His clientele consists of forestry operations, farms, municipalities, private customers, sawmills, and cogeneration plants, for which wood chips are produced and proportionally transported by truck or tractor-trailer combination. In addition, he supplies several cogeneration plants with wood chips - partly in cooperation with colleagues. For some major customers, he has to process logs into small wood at regular intervals: "Here, we can run on power - in other words, our tractor team stands on the spot and chops one log after the other directly onto a large pile for 16 to 18 h." For smaller jobs for private customers, he tries to plan day trips for the chipper team, always with the goal of minimizing unproductive road travel if possible. The chipper must be retooled to match the required chip sizes.

After introducing the company, Mathias Schneider wants to show me what he means by efficient wood chip production. While his employee sits down in the cab of the Fendt tractor and starts the engine, he gets into the truck. I drive behind the two of them in the passenger car. During the ten-minute drive, I am particularly struck by the speed of the tractor with the attached chipper: A 60 km/h sign is stuck on the back - my speedometer shows 67 km/h at the top. Obviously, Mathias Schneider appreciates the possibility of getting from A to B quickly with the tractor. "That's exactly how it is," he explains as he parks his truck at the edge of a forest next to a pile of summit and branch goods, adding, "The 60 km/h tractor suits us very well, because our truck is only allowed to drive 60 on the country road. So we arrive at our work sites at the same time. In addition, our operating radius around our company site is about 70 km. We can reach any point within this radius within a maximum of 1.5 hours with our machines and start work. I do not get paid for the time on the road. That's why I want to keep it as short as possible."

Contractors Schneider at least 2,000 h in operation, because chipping takes place almost every day. "Our industrial customers in particular are dependent on a regular supply of wood chips, as they cannot, after all, ramp up and down combined heat and power plants at will. Thus, we are well utilized throughout the year," explains the contractor, "However, 2018 was a special year for us with 2,400 h. Due to the drought in our region, the bark beetle spread massively. Significantly more wood was cut and processed than in other years," Mathias Schneider looks back. After the predecessor of the new 942 Vario had run around 10,000 h before the chipper, the replacement purchase was due this summer. "We had previously used the 939 Vario. This also ran well in front of the chipper. But the new one is even better suited to it," says Mathias Schneider, adding: "The 415 hp from the MAN engine with 9-liter displacement, coupled with the low-speed concept, are ideal for chipper use. We've already been waiting for the successor to the 900 series."

Josef Müller has been working at the Schneider contracting company for twelve years - and he has been driving the chipper team on the farm for just as long. "The decisive factor when using the chipper is the feeding with the crane. This has to run smoothly so that you can also achieve a high output in the end," he is convinced. When everything fits together perfectly, Josef Müller can produce up to 200 m³ of wood chips per hour with his team. "This works best with logs in fixed places, when the wood chips can be blown onto an open area and not chipped onto the truck. This would be full after 10 min at the latest and would then have to be changed." At his workplace, it is important to him that all controls are easily accessible and that the view of the implement is suitable: "Fendt has solved this well with the rear drive unit. The seat, including the controls and screen, can be turned within a minute. I have an optimal view of the work area and can work in a relaxed manner."