Putting the needs of growers first in the world of vertical farming

Vertical farming technology works best when it is built with the grower in mind. Software sits at the core of this principle, and Intelligent Growth Solutions (IGS) embedded it from the beginning when developing the Growth Tower Management System (GTMS). This approach allows the software to fit seamlessly alongside day-to-day farm operations, drawing on years of industry knowledge and feedback from growers on where software can deliver real improvements.

IGS has placed grower and operator feedback at the heart of GTMS, supported by years of collective expertise across the company. Crop scientists from the IGS Crop Research Centre collaborate with engineers from sites across Scotland to ensure that the software performs effectively in real-world environments for a wide range of users.

This user-centric foundation has guided the development of GTMS features designed to enable traceability, reduce complexity and bottlenecks, support scalability, and minimize the need for human intervention. Together, these elements help growers operate more efficiently, ultimately strengthening the bottom line for IGS customers worldwide.

Enabling traceability and reducing complexity
Traceability enables IGS customers to monitor every interaction a crop experiences, from registration in the system through its entire life cycle in the Growth Towers. This includes irrigation events, humidity levels, nutrient intake, and inspections, as well as harvest and farm exit. Traceability was made a priority from the outset, providing growers with confidence in the technology and a competitive edge. Whether actions are taken by a user, an external system, or GTMS itself, the software maintains a full audit trail that offers a holistic view of daily operations.

Reducing complexity has also been central to GTMS. The software provides an intuitive interface that allows operators to track, record, and schedule tasks, freeing valuable time for higher-value activities. GTMS was designed with practical farm questions in mind—such as "Where does this crop need to go?" or "What crops need to be harvested today?"—and answers them before operators even need to ask. This reduces cognitive load and simplifies workflows.

Benefits of a modular software structure
Just as IGS hardware is modular, GTMS is modular in its architecture. The system is made up of multiple components, each serving distinct purposes. Some modules are tailored for specific customers, particularly those operating at scale. This is especially relevant for customers deploying a "GigaFarm" model, where advanced modules for automation and decision-making support are essential.

One module automatically assigns growing locations for operators, which is critical in large-scale operations managing thousands of Growth Jobs. GTMS allocates planning locations based on crop requirements and growing conditions, removing the need for manual placement decisions. This automation enables tighter margins in horticulture and food production to be managed more effectively, freeing resources for other priorities.

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Software that prioritizes business continuity
IGS software engineers apply a "grower-first" mindset, consistently placing themselves in the operator's position to understand and address practical challenges. This perspective guides everything from initial concepts through to testing.

The engineering process includes "ringed deployments," where new features are first released internally and tested under real operating conditions before customer rollout. This step ensures reliability, minimizes risk, and protects business continuity for IGS customers.

IGS also employs fully virtualized towers—digital replicas that behave like physical hardware from a software perspective. These simulations replicate hundreds of towers, enabling the team to test interactions between modules and components without using physical equipment. This safeguard maximizes uptime and productivity for growers, particularly those operating at scale.

Adapting and evolving GTMS
IGS has been preparing GTMS to meet the demands of the GigaFarm model, which requires managing tens of thousands of Growth Jobs daily. This shift has necessitated rethinking how customers interact with the system.

Decision-making and planning for thousands of concurrent Growth Jobs is a significant challenge. GTMS incorporates a high degree of automation to support this, handling tray placement, harvesting schedules, and workflow coordination. Operators are guided by streamlined task lists rather than forced to make numerous individual decisions, reducing cognitive load, minimizing errors, and ensuring consistency.

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What the future holds
The agritech sector is evolving rapidly, with agentic AI generating new possibilities. IGS has already applied machine learning for tasks such as image analysis and is now exploring how agentic AI can support growers more directly.

Currently, agentic AI is being tested internally to assist engineers and customer service teams in diagnosing issues quickly and presenting solutions efficiently. In time, similar functionality could be deployed for customers, identifying bottlenecks, optimizing workflows, or adjusting tray movements for large crop volumes. IGS is approaching this area with caution, prioritizing internal testing and proven benefits before rolling out new capabilities.

Cohesion through passion for the product
The IGS team is united by a passion for creating a system that delivers ongoing value to customers and positions the company at the forefront of agritech. From scalable modular design to measures that maximize uptime, software development is driven by a commitment to grower success.

As IGS expands into large-scale deployments with GigaFarms in the USA and UAE, the coming years will be pivotal. Iterating GTMS to meet these challenges will be made possible by the company's skilled, enthusiastic team, whose understanding of real-world operations ensures that the software continues to evolve in ways that matter most to growers.