Robust, accurate, flexible, and connected fluid control solutions play a key role when it comes to supporting innovative approaches required for a successful food producing future.
Customer Pain Point
A Singapore-based Agri-Tech company is at the forefront of unearthing answers to continued food security issues and effective and sustainable crop production. And its unique genome and precision agriculture platform is effectively cultivating, growing, and distributing produce such as climate resilient strawberries under controlled conditions.
IMI Solution
IMI has collaborated with this customer to help it realise operational efficiencies such as significant energy savings and partner and drive sustainable operations that optimise the use of precious resources such as water and power.
As a result of our innovative control technology, visualisation tools and system connectivity that oversees the irrigation, lighting, and ventilation functions, Singrow is benefitting from a substantial 40% reduction in energy savings.
IMI's control technologies include digital multimedia valve technology, intelligent temperature, and light intensity sensors, as well as data acquisition. The solutions provide Singrow with visualisation and connected system control management, and informed feedback, so critical processes such as energy use and water consumption are continually monitored, controlled, and resources optimised within the growing chambers.
IMI Buschjost process valves are used to start and stop the irrigation pump as part of the watering and nutrient delivery process. As Singrow’s strawberry crops need constant access to water and nutrients, the accurate and reliable valve control ensures only the specified volume of water and nutrients is supplied and its provision is automated for use at specific times across a 24-hour period.
With light needed to encourage and support crop growth, the control system also automates the delivery of light into the growing areas and ensures the light source is switched off when not required.
Ventilation control also forms part of IMI’s intelligence-based system. It provides overall control of temperature and air flows into the critical growing areas, always ensuring a standardised flow rate and adjusting the temperature to account for heating or cooling needs.
Automated connectivity control ensures the availability of real-time, intelligence-based data acquisition to inform user's decision-making.
The portfolio of sensors in the system regularly acquire data for heat levels, light intensity and the light RGB ratio. This is then used to provide access to highly accurate measurements around temperature, power consumption, water volume use and the nutrient levels in the crop soils. The constant data feedback loop enables the optimum conditions for a successful and productive yield to costs ratio to be achieved.