Innovative Indoor Farm for Intensive Food Production Using Photovoltaic Vacuum Glazing and Smart Technologies.

SmartGreens was an 18-month Innovate UK project (2021–2022) awarded to Green Lab in collaboration with the University of Nottingham, Kroptek Ltd, Extreme Low Energy Ltd, Ebtech Glasshouse Systems, and Geo Green Power Ltd.

The objective of the project was to design, develop, and field trial an innovative indoor farm for intensive food production — based on a modular structure that integrated advanced environmental and smart technologies to reduce both carbon footprint and operational costs.

The SmartGreens concept combined a novel mix of proven and emerging technologies, including solar PV vacuum glass, smart LED lighting, PCM passive cooling, a thermoelectric heat pump powered by PV-DC, CO₂ carbon capture, and a hydroponic growing system enhanced by smart control systems. Together, these innovations offered a new, energy-efficient approach to controlled environment agriculture.

While the project focused on crop production within the UK, the SmartGreens model was designed to operate independently of local climate conditions — making it well-suited for application in diverse global regions.

The project’s core objective was to bring together the specialised technologies and expertise of each partner to create a unique UK-based capability for growing crops using renewable energy as the primary power source. Central to this was the use of custom solar glass and advanced energy management systems.

Green Lab led three key areas of the project:

1. The interior design and physical layout of the greenhouse structures used for crop production.
2. A custom control and sensor system, developed to monitor crop growth cycles and environmental conditions via a mobile application.
3. All aspects of plant science and crop selection, including seedling trials, germination strategies, and final harvest choices.

The SmartGreens project concluded on 30th November 2022.