Sensors and cloud connectivity

Some projects are noteworthy due to involvement in cutting-edge technology, which is still in the early research phase, and has the potential to be the ‘technology of the future’. In other cases, we are deploying well established solutions to provide a solution in a different field. Here we answered Concert Bio’s need for low-cost, high-volume temperature and EC measurements for an in-house vertical farming test centre with high experimental density (80 simultaneous experimental variations). This facility was providing Concert Bio with an early test-bed to validate their internal R&D on vertically-farmed crops, and they needed an accurate, cloud-connected R&D temperature and EC sensor network. 

We developed the solution from the ground up with Concert Bio, including programming sensor data collectors, bespoke hardware, project management, BOM & supplier redundancy management, and design, manufacture, & install of the whole system on-site. The sensor data was connected to a cloud dashboard, providing a convenient mechanism for data output and display both internally and for client-facing work. 

This work amplified the capability of the client’s facility, enabling them to carry out work around temperature and nutrient dosing variation, and better understand the impact their products had in vertical farming contexts, and provided the ability to tailor their product development to match project requirements.