March 19, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
VICTORIA, BC – March 19, 2019 – SunTracker Technologies Ltd. is preparing to release its Cerise 365TM horticultural lighting design software in Q2 2019. This product will combine SunTracker’s award-winning Cerise 365 lighting calculation engine with its proprietary GreenhouseDesignerTM parametric CAD modelling engine to provide lighting design services specifically for controlled growth environments, including greenhouses, vertical farms, and building atria.
Farmers need to know the Daily Light Integral (DLI) of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) in order to determine how much daylight their crops will receive during the growing season. This is easily determined from published charts for field crops, but it is only possible to guess at the values inside greenhouses due to the reflection of direct sunlight and diffuse daylight from the greenhouse glazing. This makes it difficult to estimate supplemental electric lighting requirements and corresponding monthly electricity costs.
Cerise 365 addresses this problem by accurately modelling the distribution of PAR values within a greenhouse on an hourly basis throughout the year, based on historical weather records from over 2,000 weather stations worldwide. This information can then be used to calculate accurate DLI values and estimate supplemental lighting requirements and monthly energy costs during the design phase of greenhouse construction.
Cerise 365 can also be used to design horticultural lighting systems for vertical farms, including warehouses with overhead luminaires and LED or fluorescent strip lighting for stacked trays of micro greens, medicinal, and ornamental plants.
Lighting design software for architectural applications typically require experienced computer-aided drafting (CAD) operators to model the buildings. SunTracker’s GreenhouseDesigner parametric CAD modelling engine eliminates this problem by enabling users to specify basic parameters such as the building dimensions, roof style, and glazing properties; the modelling engine then automatically generates the greenhouse geometry, with lighting calculations being performed at the push of a button.
About SunTracker Technologies
SunTracker Technologies Ltd. is a green technology company incorporating over 35 years software and engineering experience to develop products to effectively model and control horticultural environments to maximize efficiency, reduce energy and utilize but not alter the natural environment.
SunTracker was formed in 2011 to access the power of predictive daylighting, precision modelling, using high speed and high-performance algorithms. As standalone software, or incorporated with third party systems to add value to existing products, SunTracker is committed to using its patented technology to reduce energy consumption, and effective use of light, heat, humidity and other parameters in a system to meet the needs of the horticulture industry.
For further information, contact:
Wallace Scott, CD, Senior IP Counsel
SunTracker Technologies Ltd.
wallace.scott@suntrackertech.com
Copyright© 2019 SunTracker Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved. All company and/or product names may be trade names, trademarks, and/or registered trademarks of the respective owners with which they are associated. Features, pricing, availability, and specifications are subject to change without notice.