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Enjoy Handsfree Plant Production
Tackling greenhouse labor shortages and costs with solutions from WPS
"Aiming to be handsfree", our article in Greenhouse Management Magazine
Edwin Dijkshoorn explains how the company helps growers automate their operations.
WPS is “trying to come as close to hands-free plant production as possible,” says Edwin Dijkshoorn, WPS North America director of business development. WPS deals with the logistics of plant production from when the plants come off the potting line all the way through to the time they go on a truck. The company’s goal is to significantly reduce the amount of what Dijkshoorn calls “hand touches,” meaning that plants are handled by human hands as little as possible throughout the production process. “As little hand touches as possible means fewer employees and means lower labor costs,” Dijkshoorn explains. “That’s why we focus on Handsfree Plant Production.”
“The SmartFlo conveyors cut our truck loading time by 50%”
Rainbow Greenhouses, located in Chilliwack, Canada, has implemented our SmartFlo system in three phases, with the first phase being completed in 2016, the second in 2020, and the third set was completed in 2022.
"With the SmartFlo conveyor system, we have seen a 50% reduction in order picking time, achieved our growth objectives, and greatly improved labor efficiency throughout our greenhouse, all due to its simple and modular design that delivers results right away." - Joel Vander Waal, production manager at Rainbow Greenhouses.
Rainbow is looking into possibilities to add another 30-50% of SmartFlo into the next stage of their company. They want to connect the data they will gain to see what kind of product they should grow or to see how they should grow it in combination to automation. Rainbow looks forward to adding more SmartFlo systems in order to keep growing.
Joel Vander Waal shares his experience with our Time-Changing SmartFlo system in the interview we held with him. Enjoy reading
Conveyor belts for maximum efficiency in your greenhouse
As a grower you know exactly how to grow your plants. During the cultivation process you are continuously spacing and moving plants. This is time consuming. It requires organization and is a burden on your staff. This is something we can help you with.
We combine a complete range of products, which will automate your pot plant business operations. Practical, efficient and future-oriented, a SmartFlo conveyor belt system consists of several modules that are wirelessly connected. This allows you to tailor the system exactly to your own nursery operational needs. Thanks to the flexibility of the SmartFlo modules you can support your business processes to suit your needs at every stage of cultivation: from potting and spacing up to preparing for orders.
More plants in the same amount of space
In general SmartFlo is a fixed system. Having said this, the belts are strong enough to also be used as a walkway in the bays when not in service, thus not compromising any growing space.
The belts are bi-directional, which allows you to use them with all plant movement processes, like potting and shipping. But don’t forget consolidating and spacing. By being able to do these last two more easily and efficiently you can save yourself valuable growing space and grow more plants in the now available greenhouse space.
Ready to Grow Your Business?
Contact Edwin Dijkshoorn