Optional Flexibility
September 22, 2008 Businesses face a never-ending fight to control costs. For today’s growers, that means finding ways to minimize capital greenhouse expenses, energy costs and lost product. The Nexus Atrium and Dual Atrium technology addresses each of those concerns, providing growers with both cost control and flexibility in running their operations.
“We are committed to understanding the needs of our customers, so we’re very much in tune with the cost and market pressures they face,” says Jeff Warschauer, vice president of sales for Nexus. “That understanding enables us to develop technologies that address our customers’ key issues, whether to control energy costs or to increase protection of crops due to sudden weather change.”
The Nexus Atrium and Dual Atriums offer distinct advantages, from energy efficiency to plant protection. The cornerstone of the Atrium’s design is a unique ridge vent that opens outward and upward from the top of the ridge, providing a natural chimney effect for ventilation. The roof can be closed in just under three minutes. The patented Nex-Hood allows the roof to be partially opened for protection against inclement weather or for dehumidification.
John Barone, owner of Barone Gardens in Cicero, N.Y., has a 48- by 132-foot Dual Atrium structure from Nexus.
“I think it has all the advantages of a total open roof but with less moving parts and more attic space above the gutter line,” he says.
The Nexus Atrium and Dual Atrium require fewer motors and rack and pinions than other open-roof greenhouses do, leading to lower initial costs, less energy consumption and fewer maintenance expenses. Additional capital cost reductions are possible because the Atriums require fewer numbers of gutters and downspouts than other open-roof greenhouses. The roof design enables a high level of natural ventilation, which reduces cooling costs. It also has fewer obstructions than other systems, which provide higher light levels inside. The Atrium is easily expanded because it gutter-connects with all other Nexus greenhouses.
“Many of our customers have told us that their need for certain chemicals and growth regulators have been reduced,” notes Warschauer. “A final benefit is that the design itself minimizes some government re-entry requirements.”
For more information, visit www.nexuscorp.com.
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