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Articles by Åsa Gustafsson

Category : Research article

article id 10660, category Research article
Åsa Gustafsson, Jimmy Johansson. (2022). Identifying present drivers of product development and describing roles of identified actors primarily affecting the development of harvesters: a multiple-case study. Silva Fennica vol. 56 no. 3 article id 10660. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.10660
Keywords: forest operations; logging contractor; industry driver; interview; softwood lumber supply chain
Highlights: Legislators, logging contractors, and expert and research organizations are present drivers of product development of harvesters; They appear to prioritize meeting legal regulations and lowering costs for logging contractors as they outline requirements for manufacturing harvesters.
Abstract | Full text in HTML | Full text in PDF | Author Info

Forest operations involve several different actors. Each actor imposes their own requirements on the harvester in relation to their differing roles in the industry, whether they are concerned with the harvester itself, information, environmental concerns, etc. The manufacturers of harvesters need to meet the requirements imposed by multiple actors, among them logging contractors, whose survival depends on their harvesters. This paper aims to identify the present drivers of product development and describe the roles of the actors who have been identified as those currently affecting the development of harvesters. A multiple-case study of harvester manufacturers was conducted. In total, 4 cases were studied. Each case was comprised of five interviewees: two from each harvesting manufacturer, two logging contractors, and one dealer. Following 20 interviews and 3 validation interviews (with experts from both the industry and academia), the paper concludes that the present drivers of product development of harvesters are legislators, logging contractors, and expert and research organizations. Harvester manufacturers appear to develop harvesters aligned with requirements coming from both logging contractors and legislators. Logging contractors are the primary customers, and they prioritize requirements that reduce cost and improve work environments. Legislators, and expert and research organizations are supporting development in relation to current regulations.

  • Gustafsson, Department of Accounting and Logistics, Linnaeus University, Universitetsplatsen 1, 352 52 Växjö, Sweden E-mail: asa.gustafsson@lnu.se (email)
  • Johansson, Department of Forestry and Wood Technology, Linnaeus University, 391 82 Kalmar, Sweden E-mail: jimmy.johansson@lnu.se
article id 6989, category Research article
Åsa Gustafsson. (2017). Assessing work order information quality in harvesting. Silva Fennica vol. 51 no. 4 article id 6989. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.6989
Keywords: survey study; logging contractor; work orders; work order information components; factor analysis
Highlights: This paper concludes that information quality with regards to accuracy in work order information components pertaining to “Landing – placement and size”, “Cleaning understory trees – not conducted and of low standard”, are lacking and need to be improved in harvesting.
Abstract | Full text in HTML | Full text in PDF | Author Info

Being a logging contractor involves several uncertainties, amongst others, information quality in the work order received from customers. The information quality of work orders is of the utmost importance for logging contactors, in order to be able to plan and conduct work properly. The purpose of this paper is three-fold: 1) identifying work order information components in harvesting, 2) identifying work order information quality dimensions in harvesting and 3) assessing work order information quality in harvesting. The paper is based on interviews and a survey. Various interviews took place in Sweden with professionals within the harvesting industry as well as logging contractors, and thereafter a survey was developed. Random selection was conducted and 100 Swedish logging contractors were contacted by telephone in order to answer the survey, with a response rate of 82% from the sample. The paper concludes that the information quality dimension of accuracy concerns the individual work order information components, whereas timeliness is related to receiving the complete work orders. A factor analysis has been conducted with five factors emerging. The assessment of work order information quality in harvesting implies that the potential for improvement exists with regard to increasing the accuracy of the order information for the components of “Cleaning under story trees – not conducted” and “Cleaning under story trees – of low standard” as well as “Landing – size”, and “Landing – placement”. However, their effect on capacity is utilization needs to be explored.

  • Gustafsson, Linnaeus University, School of Business and Economics, Department of Management Accounting and Logistics, 391 82 Kalmar, Sweden E-mail: asa.gustafsson@lnu.se (email)
article id 487, category Research article
Åsa Gustafsson. (2003). Logistic services as a competitive means – segmenting the retail market for softwood lumber. Silva Fennica vol. 37 no. 4 article id 487. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.487
Keywords: service requirements; retail segments; softwood lumber
Abstract | View details | Full text in PDF | Author Info
Softwood lumber has been considered traditionally as commodity. Subsequently brand names and trademarks were of subordinate value and competition was based on price. Recently, retailers have grown substantially and are forcing their suppliers to improve the production and delivery of products. As retailers are getting more diverse and powerful, suppliers are forced to adapt to the retailers’ service requirements. The new situation also brings opportunities for the sawmills to develop their competitive advantage. The retail industry is continuously changing, and in order for sawmills to develop and offer what retailers are asking for, it is necessary that they understand and interpret retailers’ requirements correctly. One way for sawmills to be successful is to develop accurate service elements and to use the service elements as a segmentation base in order to structure their customer base. This study shows that retailers place considerable emphasis on delivery and value-added logistical services. It generates three hypotheses concerning the following potential retail segments; turnover, category, and customer base.
  • Gustafsson, School of Industrial Engineering (IPS), Växjö University, SE-351 95 Växjö, Sweden E-mail: asa.gustafsson@ips.vxu.se (email)

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