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Einari Vidgren Foundation rewarded forestry professionals
The Einari Vidgren Foundation rewarded merited forestry professionals for the 19th time at the award ceremony held in Rientola in Vieremä. The awards totalled EUR 180,000. The Einari Award, the Einari Vidgren Foundation’s key recognition, was granted to Roger Lejeune, whose harvesting company CC BOIS has been in operation for more than 30 years. In addition, recognitions were given in four different categories: lifetime achievement, special recognition, operators and students.
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The Einari Award
Roger Lejeune started as a forest machine contractor in Belgium more than 30 years ago. He was able to use his extensive experience and knowledge of the forest industry in Europe: wood procurement, harvesting, transport, sales and use, as well as differences in wood trade and measurements between different countries.
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At the end of 1989, a storm ravaged forests in the operating area of Lejeune’s company, and he hired Finnish and Swedish companies to harvest windthrows. Finnish and Swedish operators and harvesters made a big impression, and Lejeune bought his first harvester at the time. This marked the company’s first step to modernise harvesting operations in line with Scandinavian standards.
The efficiency of the cut-to-length method and mechanised harvesting impressed Lejeune. Still, he also had to convince local forest companies. Lejeune and one of his partners bought a piece of woodland to host a demonstration. They showed that machines do not damage forests when a professional operator is at the controls.
Eco-friendliness, high-quality work, and accurate dimensions and quantities have always been the strengths of Lejenue’s company. Lejeune focuses on metrics and data to keep a close eye on costs and quantities.
Lifetime Achievement Awards
Lifetime achievement awards were given to two veteran contractors who share the passion for the forest machine industry, still decades after their long careers. The high quality of work and staying outdoors have been an innate part of both of their lives, starting already from their earliest logging sites. Lifetime achievement awards were given to Tapio Lahikainen and Ari Siltala.
Tapio Lahikainen must have a magic touch. The quiet and modest forest machine contractor has been an idol for many younger ones looking for a career. Many small boys have watched Tapio working in forests, many of whom have ended up as contractors in the forest industry.
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Tapio Lahikainen has been in his dream job for more than 60 years and still continues to operate a forest tractor today. “I was already thinking about quitting, but when my daughter’s son Aleksi started in this business, I decided to keep going,” Tapio says.
Lahikainen started his own business in 1962. His career spans so many decades that tall trees are already growing at his first final felling sites. Now he can return to the same sites to harvest new trees. He is also grateful for never having had to work alone. He has worked with his family and with his family’s help. “You can’t do this on your own; you need the support of your family.”
His wife Lahja was the strongest supporter of the company from its earliest days. Tapio was able to focus on forest work, while Lahja took care of their home and the company’s finances. She packed a healthy lunch for Tapio and even helped in machine repairs. Tapio is grateful for the lifetime achievement award and would like to dedicate it his wife Lahja who passed away last autumn. Forests have given Tapio comfort in sorrow. Forests have room for all emotions.
Ari Siltala, whose career in the forest sector spans 50 years, says that while there are now more assortments and nature values have become a hotter topic, wood is still produced as before, taking nature values into account. “Nature is important, nothing gets damaged on purpose. That’s always been the principle, and that’s why I’ve been in this industry for so long,” Siltala says.
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Siltala started working in forests in the 1970s, helping his father like farm boys used to do at the time. The first harvester came in 1989, and at best, the company employed seven men. Back then, the company had two harvesters and one forwarder. Currently, Siltala is operating his 14th forest machine for a forest management association.
Originally, Siltala was supposed to become a farmer. His home farm had 25 cows, and it seemed that they were enough to earn a living. Siltala had an accident in his twenties, breaking his left hip, and also changing his aspirations to become a forest machine contractor instead of a farmer.
“I’ve worked in forests for 50 years now, and that’s the only place I want to be for as long as I can stay healthy. I’ve never been tired of going to work,” Siltala says. Siltala still enjoys harvesting. Being successful is not easy. Siltala has a Siltala has a word of advice for everyone dreaming of a forest machine career: “If the forest industry is your thing, you need to cut the log to earn a living.”
Special Recognition Awards
The foundation issues annual special recognition awards to people involved in mechanised harvesting research and development, industry education development, and those who have increased awareness of and recognition for the industry. This year, awards were given to nine recipients, one of which was 4H in Finland, forest detectives’ day for children.
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Picture: Marjaana Malkamäki
The forest detectives’ day is organised by 4H in Finland to strengthen the forest relationship of preschool children and 1st and 2nd graders. The narrative 2.5‑hour event supports education and can be held in forests near schools. The progress of the event is guided by an instructor trained by the 4H Federation.
The goal is to give children the courage to move around in forests, encourage them to learn something new and increase their understanding of different meanings of forests.
“We want to support these perspectives to lay a solid foundation for children, on top of which they can build and strengthen their forest relationship later in life,” says Sampo Juhajoki, Development Manager at 4H in Finland.
The forest detectives’ day was developed and tested in 2022 and 2023. The 4H Federation had already previously held forest detectives’ clubs for children, based on which this model of a one-day forest trip has been developed for schools.
This year, these events have already been held in 38 locations for 48 groups of schoolchildren, with some 1,300 children having already participated. More events will be held at different schools later this autumn.
GLobal CTL — Huequecura, Chile
“Regarding the promotion of the international cut-to-length, the foundation wanted to reward the Chilean company Huequecura, which has done very systematic and high-quality wood harvesting in Chile. It’s important to notice how Nordic cut-to-length method is progressing in the world,” says Juha Vidgren.
Einari Operator Awards
The award criteria for operator awards include customer-driven, high-quality work, an unrelenting attitude when it comes to the quality of work, and good cooperation and communication with forest owners and other stakeholders. Einari had a clear idea for the award criteria: those operators whose quality of work is high and have a good attitude with good customer service skills have earned their awards. This year, the Einari Vidgren Foundation gave 41 Einari operator awards for high-quality work.
Read more about the award recipients and the Einari Vidgren Foundation at https://www.evsaatio.fi/
Press release: https://www.evsaatio.fi/uutiset/einari-vidgrn-sti-palkitsi-metsalan-osaajianbspnbspnbsp