UC Spark

Mr Simon Douglas Fairbrother

School of Forestry

Fields of Research

  • Forest road engineering
  • Forest harvest planning
  • Forest engineering
  • Forest soil geotechnique

Researcher Summary

The focus of my research is the evaluation of current forest road design and construction practices and the development of improved forest road pavement design methodologies. This research involves analysis of: material properties of forest road subgrade soils; the seasonal variation of moisture content of subgrade soils and the resulting effect on bearing strength; the effectiveness of field compaction techniques; material properties of aggregates for forest road pavements and the effectiveness of different aggregate gradation curves; and, the application of international pavement design methodologies to New Zealand forest roads. The goal of this research is to produce a pavement design model that can be used by the New Zealand forest industry to improve pavement performance and cost-effectiveness.

Subject Area: Disciplines

Future Research

  • Pavement analysis
  • Forest road design
  • Forest soil engineering properties

Key Methodologies

  • Laboratory analysis of soil engineering properties
  • Design and analysis of unsealed granular pavements
  • Field analysis of forest road pavements

Affiliations

Publications


  • Fairbrother, S. (2011) Aggregate Gradation - Getting the road surface right. New Zealand Journal of Forestry 55(4): 11-12. (Journal Article)
  • Fairbrother, S. (2011) Estimating Forest Road Aggregate Strength by Measuring Fundamental Aggregate Properties. Quebec City, Canada: 34th Annual Council on Forest Engineering Meeting, 13-15 Jun 2011. (Conference Contribution - Full conference paper)
  • Fairbrother, S. (2011) Improved Pavement Design for Aggregate Surfaced Roads. Queenstown, New Zealand: 2011 Low Volume Roads Workshop, 17-19 Aug 2011. (Conference Contribution - Oral presentation)
  • Visser, R., Berkett, H., Chalmers, K. and Fairbrother, S. (2010) Biomass recovery and drying trials in New Zealand clear-cut pine plantations. Auburn, AL, USA: 33rd Annual Council on Forest Engineering Meeting, 6-9 Jun 2010. (Conference Contribution - Full conference paper)
  • Fairbrother, S., McGregor, R. and Aleksandrov, I. (2010) Development of a Correlation Equation between Clegg Impact Values and California Bearing Ratio for In-Field Strength Assessment of Forest Road Subgrades. Auburn, AL, USA: 33rd Annual Council on Forest Engineering Meeting, 6-9 Jun 2010. 7pp. (Conference Contribution - Full conference paper)
  • Visser, R., Spinelli, R., Saathof, J. and Fairbrother, S. (2009) Finding the 'Sweet-Spot' of Mechanised Felling Machines. Kings Beach, CA, USA: 32nd Annual Meeting of the Council on Forest Engineering (COFE 09), 15-18 Jun 2009. 10pp. (Conference Contribution - Full conference paper)
  • Fairbrother, S., Visser, R. and McGregor, R. (2009) Forest Road Pavement Design in New Zealand. Kins Beach, CA, USA: 32nd Annual Meeting of the Council on Forest Engineering (COFE 09), 15-18 Jun 2009. 8pp. (Conference Contribution - Full conference paper)