Search: agriculture

  I had the pleasure of sitting down with Geoff Ling, Managing Director at Merrimack Group, at LEDucation, to talk about his predictions for M&A trends, looking forward. Merrimack Group provides M&A services to the lighting industry. Shiller: What are the overall trends that you’re seeing in lighting industry M&A, big picture? Ling: I started [...]

  The Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) has announced that Wi-Fi HaLow is ready for smart home and commercial IoT deployments across a range of verticals and use cases. Wi-Fi HaLow is designed for long-range and low-power connectivity and is based on the 802.11ah standard. The WBA has released a white paper that provides an overview [...]

  Square Roots, a controlled environment agriculture (CEA) startup, recently introduced a groundbreaking program supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The program aims to demonstrate the feasibility of removing light from commercial indoor vertical farming by utilizing gene-edited (CRISPR) plants that grow heterotrophically. These plants can add biomass through carbon uptake from acetate [...]

  2023 was another turbulent year in the Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) market. There was a surprising wave of bankruptcies in Q1, Q2, and Q3. Major players like Infarm, AppHarvest, Aerofarms, and Kalera all closed operations and filed for bankruptcy. The high-profile closures then contributed to funding drying up for CEA ventures, hindering new projects. [...]

  In August,  Greenhouse Product News published an article I wrote about electrification impacts on controlled environment agriculture (CEA). The primary strategy of local, state and national governments to address climate change is rapid electrification of building heating and cooling, hot water and the transportation sectors. Simultaneously, the electrical generation mix will gradually transition from fossil fuels [...]

  Rural Energy for America is a new program of the US Department of Agriculture. The program provides guaranteed loan financing and grant funding to agricultural producers and rural small businesses, for renewable energy systems or to make energy efficiency improvements. Agricultural producers may also apply for new energy efficient equipment and new system loans [...]

  The DLC Controls Summit has announced panelists for the session, A Brighter Future for NLC Energy Savings Through External Systems Integration, which will be held on Wednesday, 9/27. The panelists will quantify the potential energy savings in two different regions, explore innovative efficiency programs to support NLC-HVAC integration, and consider the potential impacts of regulatory [...]

  The types of crops grown indoors are evolving as agricultural technology advances and the demand for local food increases across North America. Crops typically grown in Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) facilities include: Leafy Greens: Lettuce, spinach, kale, arugula, and other salad greens are some of the most commonly grown crops in CEA facilities. Herbs: [...]

By Clifton Stanley Lemon How many designers does it take to change a lightbulb? Answer: Does it have to be a light bulb? While this old joke lampoons the legendary persnickety design thinking personified by Steve Jobs and others, the response is quite valid. Who in the lighting industry today is asking this question or [...]