Glossary & Common Questions
The most important timber terms explained simply – and the questions forest owners ask us most often.
Technical terms, explained simply
From solid cubic metre to sale of standing timber: the terms you will meet around a harvesting job.
- Solid cubic metre (Festmeter, fm)
- One cubic metre of pure wood with no air gaps – the usual unit that harvesting and timber are billed by.
- Harvested solid cubic metre (Erntefestmeter, Efm)
- A Festmeter minus bark and harvesting loss (usually around 10–20 %). Often the amount actually measured at pick-up.
- Stacked cubic metre (Raummeter, rm)
- One cubic metre of stacked wood including the air gaps – for example firewood. Roughly 0.7 Festmeter equal one Raummeter.
- Loose cubic metre (Schüttraummeter, srm)
- One cubic metre of loosely poured wood, such as wood chips or split logs. Loosely poured, that is roughly 0.4 Festmeter.
- Harvester (fully mechanised)
- Fully mechanised harvesting: one machine fells the tree, delimbs it and cuts it to length in a single pass. Efficient on larger areas.
- Chainsaw felling (motor-manual)
- Felling with the chainsaw – for single trees, tricky spots, or wherever the machine cannot reach.
- Forwarding (Rückung)
- Bringing the felled logs from the stand to the forest road. We do this step ourselves; haulage from the road is handled by the buyer.
- Thinning (Durchforstung)
- Selectively removing individual trees so the remaining ones get more light and room to grow – care rather than clear-cutting.
- Assortment (Sortiment)
- Sorting the timber by length, diameter and quality – such as sawlogs, industrial wood or firewood, depending on later use.
- Weak & heavy timber
- Weak timber is thin, young wood (often from thinning); heavy timber is the strong, mature wood. We cover both, each with its own machine.
- Sale of standing timber (Abstockvertrag)
- Selling the still-standing timber: harvesting and handling run through the buyer, so you reduce risk and effort. In Austria usually with 13 % VAT.
- Slope (Hangneigung)
- The steepness of the terrain in degrees. Fitted with tracks and bogie bands, our harvesters work up to about 60° – even very steep ground is workable.
What forest owners ask us most
Answered briefly and honestly – especially if this is your first time having timber harvested.
What does harvesting cost?
We deliberately avoid fixed prices, because every stand is different. As a guide: chainsaw felling starts at around €25/h, for example, and for moving the machines to site small jobs incur roughly €100. You will get your exact, non-binding quote after an on-site visit.
How is it billed?
Billing is per Festmeter; the amount is determined by the buyer at haulage. On request, the harvesting cost is settled directly out of the timber proceeds – so you do not have to pre-finance anything.
From what volume is a job worthwhile?
There is no fixed minimum. Rudi handles single trunks with the chainsaw; for larger areas the harvesters come out. For smaller jobs under roughly 300 Festmeter a transfer flat fee applies, because the machines first have to be brought to site.
Which area do you cover?
We work within roughly 50 km of our base in Dorfstetten, covering parts of the Mostviertel and Mühlviertel – that is Lower and Upper Austria. Whether your forest is in range we can clarify quickly by phone.
How quickly can you come?
After you give the go-ahead we usually need about 7 working days lead time. Because jobs depend on season and weather, we best agree the exact date by phone.
What happens to my timber?
We fell the trees, forward the logs to the forest road and sort them. Haulage from the road and marketing are handled by the buyer or our partner. On request, sale of standing timber is also possible – then the entire handling runs through the buyer.
Can you work on steep terrain?
Yes. Our harvesters are fitted with tracks and bogie bands and work up to about 60° slope – even very steep ground is manageable for us.
What do I need to prepare as a forest owner?
Ideally you know the rough boundaries of your forest and an access route. We look at everything else together during the site visit and advise you – you need no prior knowledge, even if this is your first time having timber harvested.
Your question was not here?
Just give us a call or write to us – we explain everything in plain terms and make you a non-binding offer.