Fully Operational Off-Grid Farm in 12 Weeks
Overview
Wally Farms required an indoor farm constructed of re-purposed shipping containers to serve the community through growing a range of micro and leafy greens for local production.
Objectives
Wally Farms wanted to create a farming community and uplift others through action and the ongoing research of carbon neutral farming. The project also entailed learning how to better recycle water; how to farm utilizing solar power and operate off the grid; and how a 24/7 container farm operation could help address food insecurity, but not compete against other farmers.
Solution
Wally contracted Moduulize to build a grow facility that would allow it to rapidly deploy and scale its operation while maximizing yields. The combined team designed an interconnected container grow system. Each room in the facility was linked through a single access hallway with security and ease of access from room to room as a top priority, while maintaining a closed, sealed environment. The project was delivered in three phases. Phase 1 included six containers, including one 40-foot-long growing unit with five support containers outfitted as:
Results
Moduulize, delivered six containers and situated them on concrete piers in a small clearing located at the Wally Farms property.
Now, Wally Farms is an off-grid, fully operational container farm that utilizes the six grow containers from Moduulize. The farm grows 200+ seed varieties of leafy greens, lettuces, herbs, medicinal herbs, edible and medicinal flowers, and other hand-selected vegetables. One container was used as an experimental room to grow different crops with three distinct hydroponic growing systems:
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Nutrient Film Technique
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A Dutch Bucket System utilizing soil and drip irrigation
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Grow Racks utilizing flood-and-drain hydroponics
The farm also compared different fertilizer solutions, including one made from organic plant waste. The remainder of the containers were used to grow specific varieties that had proven to be successful in the experimental unit.
Thanks to the integrated systems designed by Moduulize, Wally Farms was able to cut labor to just an hour or two a day per unit, as automation through technology now carries much of the load.
About
Moduulize’s grow rooms, developed in collaboration with Moduulize, are scalable grow facilities designed by growers for growers. They give both professional and personal growers the freedom to design their own space and build a sustainable, flexible horticultural business. Each grow facility is designed for easy operation, allowing users of all backgrounds to immediately start growing. Every grow room provides an engineered growing environment with optimal lighting and temperature that maintains a closed system to prevent contamination—unlike a traditional greenhouse operation.
Ranging in size from 10 feet to 40 feet, the Moduulize Grow Rooms enable you to configure a growing system that fits your unique budget and space requirements. They provide the fastest and most efficient way to launch or expand your operation, with time-to-value measured in just 12 weeks. On arrival, they are simply hooked up and turned on so you can generate revenue in as little time as possible.
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