QUICK FACTS
Using PV-WAVE, Weyerhaeuser is able to visualize the impact of cuts in the forest before they are made. By interacting with three-dimensional surfaces created in PV-WAVE, analysts are able to manage the existing forest while maintaining an area that will be acceptable to the public.

THE PROBLEM
The preservation of the world's resources has become an issue of vital importance in our society. The paradox of increased demand for products and the growing movement to preserve the Earth's riches is, perhaps, felt strongest in the forest products industry.

State and federal agencies, responding to calls for more stringent control on natural resources, are implementing stricter regulations for the harvest of trees within public forestlands. These regulations include time limitations on cuts planned adjacent to previously cut areas, (called "green ups"), replanting rules and a host of regulations requiring certain bands or clumps of trees to be left standing because of wildlife or environmental concerns.

THE SOLUTION
Using PV-WAVE, Visual Numerics' visual data analysis (VDA) software, Weyerhaeuser, an international forest products company based in Washington state, is developing a system to help the company comply with these expanding rules.

Foresters have long been faced with the problem of planning cuts that best manage the existing forest but are also aesthetically acceptable to the public. Until now, Weyerhaeuser had relied primarily on a system developed in-house called FIRS, a geographic information system (GIS) consisting of a series of overlaid maps. A single overlay contains a set of attributes. The "stand" overlay, for instance, tracks numerous tree characteristics such as tree age, height and diameter, while the regeneration overlay tracks young trees on their way to becoming a stand. By intersecting the polygons on different overlays, discrete parcels or tracts of land can be tracked according to their specific characteristics. These parameters are then overlaid on top of each other to evaluate attributes of a particular quadrant of trees.

Becky Wiggins, senior systems analyst at Weyerhaeuser, is developing an interactive visualization package to supplement the current system by displaying FIRS data over discrete parcels of terrain. Planners will purchase government terrain data and load them into PV-WAVE, which will generate a three-dimensional surface. Weyerhaeuser's in-house GIS data (for example the stand overlay mentioned earlier) will be draped over the terrain data and adjusted interactively as clear cuts are made. In the case of the stand overlay, the average tree elevation is not readily definable because all trees have different heights. Consequently, the treetops within a parcel are visualized as a nonuniform three-dimensional surface, with a hole representing a clear cut that affects the average height of a stand.

"Essentially, what we are trying to find out when minimizing the visual impact of cuts," Wiggins said, "is what it will look like if you're standing on I-90," the major interstate running through the heart of Washington's timber country. Wiggins' "what if" scenario will take advantage of PV-WAVE's interactive capabilities, allowing her to visualize the impact of cuts before they are made. "Visualization," Wiggins commented, "is fast becoming necessary because it helps people understand data better. It's not just flashy graphics."

Foresters North of the U.S. border are also prompting the need for visualization. Canadian foresters are already more heavily regulated than their American counterparts, necessitating the use of visualization technology sooner than is currently required in the U.S. "They are required to generate maps and three-dimensional terrain plots demonstrating the consequences of clear cuts, so they have been forced to use the technology that is out there," Wiggins said. When the PV-WAVE system is developed, Weyerhaeuser Canada will be able to do in-house what they currently must get from outside contractors, thus making the operation more efficient. "Although we, in the U.S., are not required to go this far yet," said Wiggins, "Weyerhaeuser is trying to work with the public."

RETURN ON INVESTMENT
PV-WAVE's VDA capabilities, such as draping and adjusting forest cover parameters on a three-dimensional mesh surface, are especially suited to Wiggins' needs. Of its features, Wiggins likes PV-WAVE's programming interface best. "What I like best about the software," Wiggins added, "is the fact that I can get results right away without having to learn a lot of programming. I can build my own custom applications."

This customizing will have a direct effect on future uses of PV-WAVE. Wiggins hopes to standardize certain plotting formats and package menus in macro-type applications to make the package easier for foresters who are not programmers to use. Customizing the PV-WAVE interface will let Wiggins take better advantage of the FIRS environment, which is evolving to include menu-driven interfaces and extensive graphics.

Wiggins also hopes to broaden the scope of Weyerhaeuser's resource management and planning. The company will be able to display wildlife habitats and range and chart drainage runoff in addition to planning road building in the same way it will now plan clear cuts. Parameters will be fed into the software and combined with forest cover characteristics to give the people at Weyerhaeuser a more comprehensive view of what resources are available and how forestry activities affect them. "What we will be doing," said Wiggins "would not be possible without this software."

WORLD CLASS PRODUCTS, SERVICES, AND SUPPORT
Visual Numerics has provided technical software solutions for numerical analysis and visualization for over 30 years. The company's software products help users understand complex data from a variety of sources and build business-critical applications. Visual Numerics offers two product lines: the IMSL® Numerical Libraries for powerful mathematical and statistical analysis and the PV-WAVE® visual data analysis development environment. Visual Numerics also offers customized consulting services for applications that involve mathematical, statistical, or visual data analysis to meet today’s business analytical needs.