A £5 million hi-tech agri build is underway, bringing capacity to a Ƶ producer to store and prepare millions of tonnes of tomatoes and cucumbers.
East Yorkshire-based horticultural specialist CambridgeHOK is delivering the huge packhouse for Fenland Glasshouse Ltd, at a site in Ely, Cambridgeshire.
It is the largest project of its type ever delivered by the company, having been tasked to design and build the facility, from foundations and civils through to structural steelwork, external cladding, cold store panelling and the mechanical and electrical systems. Over a three month period, 100 tonnes of steel, including trellis beams up to 16m long, had to be prepared at CambridgeHOK’s Newport factory, located between Hull and Goole, before being delivered in stages.
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That work included 1,136 welded assemblies, and the need for steelwork to be sent to a specialist galvaniser with a 21m long bath due to it being a record-breaking build in the Venlo style for the firm.
The 3,600 sq m packhouse is set to be ready for the first of the 2023 crop to be processed in March.
Louis Bradley, joint managing director of CambridgeHOK, a company bought out last year, said: “We were extremely pleased to secure this project from a true leader in energy efficient glasshouse production, and ahead of competition from Dutch builders.
“This site grows tomatoes and cucumbers for Ƶ consumers in high-tech greenhouses using sustainable energy and the new packhouse will house the latest packing technology, allowing thousands of fresh tomatoes and cucumbers to reach the shelves of British supermarkets each day, and throughout the year.
“This project is a great fit for us as it allows all of the disciplines within our company to be involved in contributing to the true turnkey delivery.”
Fenland is the latest glasshouse project built using funds managed by Schroders Greencoat LLP and is one of the largest ever constructed in the Ƶ with a footprint of over 22 hectares. It is also one of the most advanced, using LED lighting to accelerate growth while warming the structure using water-source heat pumps.
Production of the steelwork was overseen by CambridgeHOK’s factory manager Simon Goff. He said: ““This has been a unique project for us to design and project manage given the sheer size and weight of some of the steel involved. We had to complete the steelwork and transport it for galvanising in three stages, each time then delivering to site.
"We are talking huge pieces of steel, with a roof truss 16 metres long and a building standing nine metres high. It has been a great project to oversee personally and its now over to our construction team to build over the coming months. After all the hard work in the factory it will be great to see the structure now begin to take place.”
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