Logging Equipment Operators

• Summary

• Details

Work Activities

• Fill out required job or shift report forms.
• 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.
• Control hydraulic tractors equipped with tree clamps and booms to lift, swing, and bunch sheared trees.
• Drive tractors for building or repairing logging and skid roads.
• Inspect equipment for safety prior to use, and perform necessary basic maintenance tasks.
• Grade logs according to characteristics such as knot size and straightness, and according to established industry or company standards.
• Inspect equipment for safety prior to use, and perform necessary basic maintenance tasks.
• Drive crawler or wheeled tractors to drag or transport logs from felling sites to log landing areas for processing and loading.
• 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 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.

Skills

• Active Listening
  • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
• Complex Problem Solving
  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
• Active Learning
  • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
• Service Orientation
  • Looking for ways to help people.
• Negotiation
  • Bringing people together to solve differences.
• Repairing
  • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
• Systems Evaluation
  • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
• Troubleshooting
  • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
• Monitoring
  • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
• Technology Design
  • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
• Operations Monitoring
  • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
• Operation and Control
  • Using equipment or systems.
• Writing
  • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
• Speaking
  • Talking to others.
• Management of Financial Resources
  • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
• Management of Material Resources
  • Managing equipment and materials.
• Mathematics
  • Using math to solve problems.
• Time Management
  • Managing your time and the time of other people.
• Coordination
  • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
• Instructing
  • Teaching people how to do something.
• Reading Comprehension
  • Reading work-related information.
• Science
  • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
• Installation
  • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
• Operations Analysis
  • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
• Equipment Selection
  • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
• Systems Analysis
  • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
• Social Perceptiveness
  • Understanding people's reactions.
• Judgment and Decision Making
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
• Learning Strategies
  • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
• Quality Control Analysis
  • Testing how well a product or service works.
• Management of Personnel Resources
  • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
• Equipment Maintenance
  • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
• Critical Thinking
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
• Persuasion
  • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
• Programming
  • Writing computer programs.

Abilities

• Explosive Strength
  • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
• Peripheral Vision
  • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
• Fluency of Ideas
  • Coming up with lots of ideas.
• Arm-Hand Steadiness
  • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
• Rate Control
  • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
• Information Ordering
  • Ordering or arranging things.
• Visualization
  • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
• Speech Clarity
  • Speaking clearly.
• Static Strength
  • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
• Deductive Reasoning
  • Using rules to solve problems.
• Flexibility of Closure
  • Seeing hidden patterns.
• Speech Recognition
  • Recognizing spoken words.
• Auditory Attention
  • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
• Problem Sensitivity
  • Noticing when problems happen.
• Written Comprehension
  • Reading and understanding what is written.
• Dynamic Flexibility
  • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Speed of Limb Movement
  • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
• Dynamic Strength
  • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
• Stamina
  • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
• Control Precision
  • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
• Glare Sensitivity
  • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
• Night Vision
  • Seeing at night or under low light.
• Reaction Time
  • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
• Wrist-Finger Speed
  • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
• Memorization
  • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
• Category Flexibility
  • Grouping things in different ways.
• Trunk Strength
  • Using your lower back and stomach.
• Visual Color Discrimination
  • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
• Selective Attention
  • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
• Sound Localization
  • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
• Response Orientation
  • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
• Inductive Reasoning
  • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
• Oral Comprehension
  • Listening and understanding what people say.
• Spatial Orientation
  • Knowing where things are around you.
• Finger Dexterity
  • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
• Speed of Closure
  • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
• Extent Flexibility
  • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Depth Perception
  • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
• Mathematical Reasoning
  • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
• Number Facility
  • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
• Originality
  • Creating new and original ideas.
• Gross Body Coordination
  • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
• Manual Dexterity
  • Holding or moving items with your hands.
• Time Sharing
  • Doing two or more things at the same time.
• Oral Expression
  • Communicating by speaking.
• Perceptual Speed
  • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
• Gross Body Equilibrium
  • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
• Near Vision
  • Seeing details up close.
• Multilimb Coordination
  • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
• Written Expression
  • Communicating by writing.
• Hearing Sensitivity
  • Telling the difference between sounds.
• Far Vision
  • Seeing details that are far away.

Knowledge

• Philosophy and Theology
  • Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
• Economics and Accounting
  • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• Design
  • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• Public Safety and Security
  • Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
• Engineering and Technology
  • Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Computers and Electronics
  • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Therapy and Counseling
  • Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
• Chemistry
  • Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• Administration and Management
  • Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Administrative
  • Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
• Mechanical
  • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Law and Government
  • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• History and Archeology
  • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
• Transportation
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
• Physics
  • Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
• Building and Construction
  • Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
• Mathematics
  • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Psychology
  • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• Customer and Personal Service
  • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Personnel and Human Resources
  • Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
• Geography
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
• English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Fine Arts
  • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• Food Production
  • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Medicine and Dentistry
  • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• Education and Training
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Production and Processing
  • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• Telecommunications
  • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
• Biology
  • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Sales and Marketing
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
• Sociology and Anthropology
  • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
• Foreign Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
• Communications and Media
  • Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

Education

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

1 to 12 months on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

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Education and Training Opportunities

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Pay

Washington Annual Salary

74400/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

35.77/hr

Washington Employment Trends

Currently Employed

2,830

Yearly Projected Openings

380

Personality

Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:

• Dependability
• Initiative
• Self Control
• Adaptability/Flexibility
• Cooperation
• Independence

Tools

• Articulating boom lift
• Cargo trucks
• Chain saw
• Claw hammer
• Conventional truck cranes
• Desktop computers
• Flatbed trailers
• Forestry saws
• Forestry skidders
• Grapples
• Hoes
• Lumbering equipment
• Measuring tapes
• Pocket knives
• Safety glasses
• Scarifiers
• Stackers
• Tablet computers
• Tire pressure gauge
• Treedozers
• Two way radios
• Winches

Technology

• Data base user interface and query software
• Electronic mail software
• Enterprise resource planning ERP software
• Human resources software
• Inventory management software
• Office suite software
• Spreadsheet software
• Word processing software