For many growers, a LED grow light system is an important investment that can have a major positive impact on the business’s returns, particularly when careful consideration has been given to the financial returns (total cost of ownership) and the way in which a Hybrid LED or Full LED grow light installation can contribute to a higher yield per square metre. We have developed a range of LED grow light systems, calculation models and advisory services that we use to help you achieve your business objectives.
To look at investment in a (LED) grow light system, a one-off business case and the related ‘Total Cost of Ownership’ are drawn up. These often have a payback period of five to ten years.
Ideally, your grow light installation and the associated business case will change over those five to ten years, as your business develops. Is your grow light system still aligned with current energy prices? Do your clients have new requirements and/or can you see new opportunities in the market? Do you have a new cultivation strategy? Perhaps there are new grow light techniques, like LED, that could improve your business case?
Request your up-to-date business case from us now.
We are seeing many growers considering what an investment in LED grow light could mean for them and how they can increase their returns, so we’ve developed various calculation models and advisory services that we use to help you save money, with a low barrier to entry.
| Grow light system | Hybrid LED at constant light intensity | Hybrid LED at constant power consumption | Full LED |
| Energy savings | Up to 30% | Up to 45% | Up to 60% |
Growers who invest in LED usually choose to add LED grow light to an existing HPS grow light installation. The fact that energy prices are skyrocketing and have a major impact on the company’s returns is an extra incentive in this regard. In fact, the sooner the switch to LED is made, the better. Because many growers are hesitant about the investments that such a switch entails, phased investment is ideal.
In this phase, an extension can be made to phase 1: the grower simply adds a second LED grow light system via the 1000-Watt HPS connection that is still available. What’s more, the grower can use the saving on energy costs made due to the investment in phase 1 to realise phase 2 and further increase the light intensity at the business.
Your grow light system is an important company asset. After all, grow light helps you to achieve your cultivation and business goals. At the same time, you can attribute 30 to 40% of your operational costs to grow light use – so it’s essential to get optimum performance from your grow light system!
How can we help you?
Our consultants will examine your lighting strategy and cultivation plan carefully and consider which (light-related) issues could be improved. These might include the times that the lighting is switched on and off, the climate while using the lighting, the light targets and – where relevant – the LAI (Leaf Area Index) for optimal utilisation. We will discuss all relevant aspects – giving reasons for our conclusions – with you, and with your cultivation advisor where relevant. We are able to use various services to take your lighting efficiency to the next level.
These include:
Changes in the market forced Nico and Albert Kiep to focus on cultivating chrysanthemums with higher branch weights. Hortilux worked with the pair to develop a tailored grow light solution to meet their new needs.
Norwegian consumers prefer produce grown in their own country – and that includes tomatoes. For Mjølsnes Gartneri AS this was reason enough to invest in a LED grow light installation, in order to further optimise production between February and October.
LED in alstroemeria is hot: more and more growers are adding LED lighting to supplement the HPS light they already have. Alstroemeria business Together2Grow is following this trend too, with Hortilux HORTILED Top fixtures installed here recently.
Maatschap Van Wijk is one of the leading chrysanthemum nurseries in the Netherlands. A real family business with 2.4 hectares of greenhouses.
With this Hortilux provides some flexibility, as well as the ability to respond to the current uncertainties in the energy market.
You want to use LED to achieve your business and cultivation goals – but what should you choose, and above all: what do you really need?
The scenario calculation model, developed by Hortilux engineers, enables us to calculate the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of various LED grow light solutions. It means that we can calculate what a specific grow light solution will cost and yield over a depreciation period of, say, seven years.
Filling in or adjusting the specifications of various grow light systems allows us to make a comparison between, for example, one hectare of Full LED, one hectare of Hybrid LED and one hectare of SON-T – and then see what the cost difference is on the bottom line.
The scenario calculation model takes hundreds of variables into account. For example: the amount of sunlight that’s already available, the efficiency of various light recipes, electricity costs, and so forth. The scenario calculation model ultimately also shows the costs for each extra kilogram of production, as well as how much additional production is possible with the amount of grow light offered.
