Based in Perthshire, Cluan Forestry is a small forestry business contracting on commercial forest plantations and estate woodlands, predominantly dealing in thinnings.
Using purpose-built thinning machinery from John Deere and Komatsu. Designed for manoeuvrability, the narrow-profile machines move efficiently through the forest, reducing disturbance to tree roots, standing timber, and sensitive ground — while still delivering strong productivity on lighter and smaller clear-fell sites.
Harvesting, at the core of the operation is the John Deere 1170E, a six wheeled harvester, fitted with the AFM 55 harvesting head. Capable of felling and processing stems up to 450 mm, the AFM 55 delivers power, control, and accuracy across first thinnings, later thinnings, and clear-fell operations. Its high-capacity design, excellent holding geometry for larger timber, and proven feed and delimbing system ensure consistent, clean processing and reliable output.
Forwarding is carried out with the Komatsu 845, made for thinning and light final felling, with focus on agility, the compact but powerful forwarder adapts well to different conditions and ensures long-term productivity.
The forwarder has a 12-tonne load capacity, an extra long rear frame for double loads, for example two bays of 3mtr, the crane has a 10 mtr reach making it ideal in thinnings.
Brush cutter, thick brush clearing, and dense understory, sapling removal, felling small trees and re generation up to 50mm (2 inches) diameter.
Hand cutting: re spacing, brashing, felling, inspection racks, small areas of clear fell, thinnings
Excavator, an 18-ton excavator equipped with a range of attachments able to handle various aspects of forestry and land management:
- Powerful Grab with Rotator: Capable of handling brash, timber, and whole trees. The grab opens up to 1800mm and has a fixed rotator for precise, efficient movement.
- Brash Rake: Ideal for sorting brash, raking roots, and restoring disturbed ground, ensuring the site is left tidy and ready for the next stage.
- Buckets: Various buckets are available for digging, grading, and site rectification.
- Ripper Tooth: heavy duty ripper tooth for removing large stumps and roots.
- Mulching, excavator mounted, ideal for brash, site clearance, the fixed carbide teeth are built to aggressively grind down standing trees, heavy wood debris, and clearing stems up to 25 cm (10 inches) in diameter.
- Mulching, tractor mounted, the INO FORST 360 is ideal for clearing scrub, understory & stems up to 25 cm in diameter, with the use of wolfram carbide 360 swinging hammers, the mulcher has a working width of 2.25 mtr.
- Remote operated, walk behind tracked mulcher is wirelessly operated and excellent for challenging terrain & steep slopes up to 55°, this mulcher has excellent capability whilst keeping the operator at a safe distance.
Whether carrying out selective thinning, windblown timber recovery, clear-felling, hand cutting or excavator work, Cluan Forestry delivers a dependable, efficient service built on experience, planning, and care for the land. Every operation is carried out with a clear focus on safety, productivity, and environmental responsibility — protecting the value of the crop today while safeguarding the woodland for the future.
