Crop production and quality in controlled environment agriculture (CEA) facilities is dependent on the performance of the HVAC systems to maintain target environmental conditions. Growing crops in greenhouses involves using HVAC equipment to minimize pest, disease, mold, and fungus issues and maximize consistent yields. The crops you grow - food, floriculture, or cannabis - and your greenhouse location and construction influence your environmental control strategies. Understand the process application for your HVAC systems to choose efficient products, reduce energy use and operating costs for resilient greenhouses, and maximize incentives from your local utilities and efficiency programs.
Topical areas include:
How CEA Crops Use Air and Moisture
Benefits of High-Performance HVAC Systems for Greenhouses
CEA HVAC System Types
Optimizing HVAC System Design
Maximizing Financial Incentives for CEA HVAC Equipment
Energy Loads and Equipment Sizing
HVAC Best Practices for Greenhouses
Controls & Automation in Greenhouse Cultivation
Commissioning CEA HVAC Systems
Benchmarking HVAC System KPIs
Target audience:
Cultivators
Operations & Facility Staff
Design & Construction Partners
Property Owners
Utility & Government Representatives
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| SCE Facility Design & Construction Best Practices for Efficient Greenhouses and Vertical Farms (25.2 MB) | Download | ||
Rob has over 30 years of experience in plant growth facility management, plant research and commercial production. At Purdue University, he brought online and managed a computer- controlled 40,000 ft 2 research facility, made up of 25 greenhouses and over 60 growth chambers and grow rooms. He was responsible for hundreds of CEA studies involving flowering, food and medicinal species. He served on design teams for greenhouse projects and one of the first automated machine-vision phenotyping centers in the country. In his consulting role, he supported major hydroponic produce growers AeroFarms and Bright Farms; Big Ag companies Dow AgroSciences, Novozymes and Indigo Ag; and several cannabis operations including Clade9. He wrote cultivation plans for cannabis licenses awarded in Missouri and West Virginia.
Rob’s protocols for optimizing greenhouse production have been downloaded over 70,000 times in 104 countries. He participated in the publication, A Practical Guide to Containment: Plant Biosafety in Research Greenhouses, recognized throughout the world as a primary resource for safe production of genetically modified crops. In 2016, he was a member of the International Committee for Controlled Environment Guidelines that published Guidelines for Measuring and Reporting Environmental Parameters for Experiments in Greenhouse Facilities, the seminal document of quality assurance protocols for plant science research.
In his free time, Rob enjoys gardening, growing microgreens under LEDs, baking and winning croquet matches against his three grown children.
A Professional Engineer license in Wisconsin, Brian has over 35 years of experience in the HVAC industry. He started his career at the Trane Company performing energy analysis and introducing software tools to consulting engineers. That experience in software carried over into the CAD industry where he was responsible for CADD software serving the needs of mechanical consulting engineers.
While a Program Manager at Johnson Controls, he was responsible for directing product development and implementing marketing strategies for building automation products. During that time, he wrote a number of articles regarding open protocols and control integration.
His experience also includes the application of frequency drives, CFD software, and the sale and distribution of residential HVAC products. A member of ASHRAE since 1981, he has participated in the BACnet Committee and the Computer Applications Technical Committee. Brian is also a licensed professional engineer in Wisconsin.
Currently he is a Regional Manager for Desert Aire focusing on applications involving dehumidification and environmental control for pools and natatoriums, industrial process, and indoor agricultural applications.