Berg Hortimotive is known for its greenhouse trolleys. "But the company's most important mission," says sales manager Sjef Loomans, "is to unburden the grower by introducing simplicity and efficiency into the cultivation process of bringing the harvested products from the greenhouse to the packing hall."
"Of course, you have to do that in the smartest way possible, with as little wasted labor as possible. Important in this is that you maintain the quality of your product, by bringing it into a cooled environment as soon as possible after harvesting."
With wages rising more and more, even in low-wage countries, and labor becoming scarcer there too, there is a role for automaters like Berg Hortimotive. One of the assets the company offers for this is the pepper AGV, where AGV stands for 'automatic guided vehicle'.
"With the pepper AGV we have a product where a harvester is still needed to remove the peppers from the plant, but you don't need a harvester or other workers to transport the products to the barn."
New technologies
In itself, the pepper AGV is not a new product, Berg Hortimotive has had them in their portfolio for a while. "But the systems have been optimized," says Sjef. "There are so many new technologies nowadays that you can make use of, instead of the old-fashioned 'wire in the ground'. We can now navigate without that wire, comparable to a Tesla: the car looks at its surroundings and determines its route on that basis."
The availability of new technologies such as these prompted Berg Hortimotive to re-engineer the entire product. This process was started one and a half to two years ago. "As a result, we now have a nice pepper AGV, and now also a tomato AGV, because of course it doesn't stop at peppers."
The new AGVs are already active in the pepper cultivation at Rolf Vijverberg, and soon the tomato AGV will be supplied to a company in Poland.
Reinvented
The AGV has been reinvented, so to speak; Sjef gives some examples by zooming in on new components. "In the motors, for example, you used to have carbon brushes, which were maintenance-sensitive. For a number of years now, there have been motors on the market that are brushless. We have collected components like that."
Another example is the guidance technology already mentioned: the vehicle looks at its surroundings instead of driving over a 'wire'. "The first method of automatic guidance was a slot in the concrete with a chain pulling the vehicle back and forth. From that system, we switched to a wire in the concrete with an electrical signal that the vehicle can follow. Now, even that wire is no longer needed."
As mentioned, the company started the new developments two years ago, and the first project was delivered in March 2021. "So it is not a completely new product, but we have developed it further."
Peppers
But why was pepper chosen in the first place, and not tomato for example, which is a bigger product after all? "That has to do with the fact that tomatoes are harvested while walking. Tomatoes are hung at a height that is accessible to people. For peppers, you always have to use a vehicle that can reach height. So it is easier to switch to AGVs in pepper cultivation, and it is also the most profitable option for pepper growers. The business case is easier to make. But AGV use is also worthwhile for tomato growers. That is why we have made this option available."
Another factor is that in many countries the cultivation of peppers is growing enormously. Sjef has been working as a sales manager at Berg Hortimotive for 15 years now, both nationally and internationally, and he has therefore been able to follow these developments closely. "Due to the increasing virus pressure in tomatoes, we see many growers trying something different and making the switch to peppers." In short, there is plenty of room in the market for the renewed pepper AGV, but most certainly for the tomato AGV as well.
For more information:
Sjef Loomans 
Berg Hortimotive
M +31 (0)6 2207 7450
Sjefloomans@berghortimotive.com
www.berghortimotive.com