Women in Forestry from Northland, Tairawhiti, Central North Island, Canterbury and Nelson/Tasman came together in Nelson 26-28 August, to connect, learn and see firsthand how forest owners and contractors are innovatively working together following Tasman windblow events.
In July 2025, a severe storm knocked down about 5,800 hectares of trees in the Tasman region, then a second storm in October 2025 saw another 1,681 hectares fall.
As with all windthrow events, from an economic perspective, it’s a race against the clock as the effects of seasoning / weathering and insects can impact wood quality, the longer the wood is on the ground.
Hosted by locals Nathan Taylor and Tracey Myers (MCH / Mechanised Cable Harvesting) and Nigel Kelly and Kellie Hahn (Kelly Logging), the Women in Forestry group visited MCH at their site outside Wakefield, in a forest managed by OneFortyOne.
OneFortyOne’s Sales and Operations Manager Sam Nuske talked about how the need to be proactive and harvest the windthrow logs relatively quickly has seen the number of contractors working in their forest go from 12 to 30.
At the same time, a silver lining of the situation has been the collaboration and out of the box thinking that has happened as a result. Contractors like MCH have been working together and with the forest owner to innovate and create solutions.
This has seen health & safety and administrative processes being streamlined, reducing repetition and stripping out irrelevant or unnecessary paperwork. The forest owner has maximised their entire supply chain, making gains with truck uplift rates and improving efficiency at the port.
This all results in more wood being harvested faster and more efficiently, while maintaining quality and safety standards. Key learnings can be applied elsewhere, whether for windthrow or just general productivity.
All from contracting businesses themselves, members of the Women in Forestry group asked Nathan a range of questions about average machine repair and maintenance costs, servicing options, fuel consumption, and the pros and cons of various equipment.
“It was actually really good to have the women onsite, and they asked me some interesting questions about our set up and systems that are different to what the guys might focus on. It’s valuable to have their perspective and see things from their angle, and it’s cool that they showed interest and made the effort to come out.”
Nathan’s extra-large Duxson Donaldson bunching grapple and his 30.2 remote-controlled T-Winch with stabilising blade both got particular attention from the women.
Duxson Donaldson’s Office Manager Jo Donaldson was part of the Women in Forestry contingent, but Nathan says he only has good things to say about their gear, regardless of whether Jo was there or not.
“We use Duxson Donaldson attachments, and the quality of their product is just such a game changer for us,” says Nathan.
“I wouldn’t want to use anything else to be honest, and they’re awesome to deal with as well.”
In addition to the site visit, the women made the most of a round table discussion sharing ideas and talking through various challenges and wins they’ve had in businesses.
Some of the topics covered included an overview of the CarePass Pilot Programme, some accounting tips about shareholder current accounts, team wellbeing initiatives at FAST Harvesting and their utilisation of a wellbeing resource offered through their forest manager Manulife.
Harriet McCormick from McCormick Logging said that Women in Forestry is the highlight of her forestry industry event calendar.
Sarah Wilson from Mahuta Logging said she values the opportunity to be apart of Women in Forestry.
“It’s just really good to get together with a bunch of women who get it. We can talk about the challenges of running a logging business, share what’s working and what isn’t, learn something valuable and have a good laugh,” she says.
“There’s a really good mix of support, honesty and friendship, and you always come away feeling a bit more positive.”
See more at www.womeninforestry.co.nz
