Design and Construction of Modern Greenhouses

Project Summary

The project entitled "Design and Construction of Modern Greenhouses”, addresses to forty (40) graduates of Agricultural Departments of Higher Education of Greece from the region of Thessaly, specializing in greenhouses crops. The participants are self-employed, unemployed and employees of rural cooperatives.

The graduates participants having to face the challenge of developing modern greenhouses in the region should be trained and re-trained in order to:

• Learn about new methods of design and construction of greenhouses in accordance with national and international standards regarding the choice of materials, the type of the greenhouse and its control systems
• Be able to design greenhouses with sustainable and environmentally friendly practices in mind
• To provide comprehensive advisory services to prospective greenhouse farmers regarding the selection of the best greenhouse construction through the economical analysis for construction projects
• Be able to collaborate with stakeholders from different disciplines in the design and construction of greenhouses (engineers, technicians, etc.)
• Provide information on the use of greenhouses not only from the part of the production-level but also from the side of agritourism and environmentally friendly practices.

The main objectives were:

• Coverage of the above training needs of the agricultural department graduates
• Familiarize with real word design and construction through the practice involvement session
• Acquiring working experience in modern greenhouses through technical visits to greenhouses located both in the design phase (visits to offices-design and manufacturing companies) and at the phase of construction (visiting greenhouses being constructing).

The project filled the void created by the one-dimensional involvement and activity of agriculturists in crops that are considered outdated, energy-intensive and inefficient. The project "moves" towards ensuring the sustainability of agriculture offices, empowerment of rural cooperatives with trained and informed agriculturists in the theme of greenhouses crops and in-service training and association with the subject of unemployed agriculturists. Also, the project involved the transfer of knowledge and experience about the greenhouses through continuous training and awareness of the need for lifelong learning to support the changing labor market.

The host organization was Asociación de Organizaciones de Productores de Frutas y Hortalizas in the city of Almería and training was implemented in March 2012.