A method for processing a length of material utilising a timber-working head. The method includes the steps of: receiving, at a processor, a signal indicating manual designation of a point along the length of material as a first end point； receiving, at the processor, a signal from at least one distance measuring device associated with a timber-working head, the signal indicating the distance between the first end point on the length of material and a second end point on the length of material； and determining, at the processor, the actual length of material to be processed using the signal from the distance measuring device.
