies allow for increased assertiveness in controlling activities and incomes, and are increasingly integrated with day-to-day tools. The forest process increasingly moves towards the era of “precision”, which is already in full swing within the agriculture and animal husbandry sector. Divergences between these sectors create new challenges for companies and producers, which pose a challenge to several historical paradigms that are only gradually being overturned.

The forestry industry aims at a highly integrated process, with information control (and use of this information to enhance strategic decision making) and rational use of resources, which leads to more efficient processes. Integrated management models aim to avoid voluntary and involuntary errors, since everything that is done is registered in the system. In addition, the integration process means that sporadic and unusual actions are often visible to other sectors within the company.

Companies who want to excel in the market in the future must act in the most professional way possible as of today, at the risk of imploding because of the loss of control over what they manage. We have come to a point where this has become a matter of survival.

Leaving decision-making to the creative minds of employees can expose companies, as well as lead to losses and legal problems. Companies need to protect themselves in the most efficient way in order to avoid any issues.

by Rafael Naumann, Forestry Engineer

INFLOR, a leader in forest management systems, helps companies maximize their forest asset management performance. INFLOR Forest gives you more assertiveness in decision making, by providing systems that allow you to gather and manage information on the entire process, making everything available for users in real time.

Request a demo today to learn more.