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Log Grader/Scaler

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AVG. SALARY

$44,370

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EDUCATION

High school preferred +

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JOB OUTLOOK

Stable

Interviews

Insider Info

Fred Huntress is a log scaler who cares about the forest. He works in the woods in Maine all day long among black pines, red pines, jack pines and whites.

But Huntress is in an industry that cuts down trees. He is quite aware of the irony of his life, but also knows that log scalers help to preserve and limit the amount of forest that's harvested.

Huntress and his colleagues help loggers who are committed to a new type of logging called selective harvesting. Selective harvesting is the opposite of -- if not exactly the antidote to -- clear-cutting. Only select trees come down: genetically inferior as well as older trees that are more susceptible to disease are harvested, allowing more space for new saplings and genetically superior trees.

"Selective harvesting increases the sustainability of the forest. Various criteria determine timber selection and damage to wildlife and habitat is avoided," says Huntress.

Because there is less total lumber being harvested, the log scaler must be that much better at identifying and grading the most valuable timber. Selective harvesting is envisioned as a tool to increase the sustainability of the forest. It works with the natural life cycle of trees, improves their gene pool and minimizes the disruption to wildlife and watersheds. It's seen as more environmentally sound, as well as more potentially profitable over time.

Van Scoffield, vice-president of a professional foresters' association, explains how lumber is graded. "It depends how free of knots the log is, how straight the grain is, how tight the grain is and how large the diameter of the log is. The fewer the knots, the higher the grade; the straighter the grain, the better; the tighter the grain, the better; and the larger the diameter, the better."

Needless to say, being able to identify these components of lumber requires special training and a great deal of experience. It's this experience that makes log scalers so sought after. Some feel the knowledge only comes from being on the job, and that schooling is only a small part of the training. This is the case for Fred LeVering, a scaling manager.

"Accurately judging the value of a log before it's sawn into lumber is a skill that's acquired only through experience. The ability to recognize defects in a log is a skill both loggers and woodlot owners rely on you for. And they'll pay you good money for this skill because the value of a hardwood log is how they earn their living."

The job also requires a love for challenges, some instability and constant change. You have to be flexible and need to be good at managing your own finances.

"The current market conditions are unstable," says LeVering. "They vary from one area of the country to the other. They vary with the species and grade, and have to be assessed at the beginning of each job according to where it's located at and what the local market conditions are at the time."

The retail market basically establishes the raw material prices. In turn, this determines how much the log scaler makes. "If the mills are selling all they make, they up the retail price and pay a little more for logs until the market slows down and the process works in reverse."

To be a successful scaler, you have to be hardy. Besides working in fluctuating price markets and at the whim of economic trends, log scalers find themselves at the mercy of the weather as well. This means that if the weather is bad enough, entire logging operations can be shut down for months on end. To cope with such events, many obtain training or develop skills in surveying or lumber buying.

"The key is to be really flexible," says LeVering. "You never know what's going to happen from year to year. And, once an area has been harvested, it's time to move to another area. That is the fun part about the job. You never know exactly where you are going to be next. It keeps things exciting."