Dürr’s EcoY vertical farm represents an innovative extension of their industrial climate control expertise, demonstrating how technologies originally developed for the coating and paint industry can be adapted for sustainable agriculture.
The international engineering company Dürr is entering a new sector with its EcoY turnkey vertical farm. The company is combining its expertise in plant engineering – particularly in the demanding field of ventilation and energy-efficient climate control technology for paint shops – with the know-how of Clean Air Nurseries Agri Global (CAN-Agri), a specialist in innovative farming technologies.
A growing global population, climate change with increasingly extreme weather conditions, and the resulting loss of agricultural land are driving the development of new high-yield cultivation methods that prioritise sustainability and resource efficiency. Together with its partner and subcontractor CAN-Agri, Dürr has developed the turnkey vertical farm EcoY – an innovative controlled environment farming solution delivering high yields within a compact footprint. It provides access to fresh food, especially lettuce and other leafy greens, even in metropolitan areas or regions where vegetation is otherwise not viable. This is achieved with high quality in a pesticide-free environment and, above all, with short transport routes. EcoY focuses on sustainable
cultivation, lowering production costs, and reducing both energy and water consumption, while employing cutting-edge manufacturing techniques.
Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) refers to the modification of the natural environment to boost crop yield or extend the growing season. CEA systems are typically housed in enclosed structures such as greenhouses or buildings, where environmental factors like air, temperature, light, water, humidity, carbon dioxide, and plant nutrients are controlled. In most vertical farming systems, crops are grown in horizontal layers stacked one on top of the other with no access to daylight. These setups demand enormous amounts of energy for artificial lighting, mechanical ventilation, and climate control – costs that cannot be offset by raising prices for low-margin produce.
“With our EcoY solution, we’re taking a different approach. Our objective was to develop a system that delivers maximum yield with minimum energy consumption. It’s essentially a hybrid hydroponic solution, independent of external climatic conditions. The system can even operate in extreme environments such as deserts or regions with extreme cold. Together with CAN-Agri, Dürr developed a solution that harnesses natural resources like sunlight for vertical plant growth in a greenhouse, while conserving energy and water through efficient manufacturing, patented technologies, and digitalisation. This greatly reduces operating costs while ensuring consistent quality and yield per square metre,” has explained Michael Broek, Company Chairman at Dürr Africa.
All key factors for plant growth – light, humidity, temperature, and CO2 – are digitally monitored and adjusted in EcoY’s high-tech greenhouse, in line with the technology-based concept of CEA. What sets EcoY apart are the grow tubes in which the plants are cultivated. Developed and patented by CAN-Agri, these tubes arose from the idea of turning the traditionally horizontal plant layers 90 degrees, stacking 80 seedlings, one above the other, vertically in each tube. The grow tubes are positioned in the greenhouse to ensure that sunlight reaches all plants.
Inside the greenhouse, the grow tubes are evenly spaced in rows with nutrient-rich water circulating through them. To maintain consistent plant temperatures, the nutrient-rich water temperature is adjusted, promoting a localised microclimate where the plants need it most. This optimises the growing environment and improves yields. This microclimate is monitored and fine-tuned automatically using the greenhouse climate control technology that includes heating, cooling, humidification, ventilation, and screening systems to create ideal growing conditions. The closed-loop system consumes up to 95% less water compared to traditional outdoor cultivation methods.
Dürr’s intelligent ventilation concept also reduces resource usage by precisely conditioning the temperature and moisture content of the air and distributing it throughout the greenhouse. Another special feature: in higher latitudes, where daylight is limited especially during winter months, optional LED lights can be installed. These lights activate only when the required amount of Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR in mol/m²/day) falls below the required threshold – ensuring constant output with minimal energy usage.