The Forest Engineering Network

Formec
Menu
FORMEC 2010 Padova

The 43rd edition of the Symposium FORMEC has been held at the University of Padua on July 11-14, 2010, hosted inside the main building (Palazzo del Bo) of one of the oldest universities in the world, established in 1222, where scientists in different fields have worked and educated hundreds of thousands of students during the centuries, providing them with technical and cultural education, remaining faithful to the university’s motto “Universas universis patavina libertas”, i.e. everybody in Padua University has his/her freedom guaranteed.
The 119 participants who have attended the Symposium came from 24 countries:

  • 87   from European Union
  • 16   from European Countries not belonging to EU
  • 10   from Asia
  • 2     from North America
  • 3     from Oceania (New Zealand)


Even if FORMEC still remains a fundamental scientific event, European based, the 43rd edition has showed a growing interest from researchers coming from other countries around the world.

A total of 93 papers have been presented (60 accepted for oral presentation and 33 for poster presentation) and they were grouped into 16 sessions according to the Symposium topics:

  • Forest biomass for bio-fuel production
  • Forest operations management
  • Forest machines and equipment
  • Forest operations ecology
  • Forest operator management and training
  • Forest resource inventory and monitoring
  • Harvesting and transportation engineering
  • Road planning and management
  • Sylviculture operations

Considering the number of papers per topic, “Forest biomass for bio-fuel production” and “Forest operations management” have had the highest interest, while the other topics have had more or less the same number of papers, a part from the “Sylviculture operations” which attracted one paper.

After the ice breaking, organized on July 11, 2010, during which the participants have had the opportunity to visit one of the jewel of the late medieval painting, the Cappella degli Scrovegni with Giotto’s frescoes, the next two days were allocated for the scientific part of the symposium. Papers and posters were presented during parallel sessions; at the end of the second day participant met together for the Symposium briefing and the closing ceremony.

During the free time guided tours were organized to offering the opportunity to visit the most historical sites of the Palazzo del Bo, e.g. the Anatomy Theatre.

VeneziaOn July 14, 2010 participants have been invited to the technical visit which took place in Venice, a town in which during the years of the Repubblica Serenissima (11th-17th century) the forestry resources were recognized of primary importance for its policy of commercial expansion. The core of the technical visit has been the Arsenale (Arsenal), the heart of the Venetian state, as the Senate defined the Arsenale at the beginning of the 16th century. At that time the Arsenale represented the largest productive plant and the greatest workers concentration in the world before the industrial age.

The scientific activities, the cultural events, the technical visit were really useful to increase confidence among the participants and build up a scientific network between the institutions they belong to.

An international, efficient cooperation has been recognized as the only way to face the environmental, social and land organization changes, which will occur with increasing frequency in the next future and which may affect the development of society.

FORMEC should represent the common platform on which, year by year, verify, adjust and strengthen the network and where promote common actions for the benefits especially of the young researchers.