Forest Products Industry

John Deere has developed a new digital tool designed to enhance how equipment owners use, maintain, diagnose, repair, and protect their equipment. Operations Center PRO Service delivers new, industry-leading support capabilities for both connected and non-connected machines across John Deere’s agriculture, turf, construction, and forestry equipment portfolio. Source: Timberbiz New and enhanced features include the ability to install software when replacing electronic components or controllers, also known as reprogramming. Operations Center PRO Service was developed with customers at the centre and adds to the suite of existing digital support tools available to John Deere equipment owners today including the John Deere Operations Center, Equipment Mobile, and Shop.Deere.com these provide customers even more control over how they use, maintain, diagnose, repair, and protect their machines. The increased functionality of Operations Center PRO Service also replaces John Deere Customer Service ADVISOR™, which will be phased out over the next year. “The launch of Operations Center PRO Service is a significant milestone that adds to John Deere’s existing tools, and it reaffirms our longstanding commitment to empowering customers to choose how they repair their equipment,” said Denver Caldwell, Vice President of Aftermarket & Customer Support. “Importantly, our development of these tools reaffirms John Deere’s support of customer self-repair. We view continuously enhancing self-repair as consistent with our mission to ensure John Deere customers have the best machine ownership experience possible.” In addition to equipment owners, a local service provider can also use Operations Center PRO Service. With a John Deere equipment owner’s permission, independent providers can gain access to diagnostic and repair information to support the equipment owner’s needs. “Our message to our customers is clear,” continued Caldwell. “Whether you want the support of your professionally trained and trusted John Deere dealer, to work with another local service provider, or to fix your machine yourself, we’ve created additional capabilities for you to choose the option that best fits your needs.” Operations Center PRO Service is based on foundational capabilities that are available at no additional cost upon purchase of John Deere equipment through Operations Center Service Overview and Equipment Mobile, including: Operator’s manuals Active and stored diagnostic trouble codes Secure software updates JDLink™ information Warranty information. The new Operations Center PRO Service delivers digital repair content filtered by year and model number, providing users with additional relevant machine information to help efficiently and accurately troubleshoot, diagnose, and repair their equipment. It’s designed to be intuitive and deliver actionable support in real-time. The service capabilities of Operations Center PRO Service are available through an annual license starting at just $195 USD per machine for customers. Specific features now brought together in a single customer interface include: Machine health insights and diagnostic trouble codes PIN-specific machine content, including manuals Software reprogramming for John Deere controllers Diagnostic Readings Diagnostic Recordings Interactive diagnostic tests Calibrations. Equipment owners can access Operations Center PRO Service through the John Deere Operations Center. Once connected to the platform, owners will add their equipment into their account using the machine’s serial number. Use of an electronic data link may be required for more advanced features within Operations Center PRO Service, including software reprogramming. Certain interactive tests, calibrations, and reprogramming limitations will exist at initial release. John Deere will deliver additional capabilities in future updates. Operations Center PRO Service is available only to John Deere customers in the US and Canada.  

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The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection has announced a US$5 million investment in eight projects aimed at creating jobs, training the next generation of forestry workers, and helping small businesses play a greater role in protecting forests and communities from wildfires. Source: Bioenergy News The funding comes through CAL FIRE’s Business and Workforce Development Grant programme, which supports innovative approaches to reducing wildfire risk while promoting economic growth in rural areas. Since its launch in 2022, the programme has distributed over US$100 million to more than 100 projects across the state. “From hands-on training opportunities for young adults to new mass timber production within California, these initiatives are helping to build a more resilient future for both our forests and communities,” said Assistant Chief John McCarthy of CAL FIRE’s Wood Products and Bioenergy Team. “We are proud to support efforts that expand the workforce, improve forest health, and make use of woody waste instead of burning it.” The latest round of grants will fund a variety of initiatives, including job training programmes for youth and entry-level forestry workers, mentorship schemes connecting college forestry students with experienced professionals, and web-based courses to prepare candidates for the state’s Registered Professional Forester exam. High school students will continue to gain hands-on experience in forest science and management through long-running educational programs. The grants also provide business expansion support for companies to purchase equipment to treat more land for wildfire risk reduction and forest restoration. In Humboldt County, investment in mass timber production will create new jobs while encouraging the local use of sustainably harvested wood in construction. Altogether, the projects are expected to train more than 300 individuals, create or retain dozens of jobs, and expand the capacity to manage thousands of acres each year. These investments are in line with California’s Wildfire and Forest Resilience Action Plan, which sets out strategies to improve forest health, protect communities, and deliver climate benefits through sustainable forestry practices. Funding comes from California Climate Investments and General Funds, helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while strengthening the forestry sector.

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