A German consortium developed the HSM Project Outreach, a four-wheeled logging vehicle with a 65-foot boom designed to replace manual timber harvesting work. The machine cuts trees up to 17.7 inches in diameter using a felling unit mounted at the end of its arm. Operators control the vehicle from an enclosed cabin with multiple camera feeds showing the work area.
The HSM 405H4 8WD weighs nearly 40 metric tons and is powered by a 7.7-liter Volvo diesel inline-six engine producing 340 horsepower and 1,003 lb-ft of torque. Power goes to all eight wheels through a hydrostatic transmission with a two-speed transfer case and portal axles. The boom weighs more than 8,800 pounds, and the cutting head weighs approximately 1,875 pounds.
During testing in the Altdorfer Wald forest district near Ravensburg, the machine successfully felled several dozen spruce and beech trees. The consortium encountered a bent saw blade and limited stability at full boom extension. The consortium notes that stability can be improved by using bog tracks or inflating the tires with water. After cutting, the operator uses a winch-mounted rotator to pull trees from the stump and drag them for processing by following machines. The consortium reports the machine is still in development but working well overall.