CompressAir’s wide range of products find themselves used in a wide variety of environments. From power generation, to manufacturing, to transportation, compressors power a diverse array of businesses. One of CompressAir’s most unique customers is a hydroponic facility that grows full heads of lettuce, totally hands-free, in just 25 days.
Hydroponics is a type of farming that skips soil and instead grows the plants directly in nutrient-rich water. It is a dramatic shift in how we make food, allowing growers to produce their crops anywhere in the world, in any season.
“When plants are grown in soil, they need to spread their roots in order to find water and this makes it take up more room,” said a representative from the hydroponic lettuce facility. “Our process saves space, allowing us to grow more plants. Other benefits of hydroponics are fewer chemicals, faster growth, nutrient control, and bigger yields.”
Of course, completing the process requires the right equipment. It needs to be clean, hands-free, and highly versatile—that is where CompressAir’s machines come into play.
“We use compressed air in every stage of our greenhouse,” the representative said. “From seeds, to growing, to moving each trough of lettuce in the entire process, and even down to packaging, all of it uses compressors. They’re very important because they ensure the lettuce is never getting human contact and help keep the greenhouse temperature controlled.”
Other growing processes leave a lot of room for human contact and other kinds of contamination, which is a risk that compressors are able to mitigate.
“As most have seen on the news the last few years, there have been a lot of recalls on lettuce,” the representative said. “By growing hydroponic lettuce, we are eliminating the sources of contaminations. The product isn’t touched by humans, and we filter our own water here at the facility. It’s a fresher product that gets to the shelf quicker.”
Once the lettuce is fully grown, they are typically on the shelves of local grocery stores within one day.
“This is revolutionizing for the industry,” the representative said. “It’s one of the most advanced greenhouses in the country.”
The team at CompressAir was thrilled to see their machines being used in such a unique, consumer-friendly way.
“I think that everyone at CompressAir can agree that one of our favorite things about the industry we’re in is seeing how each of our customers are using compressed air,” said Brittany Smith, director of marketing communications at CompressAir. “This was definitely no exception as it’s our first facility to doing any hydro growing.”
To learn more about CompressAir, visit compressair.net.
