Construction of industrial greenhouses: types and forms

Historical information

At the beginning of the seventies of the last century, a program was carried out for the construction of greenhouse complexes around Moscow, St. Petersburg, large industrial centers, and near regional centers. In the 80s, the greenhouse industry reached its maximum point of development. Almost 5000 hectares of greenhouse complexes were built for year-round operation. Many of them have become city-forming enterprises.

In the 90s, during the “perestroika” and “privatization” period, greenhouse complexes fell into decay, some stopped functioning. The reasons were different, including the receipt of vegetables from southern countries under subsidy programs of supplier countries, which reduce the cost of imported vegetables, while at the same time increasing the cost of energy resources for domestic vegetable growers. During this period, more than or about 50% of the area of ​​industrial greenhouses was lost (according to various estimates).

By the beginning of the new century, the greenhouse industry came up with two thousand hectares of industrial greenhouses for year-round operation, 60% of which were already morally and physically worn out.

The corresponding decrease in the production of domestic greenhouse products against the backdrop of growing consumer demand of the country’s population led to a sharp increase (up to 50%) in imports of off-season vegetables, and in winter it reached 85%.

Against the backdrop of the economic crisis and the deterioration of the foreign policy situation at the state level, programs were adopted to support domestic agriculture and the protected soil industry in particular. In this regard, there has been a trend towards the construction of greenhouses based on modern world technologies. According to the forecasts of the Greenhouses of Our Country Association, the total area of ​​greenhouse complexes in the Federation will reach 2019 hectares by the end of 2576, and 2020 hectares by 3200.

Industrial greenhouses today

Let’s see what industrial greenhouses look like today. The basis of modern greenhouse structures is the so-called “cold house”, which is supplied with galvanized steel supporting structures, aluminum structures, rubber seals, hardware and glass.

The cold house is the basis of the greenhouse, which performs a number of functions that ensure the protection of plants under the influence of adverse climatic factors, its microclimate, the installation and operation of engineering systems, and the reliable operation of the entire structure as a whole for the entire service life.

The cost of a cold house is 25 – 30% of the cost of building a turnkey greenhouse.

The most popular among imported structures are greenhouses with a span of 8 m, a planning grid of 8,0 × 4,5 m and a column height of 4,5 – 5 – 6 m. This greenhouse is offered as a universal facility for both vegetable and flower producers . It provides for some design features associated with the withdrawal of rain and melt water through the end columns. 

A common disadvantage of imported greenhouses is the lack of complete design documentation (only installation diagrams are usually included with the structures), which allows obtaining a full permit for the construction and operation of the greenhouse from the regulatory authorities. As a rule, design support for production is not provided, or it is very expensive, as well as the provision of repair parts and installation supervision.

One of the most popular -made industrial structures is an industrial greenhouse with a column height of 5,0 m. This design uses such innovations as drainage from the roof through the internal cavities of the end columns, removal of vertical loads on the side internal windows by using an additional aluminum bar, that excludes spontaneous destruction of glasses. One of the few manufacturers of greenhouse structures in Our Country is PKF AGROTIP. Today the company offers an expanded range of industrial greenhouses of the VENLO type, depending on the span of the greenhouse – 6,4 m, 9,6 m, 8 m, 12 m; column heights – 4,5 – 5 and 6 m.

Greenhouses of the VENLO type are very popular both in the world and in the Federation. The designs of such greenhouses for growing various crops can be successfully used by farmers and other agricultural producers. They are used for growing tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, strawberries, eggplants and other crops.

Thanks to the use of microclimate systems, energy consumption in these greenhouses is kept to a minimum.

Research by scientists from the Netherlands showed that the height of columns in a greenhouse of this type from 5 to 5,5 m is the most rational for growing most crops, but for tomato cultivation, a column height of 6 m is more suitable.

To ensure the functioning of modern technologies for growing plants, greenhouses are equipped with the following engineering and technological systems and equipment:

• ventilation system (manufactured and supplied complete with metal structures of the greenhouse frame);
• system of horizontal and vertical screening;
• water pipe heating system (heating system);
• water supply and sewerage systems;
• drip irrigation system with reuse of drainage effluents;
• air recirculation system in the volume of greenhouses;
• a system for supplying, distributing and controlling the CO2 concentration in the greenhouse volume;
• systems of electrical equipment, electric lighting and electric lighting;
• automated climate control system. 

The information is provided by the PKF AGROTIP company, read more about the construction of industrial greenhouses on the website http://agrotip.ru

Video “Presentation of AGROTIP Group of Companies”