SERVICES

Hydroponics

kIEFER constructs greenhouses which meet the contemporary farming requirements and address to the contemporary producer who sets high goals and wants to invest safely his money.

Ηydroponics is a specialized form of cultivation in which the plants grow in water instead of soil. All the nutrients, that they need in order to grow, are provided through water. In this way, the root of the plant absorbs as much water as it needs, while the rest is recycled and reused. Consequently, the hydroponic greenhouses spend 40-60% less water than the conventional cultivations. Alternatively, the plant roots are grown on inert substrates like rockwool or perliteand the plants receive the necessary nutrients through a nutrient solution. The advantages of hydroponics are the more than 50% higher yields compared to conventional cultivation methods, the significant reduction of production costs, the water saving, the application in areas with poor or unsuitable soils for cultivation and the production of competitive high quality products. 

Τhe company equips the greenhouse with all the modern automations such as:

  • Heating
  • Cooling
  • Automaticlubrication
  • Shading
  • Water treatment
  • Cold rooms
  • Generators, etc.

The greenhouse is designed by the Technical Department in collaboration with the University of Almeria (UAL) in Spain, according to the European Technical Standards UNE-EN 13031-1, "Greenhouses, Project and Construction".

The loads have been calculated via a specialized software based on the Finite element method. The geometry of the greenhousehas been previously formalized using three-dimensional methods.

In general, taking into account different models, the load conditions that were applied in the calculations are the following:

  • Snow or hail: forregion code1B, the calculated load is about 30 kg/m²
  • Crop load: for the supporting of the crop in wires the estimated instantaneous load is 15 kg/m2
  • Wind speed: according to the European Standard (EN), the greenhouse’s resistance to the wind speed is 97 km/h and the wind gust speed is 115 km/h (windows must be closed at wind speeds up to 50 km/h).

Note: During the winter season, for the protection against snowfalls, the greenhouse should be maintained properly: the heating system should work continuously in order to heat the interior of the greenhouse as well as the gutters for the snow melting (the snow load refers to the gutters).

The greenhouse materials are certified by the supplying companies

accordingto ISO 9002andhave the following characteristics:

  • Columns: Hot dip galvanized. The mechanical and chemical properties comply with the Regulations / DIN 17.100. Type of steel: ST - 37.2. (Zinc quality: 99,99 according to the UNE-EN 1179: 1996 standard, thickness according to the UNE-EN ISO 1461: 1999 standard and uniformity according to the S / UNE 7.183 standard.
  • Arches, buttress and profiles: Galvanized according to the UNE-EN 10142: 2001 standard. Type ofsteel: Fe P02G.
  • Gutters: Galvanized according to the UNE-EN 10.142: 2001 standard. Type of steel: Fe P02G.
  • Screws: from (DIN-931, DIN-933, DIN-985, DIN-125, DIN-7504-N and DIN-934).