About AB Karl Hedin
AB Karl Hedin is one of Sweden’s leading timber companies, with sawmills, builders’ merchants, and value-added processing. The company has a strong tradition in the forest and wood industries and, since the summer of 2025, has been part of the Småland-based Vida Group. In Krylbo, ABKH operates a modern sawmill at the forefront of combining industrial experience with new technology.
The challenge: Log measurement became a bottleneck
In the sawmill industry, individual log measurement has long been standard – each log is measured using X-ray and metal detection. It’s precise, but also time-consuming and space-demanding. For Johan Sundin and the team in Krylbo, this eventually became a bottleneck: the measurement station could no longer keep up with the mill’s capacity.
”We needed to find a way to measure that matched our production pace, otherwise we risked losing both time and efficiency.”
– Johan Sundin, ABKH
At the same time, it was important to maintain accurate handling and sorting of the logs. The previous solution required large yard areas and external staffing, whereas stack measurement with GPV makes it possible to plan more flexibly, use in-house personnel, and reduce the administrative workload around log measurement without compromising on accuracy or quality.
The solution: Stack measurement with GPV
ABKH became one of the first companies in Sweden to switch from individual log measurement to stack measurement – a methodological shift that was considered unusual at the time. In collaboration with Mabema, a GPV installation was commissioned in spring 2021, and by August that year the system was in full operation.
Since then, more than 43,000 trucks and 1.9 million m³ solid under bark (FUB) have been measured through the facility.
The benefits have been clear:
- Higher capacity – measurement keeps pace with production.
- Logistics gains – stacks can be piled high instead of spread out.
- Cost savings – in-house staff can handle sorting, reducing the need for on-site external services.
- Accuracy – modern stack measurement offers strong precision, especially for sawlogs where bark during the bark-shedding season can otherwise distort results.
Collaboration with Mabema
For Johan Sundin, the collaboration with Mabema has been decisive:
”It’s a perfect system and a perfect supplier. Mabema sticks to the plan, delivers on time, stays on budget – and exceeds expectations on functionality and availability.”
He also highlights the importance of Mabema’s service agreement, which ensures ongoing updates, support, and annual visits.
A role model for the industry
By daring to lead, ABKH has inspired many others. Johan and the team in Krylbo have hosted countless study visits, and their facility is often cited as an example of how stack measurement can help advance the entire industry.
“We’re happy that so many come here to see how we work – and proud to show that stack measurement really works in practice.”
Next step: Full automation
Like Mabema, ABKH looks forward to the next stage of development – ultimately achieving full automation, where the entire measurement process can run without manual checks and the costs of traditional measurement can be eliminated.