Digital Forest: Russian Technology to Transform the Future of Forestry
Russia’s forestry sector, long seen as conservative, is on the verge of a digital revolution. Roslesinforg, the country’s leading forest inventory organization, together with the Perm Pulp and Paper Company, plans to scale an innovative technology called LesProfi nationwide. This solution aims to automate forest inventory—the key process of assessing timber resources—by moving it into the digital domain.
A Digital Twin for Every Tree
Developed by specialists at the Perm Pulp and Paper Company (PPPC), the technology creates a highly accurate digital twin of the forest. LesProfi analyzes data from drones equipped with LiDAR scanning systems.
A single drone flight can scan up to 250 hectares, or as much as 1,500 hectares in a day. The data undergoes complex processing to produce a detailed 3D model. The digital twin accounts for each tree’s coordinates, height, diameter, species, crown area, and even timber reserves, achieving 95% accuracy.
The system has already been tested successfully, covering 80% of PPPC’s cutting sites. Pilot runs produced striking results: the actual timber volume in surveyed areas consistently proved 10–21% higher than traditional inventories indicated. This is not just a margin of error—it represents millions of cubic meters of unaccounted, and thus lost, economic potential.
A Modern Russian Forest
The next step will be a joint trial by Roslesinforg and PPPC on one or two plots, culminating in an extended economic assessment that will determine the technology’s future.
If its profitability is confirmed, the proposal for nationwide adoption could reach the Russian government. This initiative aligns directly with presidential directives to expand forest management efforts and deploy modern technologies, including computer vision, AI, and drones.
Last year alone, Russia’s forestry service received about 1,200 drones. By 2030, regions are expected to deploy more than 5,100 UAVs. These drones are already proving effective in forest protection, tackling wildfires and illegal logging.
A unified system represents a step toward more sustainable and transparent forest management—essential for ecological security and preservation of natural resources. For the state, this means optimizing a massive resource base, strengthening both economic and environmental security, and accelerating digitalization of one of its most critical industries.
A Window into the Future
The prospects for the technology are highly compelling. While LiDAR scanning at scale has traditionally been expensive and state agencies still lack mature AI solutions, LesProfi offers a proven and cost-effective alternative.
Scaling it nationwide could not only modernize forestry but also catalyze the development of Russian IT and digital infrastructure. LesProfi is more than an inventory tool—it is a window into a future where Russia’s forests become transparent, manageable, and maximally valuable resources.
