How well growers, integrators, and solutions providers work together determines greenhouse performance.
As an integrator, Dramm Corporation is agnostic when it comes to the equipment required to create effective and efficient solutions.
“We don’t offer one type of solution or a single piece of equipment,” says Jared Babik, national project sales manager for Dramm. “Equipment choice is based on understanding the problem through testing and discussion”
The integrator isn’t just connecting growers and solutions providers. They’re responsible for how the subsystems perform together under real operating conditions.
But the lines start to blur when production issues arise and growers need a solution.
Where it Gets Sticky
If a crop fails, growers need to know whether they have a product, operation, or installation problem on their hands. Most issues trace back to operational changes that outpace the greenhouse design—in these situations, it’s essential for integrators to react quickly.
“Communication is key in these situations. Virtual meetings or getting on-site as soon as possible, if necessary,” Babik says. “We want the customer to know we’re here to support them.”
In addition, it’s important to listen to the grower’s challenges to get an idea of what’s not working in the greenhouse.
“We need to understand what crop loss is and the variables that could have impacted that,” he explains. “Listening and learning is a part of the process.”
Once an integrator knows what the problem is, they can fix it. Babik has seen this scenario play out across all kinds of crops, from cannabis to floriculture.
Saving a Cannabis Greenhouse
Most greenhouse failures aren’t system failures. They’re capacity mismatches.
Earlier this year, Babik received a call from a cannabis grower saying their irrigation was very inconsistent. With Dramm being the designer and provider of the irrigation components and pumping system, he visited the grower to scope out the issue in person.
Once he arrived at the greenhouse, he started turning irrigation valves off to get to the root of the problem.
“After a discussion and walking the greenhouse to manually operate the irrigation, I found out they had doubled their plant count in the same amount of bench space,” he explains. “They doubled the flow demand without an understanding of the capacity of the irrigation pump system. Our designs always provide a buffer in terms of capacity, but doubling is rare in terms of initial capex budget and efficient water movement”
Babik recommended they invest in a couple of extra solenoid valves. When the grower implemented that, their water pressure returned to normal, and all emitters were equal in output.
“Sometimes the problem isn’t caused by the entire system going haywire,” he says. “Depending on what the variable is, it could be relatively inexpensive to bring everything back to homeostasis.”
An understanding of the integration from source to stem is crucial to identify the underlying issue.
Designing for Fewer Problems
Before working with an integrator, Babik emphasized that the first proposal isn’t final. Integrators and greenhouse solutions providers can work together to come up with a plan that will drive effective results for the grower at a price that works for them.
“Sometimes growers will have grandiose plans and expectations of what they need, but haven’t thought about the cost,” he explains. “When we draft the proposal, the cost may be too much for them. There are many ways we can reduce the price or spread it out over time to give them the water quality and capacity they need.”
In these scenarios, communication is essential. Growers must understand that both integrators and greenhouse solutions providers are their project partners.
“Based on the demand within the facility, both initially and in the future, along with proper water testing, we can provide multiple options to get the facility running with a plan in place to expand in the future with minimal down time and labor,” Babik says.
Growers also need to understand how integrator decisions impact timelines and constraints. On top of performance, equipment selection is about availability, lead times, and how systems are built. An efficient team avoids last-minute decisions, compromises, and redesign under pressure.
What a Strong Integrator Partnership Looks Like
A strong integrator relationship isn’t defined by communication alone. It’s defined by how well the roles are understood and how quickly systems respond under pressure.
This means the integrator handles how irrigation, climate, and controls work together, while solutions providers offer insight on how the equipment performs. When the responsibilities of both parties are fully outlined, problems can be addressed quickly and effectively.
“Integrators need to have a good understanding of what their vendor channel partners look like and what they do,” he says. “Dramm knows water well, so we know which companies offer which services.”
This level of clarity helps integrators choose the right solutions provider early and ensures the greenhouse systems work together properly.
More often than not, gaps in greenhouse projects aren’t caused by one mistake. They’re caused by systems that aren’t aligned on design, responsibility, and capacity.
The difference becomes clear when greenhouse systems are under stress and put to the test.
“Companies like LLK and Dramm, who’ve been in the industry for many years, are trusted partners,” Babik says. “It can be hard to communicate the value of working with companies like ours at first, but our customers realize the value more than anything when their greenhouse is up and running.”
