WP3 : Investigating potentials for cost reduction (Leader : ENIT)

Objectives

• To investigate and to estimate potentials to reduce the production and running costs for the new greenhouse generation.

Tasks

This workpackage will be accomplished, in parallel to WP2 and WP4, mainly by ENIT, TUB and TTZ. This WP includes  :

• the investigation of the potential to use and to adapt/reconstruct existing greenhouses (accomplished by ENIT with support of TUB and TTZ)
• the estimation of the potential for more simplified cooling systems and for a simplified automation (accomplished by ENIT with support of TTZ and TUB)
• the estimation of the potential for advanced light weight greenhouse constructions based on knowledge of membrane architecture (accomplished by TUB with support of ENIT)
• the investigation of cheaper and local produced material
  (accomplished by ENIT with support of IAV and ICARDA)
• the estimation of the potential for a future use of available and self-regenerative materials, that are mainly based on biomass, salt, local minerals and solar energy instead of conventional building materials like concrete and steel, in order to enable an extensive growth of the system that will not be limited by a finite resource base.
  (accomplished by ENIT, with support of TUB and TTZ)

Deliverables

D06 : Technical Plan and description of reconstruction of existing greenhouses.
D07 : Technical plan and description of simplified cooling systems.
D08 : Suggestions for a simplified automation (sketch).
D09 : Suggestions for advanced light weight greenhouse constructions (sketches).
D10 : List of cheaper and local produced material (material name, material characteristics, costs).
D11 : Suggestions on potential self-regenerative materials (report).
D12 : Report on potentials of cost-reduction.

Milestones and expected results

M03 : Overview on the potential and the feasibility of cost reductions of the new greenhouse generation.