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HIGH-TECH HORTICULTURE COMPANY LAUNCHES INDOOR FARMING PROJECT
A high-tech horticultural company in Coventry is launching a ground-breaking system for growing crops indoors.
V-Farm, a spin-off from another Coventry company, HydroGarden, which manufactures hydroponic equipment, has spent seven years developing a vertical farming concept from its base in Progress Way on the Binley Industrial Estate.
It uses the latest hydroponics technology through a mobile rack structure fitted with trays, lighting and ventilation equipment which can be adapted to meet the available space.
The business secured a £10,000 Proof of Concept grant which forms part of the Coventry and Warwickshire Business Support Programme. A 40 per cent match funded grant was awarded with V-Farm’s 60 per cent contribution.
Stuart Green, of V-Farm said: “We believe our food production technology produces better quality produce because less nutrients are being lost to ship it across oceans and it is building towards a greener, more sustainable future.
“Food production is a global market and years have been spent developing the technology, but it has not been commercialised until now.
“We knew we had a great product but we needed help in taking it to market.” “We have already supplied units to Brazil, Australia and China and we will be fully launching V-Farm towards the end of the year.”
Justine Chadwick, account manager at the CWLEP Growth Hub which provided advice to V-Farm, said: “V-Farm’s urban farming idea has been brilliantly developed and now manufactured here in Coventry to maximise areas throughout the world where food can be grown.
“It is also reducing our carbon footprint which will help businesses reach their net zero targets.”
Indian EV manufacturer to build £100m engineering centre in Coventry
Indian electric vehicle manufacturer Ola Electric is investing £100 million in a new global hub for automotive design and engineering in Coventry.
The firm, which manufactures electric scooters and other two-wheeler electric vehicles, said the new centre will house 200 designers and engineers working on four- and twowheel EV designs.
Ola Futurefoundry will work with the design and engineering teams based at Ola Campus in Bangalore, India.
Bhavish Aggarwal, Founder and CEO, Ola said: “Ola Futurefoundry is an important step in building a multidisciplinary team responsive to the needs of our consumers around the world. We are setting up in Coventry as it is a global epicenter of automotive and technology talent.”
Ola has made urban mobility available on demand for more than a billion people on three continents.
