The result of several years of development, Ponsse’s Manager 2.0 promises to be an all-encompassing digital solution. And it has one British firm to thank in part for its creation.
IT has been developed with “maximum transparency and data” in mind – and that’s thanks in part to one forestry firm right here in the UK.
Ponsse last month unveiled its Manager 2.0, the next generation of its digital solution that supplies operators with “vital information” under a single log in.
Providing customers with valuable details of machines’ locations, productivity figures and fuel consumption, the platform also features a personalised front page, giving users an immediate overview of their business.
Launched during a slick presentation (full of all the PR razzmatazz you’d expect), Manager 2.0 was developed alongside Ponsse users, sharing their direct experience from the forest, including Scotland’s own Colin Brolly Forestry, who, as became clear during the broadcast, played a significant role.
Based in Lochgilphead, the contractor’s 26-strong Ponsse fleet is a well-known sight in the forests of Argyll and Bute (and beyond), so it seemed ideally placed to shape the brand’s digital transformation.
“It is nice to have played a small part in shaping Ponsse Manager 2.0,” said Jude Brolly, son of founders Colin and Jennifer Brolly. “It’s great that Finland gave us the opportunity to be part of that.
“We have seen a massive benefit in using digital tools. If you look back at the old days, you had no information coming in whatsoever from the machines, and you relied very much on site and had to get the information from the harvesters yourself. In the last few years, certainly since the introduction of Ponsse Manager, it has made massive difference.
“Having that real-time productive forest information is what the land managers and landowners are all now wanting. Sometimes this is weekly.”
Jude, and his sister, Rachel, were speaking to Ponsse UK’s Keith Burns, who asked how digital platforms helped Colin Brolly to make quick decisions.
“In the west coast of Scotland, a lot of our timber goes out by boat,” Jude said. “If you have a site that – for argument’s sake – the forest manager is looking for 2,000 tonnes, you have instant information of how the site is performing. It means we can make the decision of whether or not to put an extra machine on the site. That information wasn’t as easily available before, and you were using up a lot of time going to look.”
Of the impact Colin Brolly made to Manager 2.0, Rachel said: “Ponsse has listened to our suggestions.
“One thing we wanted was for the butt on and off button to be taken out. I know merchants like it if we keep the same operator on site, but different circumstances sometimes mean another has to come on. If that’s the case, merchants like the production reports getting compiled, which we are able to do now because Ponsse Finland listened to us.”
Listing some of the benefits to the new system, Jude added: “Ponsse Manager 1.0 was working quite well, Ponsse Manager 2.0 is just an improvement on that.
“We now know not only what the harvester has cut, but what the forwarder has managed to extract and what is left at the stump. That’s very useful in terms of site performance.”
“It can also give you an idea of when sites will finish,” Rachel added. “So you know how far behind the forwarder could be.”
But it’s not just Scotland that influenced the creation of the new digital platform.
During the broadcast, guests also heard from FinnHarvest, a Finland-based full-service harvesting company.
“Manager 2.0 cooperation between FinnHarvest and Ponsse started roughly two years ago,” the firm’s Kari Tuhkanen said. “We had a clear idea of what a company like us requires from Ponsse’s digital tool.
“We have been able to have an impact on what the product is like. I’m happy to say that all our wishes have been considered. We obtain the data we want in the way we want.
“If this hadn’t been done together, it would probably have remained much rawer.”
He added: “I believe Manager 2.0 will make harvesting more efficient, simply because it highlights all the problems and challenges, as well as successes.”
Hosted by Finnish media personality André Noël Chaker and attended by forestry publications from around the world, the presentation featured insight into the application’s development, as well as a first look at Manager 2.0 in action.
Jenni Pulkkinen, Ponsse’s project manager, told how a “completely new” summary page would allow users to edit their view by adding “different kinds of widgets” – including about assortment, production work areas, and a map.
“By adding these widgets, the user is able to see data of interest with one glance,” she said. The Ponsse Manager monitors the progress of stands, plans, and manages machine transportation, keeps track of machine outputs according to assortment and prints out measuring certificates. One of the new key features is the possibility to download all reports and, for example, combine them in a spreadsheet with other data to create an overview of your operation.
Jenni went on to demonstrate Manager 2.0 – the result of four development teams from Ponsse’s HQ – working on a mobile phone, which included the full range of features such as the summary page.
Speaking during the broadcast, Juho Nummela, Ponsse president, said: “Data and digital solutions are a very important part of our future. Ponsse is very close to our customers, and we exist for our customers.
“Data is enabling transparency and we have been innovating around this area. Manager 2.0 is our solution for data for the future. It is enabling the use of data and transparency for our customers.”
A Ponsse statement added: “Today, successful forestry operations require more detailed management than ever before. Luckily, it does not have to be complicated or time-consuming.
“Modern harvesting generates plenty of data about how much machines produce, how they consume time and fuel, when might be the ideal time to maintain them, and how they should be moved around to keep the production chain going at full speed.
“By continuously gathering data from your operations, Ponsse Manager 2.0 selects the pieces that are relevant for improved efficiency and better productivity and presents them to you in a way that is easy to find, interpret, and utilise.”
The system will be available on both desktop and mobile, and is expected to be released in English in Q1 of 2024.
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