Yield per square metre, answered with a second layer instead of more land.
Pingtung County, Taiwan. Dual layer hydroponic system, 20,000 square metres.
Situation Source record
With an Australian grower, set up to increase yield per square metre with a dual layer hydroponic system.
Challenge
Raise yield on land that could not be expanded, for a grower measuring success in kilograms per square metre.
What JYCO examined
Land and spacing were the variables under pressure. A second hydroponic layer changes the growing area without changing the land, and with it the water, nutrient and crop decisions a second layer brings.
Issues identified
Land was fixed, so growing area had to come from vertical space. The second layer created new water, nutrient and light dependencies that the single layer economics did not account for. Variables in play: land and spacing, structure, water, nutrients, crop.
Approach
Measure value in the grower's own unit, yield per square metre, and design the second layer around that number rather than around the vendor's specification.