Working at a plant factory is not easy. “Cost reduction”, “Revenue increase”… I’ve also struggled with these…
I’ve systematized my years of experience so that it can be applied to any site.
A collection of practical know-how that increases revenue and can be used in all plant factories.
- Know-how with operational experience in the latest large-scale plant factories in Japan
- Over 400 pages of information in PDF
- Can be used in many sites regardless of scale or specifications
- Specialized in profitability, so it leads to results
Characteristics of a bad plant factory
It’s unfortunate that the image of plant factories being in the red is already established, but there are many plant factories that are actually struggling.
I’ve seen many plant factories over the years.
In my interactions with many plant factories, there are points that I think “This is no good…”.
That is,
- Because of the staff’s lack of skills
- Because they lack experience
Cases like this, where the reason for the lack of results is attributed to “people” and they never move forward. This is surprisingly common, but I think it’s characteristic of a “bad plant factory”.
Even if results aren’t achieved, it’s not the staff’s fault. In fact, I think the staff working on the front lines are trying hard.
They just don’t know the right know-how and how to increase profitability.
This is why many plant factories are inefficient and their staff are struggling.
You can’t grow if you have this misunderstanding
In my opinion, the reason for the lack of know-how is partly due to a misunderstanding that many plant factories fall into.
What is this misunderstanding? It’s that,
Many people working at plant factories think that if they learn the basics and work hard at their current jobs, they will be able to improve and succeed in the future.
In other words, they believe that “If you keep working hard, you will succeed someday”.
Hmm… I don’t completely deny this, but I think “It’s a long way off”.
I have been involved in the management of many plant factories and have come into contact with many producers. My detailed background is below.
What I’ve come to feel through these experiences is that,
Even those with extensive field experience don’t know “Specific know-how that directly affects profitability”.
In other words, I feel that many cases involve simply continuing to do the basic methods they learned at the beginning.
If you don’t continue to accumulate know-how and change to a more profitable way of doing things, you won’t get results.
Are you making this mistake?
- Are you selecting seedlings using the same method in all Growth stages?
-
It’s essential to select good seedlings in transplanting and final transplanting.
However, it’s a mistake to select seedlings using the same criteria in all Growth stages.
This is because the manufacturing cost varies significantly depending on the Growth stage. If you don’t design the Cultivation process and select seedlings with this in mind, you won’t increase profitability.
In other words, the closer you get to the final stage, the higher the manufacturing cost becomes, so selecting seedlings will result in greater losses.
- Have you heard that tipburn is caused by a “calcium deficiency” and are blindly increasing calcium Fertilizer?
-
It’s true that tipburn is caused by a “calcium deficiency,” but tipburn is not as simple as just increasing calcium Fertilizer to solve it.
Do you understand why the following occurs?
- Tipburn increases and decreases depending on temperature and humidity
- Tipburn does not improve even though air is blown into the bed
- Tipburn occurs only in parts of the bed
To solve these problems, you need a deeper understanding of tipburn and more practical knowledge.
You won’t find this know-how in books or on the internet.
Of course, there is some fragmented information available. However, it’s difficult to find information that is systematized and elevated to the level of plant factory know-how.
Successful plant factories have developed this know-how themselves or have acquired it from external sources and skillfully incorporated it into their operations.
In other words, you need to get the know-how
I’ve gone on for a long time, but this book is basically a systematized collection of “know-how that can be used in the field”.
It’s over 300,000 characters long, with topics written separately as “172 hints”.
This collection of know-how is a “blueprint” for making your plant factory “profitable”.
Use it as “insurance” to make your site easier to manage.
And what I want to emphasize is that,
This book is all about profitability, profitability, profitability.
It’s content that is specifically focused on profitability.
It’s not just theoretical, it’s the know-how that I’ve honed while practicing in the field for over 10 years.
Reviews from readers
After releasing this book, several plant factories have picked it up and have achieved results by putting the know-how into practice.
The places you should read are divided by item, so
It’s useful to look at when you’re in trouble.
It confirms, “Are my ideas correct?”
When you read it, you can think, “Oh, I forgot about this.”
I haven’t read it through yet, but
I realized that this book can lead to increased profitability.
Many more plant factories are buying and putting the book into practice.
The know-how in this book can be applied to many workplaces regardless of size or specifications, so knowing it will give you an advantage over other factories.
Don’t be left behind using inefficient methods.
Applicable to many workplaces, regardless of size or specifications
I can’t say that you will definitely succeed just by reading this collection of know-how.
However, this book is a culmination of my experience in improving and launching several plant factories with different specifications and equipment.
It summarizes the essence of operating a plant factory.
By the way, can you really get “valuable know-how that is worth the price?”
This book contains a massive amount of theory and skills that I have developed through years of trial and error. Many of these are not available in other books or on the internet.
It is know-how that has been proven in actual operation at several workplaces, so I believe it will be valuable information for many plant factories regardless of size or equipment specifications.
Please pick up this book and put the content into practice.
You will surely see good results.
In your workplace, will you adopt know-how with a proven track record, or will you stay as you are?
I want you to buy this as a company to improve the level of the entire workplace
Now, how will you choose, will you buy it as an individual or as a company?
I want you to aim for an overall improvement in the workplace. So, I hope you will purchase it with company funds so that all your staff can put the know-how into practice.
This book does not allow sharing with third parties, but sharing within the same workplace is permitted.
The plant factories I know well are sharing know-how with their employees, and it is having a positive effect.
If it can be shared knowledge within a team, it will be especially smooth to proceed when working on new improvements.
How to purchase and download
I struggled with the pricing. This is because there are no other similar services or content.
The big difference is that this book is more about “application” than “basics.” The content is practical and focused on “profitability.” If you practice it correctly, you should easily recoup the purchase price.
I have spent a considerable amount of time and effort writing this book.
It took me more than 10 hours a day, for about 3 months, to systematize the tacit knowledge that was originally my know-how. It took me over 10 years to develop this know-how in the first place.
Considering this, I hope you will understand why I can’t offer it at a cheap price.
I have set the price at 98,000 yen because it is a price that can be recouped in a few months even for a small-to-medium-sized facility.
There is currently no other information that is as specific and focused on increasing profitability as this book.
If you work in a plant factory or facility cultivation, I highly recommend that you pick it up.
172 Tips to Boost Plant Factory Profitability
10+ Years of Real-World Expertise
Shohei Imamura
File format: PDF
Release Date: August 18, 2024
98,000 yen
P.S.
There are a few secrets hidden in this collection of know-how…
I have been involved in the launch and operation of many workplaces. These are things I have kept as my own know-how.
Increasing profitability is difficult in any workplace, and there are times when you struggle…
How to operate efficiently in the midst of this.
Your struggles are also my own.
That’s why I put my strong feelings into this book.
I want to support as many workplaces as possible to improve their profitability.
This is why I created this content, and it is my driving force.
“What is truly important in a plant factory is not the latest equipment, but the “power of people.”
Shohei Imamura
I joined the plant factory industry in 2011, and as a field worker and support team manager, I have been involved in the launch and operation of over 10 plant factories, both large and small. I have been involved in the training of over 600 staff. From this experience, I am convinced that what determines the profitability of a plant factory is not state-of-the-art equipment or systems, but the skills, knowledge, and awareness of the “people” who operate them. With practical know-how honed in the field as my weapon, I am now independent. I provide consulting and support services to plant factories to improve profitability, as well as content provision. I am known for my easy-to-understand guidance, even for beginners, and my practical know-how that can be used immediately in the field, and I am gaining support from many companies.
Table of Contents of this book
Chapter 1: Managing the Cultivation Environment
Chapter 2: Temperature
Chapter 3: Humidity
Chapter 4: Light
Chapter 5 Nutrient solution circulation and water
Chapter 6: Fertilizer Handling
Chapter 7: CO2 and Wind
Chapter 8: Cultivation Data Analysis
Chapter 9: Growth Disorders
Chapter 10: Production Planning
Chapter 11: Production Data Analysis
Chapter 12: Managing and Educating Employees
Chapter 13: Hygiene Management
Chapter 12: Entering the Cultivation Area
Chapter 14: Germination, Seedling Stages, and Sowing Points
Chapter 15: Growth Stage and Points for Transplanting and Final Transplanting
Chapter 16: Points on Harvesting and Trimming
Chapter 17: General Post-Harvesting Operations
Chapter 18: Cleaning and Washing Operations
Chapter 19: Other Management Operations
Click here for detailed table of contents
Introduction
Chapter 1: Managing the Cultivation Environment
🔴 1 | Crop Management That Values the Basics Always Pays Off
🔴 2 | Understanding Photosynthesis is the First Step to Increasing Productivity
🔴 3 | The Secret to Manipulating Photosynthesis Effectively Lies in the “Balance” of the Cultivation Environment
🔴 4 | Pay More Attention to CO2 and Water
🔴 5 | The Goal of Crop Management Is Not to “Provide Enough,” but to “Never Let It Be Insufficient”
🔴 6 | These Two Elements Are the Most Cost-Effective for Increasing Yield
🔴 7 | The Trade-off Between Yield and Quality
🔴 8 | Summary of the Effects of Cultivation Environments on Crops
🔴 9 | Summary of System Settings for Optimizing Crop Growth
🔷Column | Thoughts After Entering the Plant Factory Industry
Chapter 2: Temperature
🔴 10 | Higher Temperatures Promote Plant Growth, but There Are Limits
🔴 11 | Cases of Tipburn Caused by Temperature
🔴 12 | Increase Productivity by Setting Temperatures Based on Growth Stage
🔴 13 | The Best Temperature Setting Can Only Be Determined Through Repeated Fine-Tuning
🔴 14 | Take Early Action to Address Seasonal Temperature Changes
🔴 15 | Lettuce Can Bolting Be Triggered by Temperature
🔴 16 | True Temperature Management Can’t Be Achieved Through Data Alone
🔴 17 | If the Nutrient Solution Temperature Is Similar to the Air Temperature, Control Is Unnecessary
🔴 18 | Dew on Leaves Leads to Reduced Yield
🔴 19 | A Technique for Creating Sturdy, High-Quality Seedlings: Utilizing DIF
🔴 20 | Alternative Method “DROP” for Environments Where DIF Is Not Applicable
🔷Column | Leaving the System Controls Unattended, the Cultivation Room Reached an Incredible Temperature…
Chapter 3: Humidity
🔴 21 | The Producer’s Role is to Manage Humidity Without Interfering with Transpiration
🔴 22 | The Dangers of High Humidity: It Can Cause Tipburn
🔴 23 | The Dangers of High Humidity: Dew Formation
🔴 24 | If Localized Tipburn Occurs, High Humidity May Be the Cause
🔴 25 | Differences Between Dehumidifiers and Air Conditioners in Terms of Humidity Control
🔴 26 | Benefits and Precautions of Cultivating in High Humidity
🔷Column | What Happened in a Constantly 100% Humidity Environment
Chapter 4: Light
🔴 27 | Why Plants Don’t Grow When Light is Weak
🔴 28 | Cases of Damage Caused by Excessive Light
🔴 29 | Stunted Growth Occurs When the Balance Between Photosynthetic Energy Production and Consumption is Disrupted
🔴 30 | When You Think Light is Too Strong, Check Other Environmental Factors First
🔴 31 | Effective Ways to Illuminate Crops
🔴 32 | Reflective Materials Are Worth Installing
🔴 33 | The Right Way to Think About Lighting Fixtures
🔴 34 | Changing the Illumination Schedule During Growth Reduces Photosynthetic Efficiency
🔴 35 | A Challenge to Extend Illumination Time Unless Growth Problems Occur
🔴 36 | Strategies for Cultivating in Low Light
🔴 37 | Drawbacks of Excessive Illumination Time
🔴 38 | Why Sunny Lettuce in Plant Factories Doesn’t Turn Red
🔴 39 | Harvesting time in Light period or Dark period affects product quality
🔷 Column | The Story of a Big Mistake when Replacing Fluorescent Lights
Chapter 5 Nutrient solution circulation and water
🔴 40 | EC only tells you the approximate Fertilizer concentration, but that is enough
🔴 41 | What EC controls is the amount of water absorbed by the crop
🔴 42 | EC should be managed within a range of 0.1
🔴 43 | A method that may be an ideal form of EC management, but not realistic
🔴 44 | Fertilizer components crystallize when pH increases
🔴 45 | The key to pH management is to constantly maintain a slightly acidic state and avoid rapid changes
🔴 46 | Why does the pH of the Nutrient solution change?
🔴 47 | Refrain from using pH Adjuster and adjust pH with the amount of ammonia nitrogen
🔴 48 | Other functions required for the Hydroponic system besides EC and pH management
🔴 49 | The occurrence of chloramine, a factor that causes root browning
🔴 50 | Why you shouldn’t try to completely control algae
🔴 51 | Measures to suppress algae growth through daily management
🔴 52 | Focus on the flow of the Nutrient solution rather than the dissolved oxygen concentration
🔴 53 | Risk of Garbage Accumulation in Growing Beds and Tanks
🔴 54 | The Peace of Mind of Having Nutrient Solution Renewal as a Backup Option
🔴 55 | Process for Successfully Completing Full Nutrient Solution Renewal
🔴 56 | Nutrient solution sterilization is ineffective and has drawbacks.
🔴 57 | “Big and Abundant Roots are Good” Doesn’t Apply in Plant Factories
🔷Column | The Story of Tears and Snot, Cleaning with a Broken Heart
Chapter 6: Fertilizer Handling
🔴 58 | Basic Knowledge of Fertilizer Creation Using Single Nutrient Fertilizer
🔴 59 | Even with a Rough and Biased Solution Recipe, Crops Can Grow Well
🔴 60 | Using Compound Fertilizer for Micronutrients is Practical, Not Single Nutrient Fertilizer
🔴 61 | When growth is poor for unknown reasons, suspect a Micronutrient deficiency
🔴 62 | The one way to find a solution recipe suitable for your cultivation environment
🔴 63 | Adapt the solution recipe flexibly based on changing conditions
🔴 64 | A Practical Approach to Determining Solution Recipes
🔴 65 | Specific calculation procedure using the Nutrient solution Design sheet
🔴 66 | Fertilizer weighing errors are absolutely unacceptable. Implement a system to ensure detection
🔴 67 | How to Streamline Fertilizer Agitation
🔴 68 | The reason for separating concentrated solutions into A and B tanks is “solubility”
🔴 69 | Be mindful of precipitation caused by pH influence
🔴 70 | Brownish sand accumulating in the growing bed is precipitated iron
🔷Column | Things I think are essential during facility and organization setup
Chapter 7: CO2 and Wind
🔴 71 | Understanding CO2 as food for plants
🔴 72 | Photosynthesis does not proceed without wind
🔴 73 | The fundamental approach to CO2 management is to “never let it run out”
🔴 74 | The Role of Airflow Created Throughout the Cultivation Chamber
🔴 75 | Why Tipburn Does Not Disappear Even When Air is Blown into the Growing Bed
🔴 76 | CO₂ Supply is Cost-Effective for Yield Increase
🔷Column | Why I Always Explain to Newcomers That 1000ppm CO₂ Is Like Being Inside a House
Chapter 8: Cultivation Data Analysis
🔴 77 | Cultivation Data Becomes an Asset and Leads to Successful Cultivation
🔴 78 | Maximize Yield Through Data Analysis
🔴 79 | How to Obtain Necessary Yield Data while Keeping Costs Down
🔴 80 | Track Days to Harvest by Managing All Panel Data
🔴 81 | Trimming Waste Ratio is an Excellent Indicator Essential for Productivity Improvement
🔴 82 | Maximize Profitability by Standardizing Crop Size
🔴 83 | Never Let Seedlings Run Out to Maintain Profitability
🔴 84 | How to Instantly Detect Anomalies and Mistakes Occurring in the Factory
🔴 85 | How to Determine if There Is a Nutrient Solution Problem
🔴 86 | Saving Equipment Setting History Improves Cultivation Stability
🔷Column | How Far Should We Go with Systematization in the Field?
Chapter 9: Growth Disorders
🔴 87 | Cultivation in a plant factory is a battle against growth disorders caused by accelerated growth
🔴 88 | Understanding the Cause of Tipburn to Fight Against “The Greatest Enemy”
🔴 89 | Dealing with Tipburn That Suddenly Increases Before Harvesting
🔴 90 | Why Increasing Calcium Concentration in the Nutrient Solution Doesn’t Solve Tipburn
🔴 91 | “Attack and Defense” Strategy to Maximize Productivity While Battling Tipburn
🔴 92 | Leaf Scorch Can Occur When Plants Come into Contact with Lighting Fixtures
🔴 93 | Preventing Etiolation is Key to Increasing Yield
🔴 94 | Measures to Prevent Etiolation in Plant Factories
🔴 95 | Root Damage Has a Major Impact on Aboveground Growth, Leading to a Significant Decrease in Yield
🔴 96 | While Hydroponics Can Cause Problems with Crop Rotation, There’s No Need to Worry
🔷 Column | The True Terror of Tipburn
Chapter 10: Production Planning
🔴 97 | A Detailed Production Plan Is Essential to Maximize Profits
🔴 98 | Production-Sales Mismatches Significantly Reduce Profitability
🔴 99 | Why You Should Never Choose a Variety That Isn’t Suitable for a Plant Factory
🔴100 | Target Harvesting Weight: The Foundation of a Productive Cultivation Process
🔴101 | Designing a Productive Cultivation Process for Maximum Yield
🔴102 | Batch Harvesting vs. Push Harvesting: Which is More Efficient?
🔴103 | Calculating the Maximum Production Capacity of a Factory Based on Cultivation Process Design
🔴104 | Concept of Working Days: Daily Operation Is Not Always Efficient
🔴105 | The Amount of Work Varies Significantly Depending on Which Beds Are Allocated for Production
🔴106 | Break Down the Cultivation Process into a Schedule to Determine When and What Tasks Occur
🔴107 | Manage the Required Labor Force Accurately Based on the Schedule
🔴108 | Allocate the Required Number of Personnel by Day to Prevent Personnel Shortages and Surpluses
🔴 109 | How to Implement Production Plans on the Shop Floor: “Providing the Necessary Information Appropriately”
🔷 Column | When a Full-Production Shop Floor Reaches Its Limit
Chapter 11: Production Data Analysis
🔴110 | Evaluating Production Results: The Concept of Productivity
🔴111 | Understanding and Comparing Sales and Production Value in Plant Factories
🔴112 | Continuously Tracking Profitability Through Production Value and Manufacturing Cost
🔴113 | Cost Analysis by Variety: Focus on High-Profit Items
🔴114 | Sales, Production Value, and Manufacturing Cost “Per Gram” are the Most Reliable Indicators
🔴115 | Grasp Whether Invested Expenses are Being Used Efficiently Through Indicators
🔷Column | “You keep saying ‘improve, improve,’ but are you saying we’re slow?”
Chapter 12: Managing and Educating Employees
🔴116 | Accurately Understanding and Allocating Necessary Labor Force
🔴117 | The Daily Task List Is Essential for Maximizing Employee Utilization
🔴118 | The Higher the Proportion of “Human Tasks,” the Greater the Value of Education
🔴 119 | Why Do Efforts Like Organizing and Cleaning Fail?
🔴 120 | “We Can’t Do Improvement Activities Because the Field Is Busy”
🔴 121 | Silencing the Resistance to Improvement That Emerges When Conducting Improvement Activities
🔷Column | Work Manuals That Are Created But Not Read
Chapter 13: Hygiene Management
🔴 122 | Hygiene management in a plant factory is based on area zoning
🔴 123 | Creating unreasonable hygiene rules that are simply strict is a recipe for failure
🔴 124 | Hygiene rules for individual workers
Chapter 12: Entering the Cultivation Area
🔴 125 | Entry Rules for the Cultivation Area
🔴 126 | Prolonged Rubbing Is Not Recommended: Establish Reasonable Handwashing Rules
🔴 127 | Hygiene Training at the Time of Employment is Highly Cost-Effective
🔴 128 | Hygiene Management Can’t Be Achieved Without Humidity Control
🔴 129 | Cases Where Hands and Equipment Should Be Washed During Work
🔴 130 | Pest Control in Plant Factories Despite Their Closed Environments
🔴 131 | Implement Prevention and Monitoring to Absolutely Prevent Insect Breeding within the Factory
🔷 Column | The Story of a Swarm of Insects Infiltrating the Factory
Chapter 14: Germination, Seedling Stages, and Sowing Points
🔴 132 | Seed Storage Points
🔴 133 | Medium Selection and Urethane Water Absorption
🔴 134 | Sowing Operation
🔴 135 | Germination
🔴 136 | Improving Yield Prediction Accuracy Through Seedling Management
🔴 137 | Seedling Growth
🔷Column | An Unforgettable Mishap During Seedling Transportation
Chapter 15: Growth Stage and Points for Transplanting and Final Transplanting
🔴138 | Proper seedling selection can significantly improve profitability
🔴139 | Transplanting
🔴140 | Final Transplanting
🔴 141 | Selecting Seedlings During Final Transplanting Can Decrease Profitability
🔴 142 | Proper Maintenance of Growing Beds
🔴 143 | Considering the Economic Rationale of “High-Value Vegetables” Not in High Demand by Consumers
🔴 144 | The Mechanism Behind Increasing Beneficial Compounds Through Environmental Control
🔴 145 | Production of High-Value Vegetables: Cost Is a Given, But Here Are Concrete Strategies for Achievement
🔷Column | The Tragedy of a Growing Bed Left Uncleaned
Chapter 16: Points on Harvesting and Trimming
🔴 146 | Post-Harvesting Tasks Have the Highest Labor Costs, Providing Significant Room for Cost Reduction
🔴 147 | Preventing the Decline in Work Speed Caused by “Others Are There, So It’s Okay”
🔴 148 | If You Don’t Educate Them to Become a Little Faster, They’ll Stay Slow Forever
🔴 149 | harvesting
🔴 150 | Automation and Efficient Production Line Construction
🔴 151 | Never Wet Harvested Vegetables
🔴152 | Trimming Rules: Defining Key Points for a Stricter Approach
🔴153 | Accurate Trimming Boosts Productivity
🔴154 | The Impact of “Chatter” During Work on Work Efficiency
🔴 155 | Factors Determining the Shelf Life of Vegetables
🔷 Column | Nearly Collapsing from Shuttle Running Inside the Factory
Chapter 17: General Post-Harvesting Operations
🔴 156 | Respiration of Vegetables After Harvesting and the Importance of Cold Storage
🔴157 | Why Package Leaf Lettuce for Sale?
🔴158 | Area Classification and Product Movement Restrictions Based on Hygiene Levels in Post-Harvesting Processes
🔴159 | Weighing Before Packaging
🔴 160 | Packaging
🔴 161 | Inspection and Final Weighing
🔴 162 | Packing
🔴163 | Product Inventory Management
🔷Column | The Nightmare of Two All-Nighters Experienced During Factory Startup
Chapter 18: Cleaning and Washing Operations
🔴164 | The Key to Cleaning is “Every Nook and Cranny” Rather Than “Sparkling Clean”
🔴 165 | Create a Checklist to Cover All Cleaning Areas
🔴 166 | Drying is More Important Than Sterilization
🔴 167 | How Much Cleaning is Reasonable for Growing Panels?
🔷 Column | Are records paper-based or database-based?
Other Management Operations
🔴168 | Create Checklists Even for Inspection Tasks Where Omissions and Mistakes Are Unacceptable
🔴169 | How to Manage Consumables to Avoid Running Out
🔴 170 | Predict Troubles and Plan Countermeasures in Case of Production Stoppage
🔴 171 | Recognize That Human Errors Are Inevitable Due to the Way the Human Brain Works
🔴 172 | The Strongest Error Prevention Method: Double-Checking (Can Be Done Even Alone)
Conclusion