How one greenhouse automation company innovates

"We continue to look for new ideas from growers and to help them find the solutions they need," said Raymond van den Berg of ISO Group in accepting the award.

Since then, the company has backed up these words, introducing more machines and further establishing its presence in the U.S. with the planned opening of an office in Richmond, VA, in January 2023.

On the heels of Cultivate'22, five years after the Technology of the Year award was bestowed on the ISO Group, Greenhouse Grower Senior Editor Brian Sparks reconnected with van den Berg to learn more how the company has grown over the past few years.

Brian Sparks: Can you talk about the new facility in Richmond and how it will operate for growers here in the U.S.?

Raymond van den Berg: The purpose of us becoming more local in North America is the growth in the amount of growers using our machines. At this point, we have 45 customers and we have more than 100 machines that are operational. To give you a comparison, five years ago we had three growers and 10 active machines. In the last five years, there's been an exponential growth in the number of growers that are using our machines. We always choose as a company to work directly with the grower so there's no middleman. Everything is still serviced and installed from Holland, and that has always been the case. Prior to 2020, we made plans to expand in the U.S. We all know what happened in March 2020, so everything was put on hold, and nobody knew how long that would last. As things began opening up in 2021 and 2022, we knew this would be the year for us. Everything will still be owned, managed, and built here in Holland. But sales and service will all be provided from out of Richmond, VA.

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Photo: ISO Group Sorter and Planter

Source: Greenhouse Grower