With vertical farming gaining popularity, the demand for high-precision climate control systems is increasing daily. One of the companies looking to meet that demand is Trane, a global provider in the manufacture of HVAC systems for various industries, including vertical agriculture.
“Trane is a large manufacturer of heating and cooling equipment, ranging from residential to commercial and industrial. So we bring a homogenous representation of the options ranging from split systems to packaged rooftop systems to chillers and air handlers,” says Justin Barnes, National Account Executive with Trane.
Humidity and dehumidification
To meet the needs of the indoor agriculture industry, Trane designed the Horizon Thrive, a packaged rooftop unit specifically designed to meet the dehumidification and temperature requirements of indoor farms. Horizon Thrive is available in a variety of sizes, with refrigeration capacity ranging from 3 to 80 tons, airflow of 500-25,000 cubic feet per minute and dehumidification of up to 600 lb of water per hours. Horizon Thrive also ensures high air quality through UV lights and multiple filtration options. Horizon Thrive thus provides indoor farms with an energy-efficient, reliable HVAC systems that allow for precise control of air quality and environmental conditions. While Trane also offers advanced control systems, the HVAC systems can also be integrated into most third-party control systems.
Trane approaches HVAC installations with a Day 1/Day 2 approach. Day 1 refers to the work leading up to the system’s installation, while Day 2 begins the moment the system is turned on. Through this approach, Trane supports growers throughout system design, installation, system use and expansion. This is made possible by the company’s 250+ service centers and 3000 technicians in North America, as well as its strong presence internationally. The company also aims to provide growers with a customized yet repeatable HVAC solution, allowing growers to meet their specific operating requirements and repeat the process when expanding operations.
According to enterprise account executive Marshall Kauffman, “along with expansion, there is often a significant time element. What we’re able to do with growers is create a standardized approach to see how we set up their temperature and humidity control. From that point on, it’s a repeatable system that we can move quickly with.”
Equipment sizing
When asked about the challenges commonly faced by Trane, Justin explains that equipment sizing can be quite a challenge, especially when growers inadvertently provide incorrect operating parameters. In such cases, Trane modifies the installation to meet the actual operating requirement. In other cases, the initial parameters are correct but the customer changes their goal over time. Marshall explains how that scenario can be easily mitigated with Horizon Thrive.
“Customers may want to expand the vertical aspect of the facility, which requires different operating conditions. So we assist growing in repurposing existing spaces. Horizon Thrive is a scalable system so if the grower needs more dehumidification and cooling, it is easy to expand.”
For more information:
Trane
Justin Barnes, National Account Executive
Marshall Kauffman, Enterprise Account Executive
trane.com