Logging Equipment Operator
Other Titles
Delimber Operator, Feller Buncher Operator, Harvester Operator, Loader Operator, Log Processor Operator, Logging Equipment Operator, Logging Shovel Operator, Skidder Driver, Skidder Operator, Yarder Operator
Inspect equipment for safety prior to use, and perform necessary basic maintenance tasks.
Control hydraulic tractors equipped with tree clamps and booms to lift, swing, and bunch sheared trees.
Grade logs according to characteristics such as knot size and straightness, and according to established industry or company standards.
Drive straight or articulated tractors equipped with accessories such as bulldozer blades, grapples, logging arches, cable winches, and crane booms, to skid, load, unload, or stack logs, pull stumps, or clear brush.
Drive crawler or wheeled tractors to drag or transport logs from felling sites to log landing areas for processing and loading.
Fill out required job or shift report forms.
Drive tractors for the purpose of building or repairing logging and skid roads.
Drive and maneuver tractors and tree harvesters to shear the tops off of trees, cut and limb the trees, and cut the logs into desired lengths.
Calculate total board feet, cordage, or other wood measurement units, using conversion tables.
Operation and Control→ Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
Operation Monitoring→ Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
Equipment Maintenance→ Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
Active Listening→ Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Monitoring→ Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Quality Control Analysis→ Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
Troubleshooting→ Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment→ Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or water craft.
Controlling Machines and Processes→ Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).
Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment→ Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of mechanical (not electronic) principles.
Getting Information→ Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Material→ Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards→ Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates→ Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems→ Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships→ Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information→ Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.
Handling and Moving Objects→ Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings→ Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events→ Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
Assisting and Caring for Others→ Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
Developing and Building Teams→ Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
Developing Objectives and Strategies→ Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.
Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or People→ Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work→ Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
Performing General Physical Activities→ Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling of materials.
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge→ Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Provide Consultation and Advice to Others→ Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups on technical, systems-, or process-related topics.
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others→ Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
Monitoring and Controlling Resources→ Monitoring and controlling resources and overseeing the spending of money.
Communicating with Persons Outside Organization→ Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
Thinking Creatively→ Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
Coaching and Developing Others→ Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates→ Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.
Inspect equipment or facilities to determine condition or maintenance needs.
Maintain forestry, hunting, or agricultural equipment.
Operate forestry equipment.
Evaluate log quality.
Cut trees or logs.
Maintain personnel records.
Measure physical characteristics of forestry or agricultural products.
Control Precision→ The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
Reaction Time→ The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.
Arm-Hand Steadiness→ The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
Multilimb Coordination→ The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
Depth Perception→ The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
Far Vision→ The ability to see details at a distance.
Problem Sensitivity→ The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Rate Control→ The ability to time your movements or the movement of a piece of equipment in anticipation of changes in the speed and/or direction of a moving object or scene.
Response Orientation→ The ability to choose quickly between two or more movements in response to two or more different signals (lights, sounds, pictures).It includes the speed with which the correct response is started with the hand, foot, or other body part.
Near Vision→ The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Manual Dexterity→ The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
Perceptual Speed→ The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
Visual Color Discrimination→ The ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.
Visualization→ The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
Category Flexibility→ The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
Finger Dexterity→ The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
Information Ordering→ The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g. , patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Oral Comprehension→ The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression→ The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Selective Attention→ The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
Spatial Orientation→ The ability to know your location in relation to the environment or to know where other objects are in relation to you.
Trunk Strength→ The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without 'giving out' or fatiguing.
Mechanical→ Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Public Safety and Security→ Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Production and Processing→ Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Database user interface and query software -- Production tracking software, Inventory control software; Sales activity processing and analysis software; Logging and Log hauling operations software
Electronic mail software -- e.g., Gmail; Zoho Mail; Microsoft Outlook
Enterprise resource planning ERP software -- e.g., Infor; Workday; Sage; NetSuite
Human resources software
Inventory management software
Office suite software -- e.g., Google Workspace; LibreOffice; Microsoft Office
Spreadsheet software -- e.g., Google Sheets; Microsoft Excel
Word processing software -- e.g., Google Docs; Microsoft Word
Articulating boom lift→ Truck mounted boom loaders
Cargo trucks→ Log transport trucks
Chain saw→ Heavy duty chainsaws
Claw hammer→ Nailing hammers
Conventional truck cranes→ Tractor cranes
Desktop computers
Flatbed trailers→ Equipment trailers; Log trailers
Forestry saws→ Tree saws
Forestry skidders→ Cable skidders; Grapple skidders
Grapples→ Loading grapples; Yarding grapples
Hoes→ Forestry hoes
Lumbering equipment→ Delimbers; Drive-to-tree feller bunchers; Felling heads; Forestry swing machines; Forwarders; Grapple yarders; Harvesting heads; Knuckleboom loaders; Log forks; Log loaders; Processing heads; Tracked feller bunchers; Tracked harvesters; Wheeled harvesters
Measuring tapes→ Loggers' tapes
Pocket knives
Safety glasses→ Protective safety glasses
Scarifiers→ Scarifier attachments
Stackers→ Log stackers
Tablet computers
Tire pressure gauge→ Digital tire pressure gauges
Treedozers→ Forestry crawler dozers
Two way radios→ Mobile radios
Winches→ Log winches
Realistic→ Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
Investigative→ Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
Conventional→ Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
Dependability→ Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Initiative→ Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Self Control→ Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
Adaptability/Flexibility→ Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Cooperation→ Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Independence→ Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
Stress Tolerance→ Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
Attention to Detail→ Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Integrity→ Job requires being honest and ethical.
Achievement/Effort→ Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
Persistence→ Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
Analytical Thinking→ Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
Leadership→ Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
Innovation→ Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
Concern for Others→ Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
Support→ Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.
Independence→ Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
Working Conditions→ Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.