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Mexico · Bell pepper for export
A phased export development where the priority was staging capital across three blocks without rebuilding shared infrastructure at each stage.
Overview
The commercial and technical starting point for this greenhouse project.
The group already exported peppers from open field production and wanted to move to protected cultivation to extend the marketing window and improve pack-out grade. Capital was available in stages tied to export revenue, so the development had to be built in three blocks over several seasons without stranding investment in infrastructure that later needed replacing.
Challenge
Phased developments fail on infrastructure sizing more often than on greenhouse specification.
01
Aegis planned the full 8.5 ha layout first, then divided it into phases that could be built and financed independently.
The complete site layout — block orientation, road network, reservoir position, pump station and packhouse interface — was fixed before the first structure was ordered, so each phase connected into infrastructure that was already correctly positioned.
The reservoir and main pump station were designed for the final 8.5 ha but built with staged pump capacity and staged filtration, avoiding a full rebuild at phase two and three.
Gutter direction and internal levels were set against the site survey so drain water collection worked by gravity across all three blocks rather than requiring additional pumping in later phases.
Insect screening specification, screened entries, a hygiene routing plan and a buffer between the greenhouse and adjacent open field production were specified to reduce inherited pest pressure.
Packhouse flow, batch separation and cold chain interface were planned so traceability requirements were satisfied by the physical layout rather than by paperwork alone.
02
Specification favoured proven, locally serviceable equipment over automation that would be difficult to maintain on site.
| System | Selection | Reason for selection |
|---|---|---|
| Structure | Gutter-connected multi-span, 8 m span | Best cost per square metre at this scale in a mild climate |
| Cladding | Diffuse anti-drip film, multi-season | Reduces condensation drip and disease pressure at acceptable capital cost |
| Ventilation | Roll-up sides and roof vents with insect mesh | Passive cooling suits the climate, mesh addresses inherited pest pressure |
| Growing system | Coco coir slabs, drip fertigation with drain collection | Proven for pepper, and drain collection supports water compliance |
| Water | Reservoir plus staged pump and filtration | Sized for the final area, installed to match each revenue phase |
| Screening | Shade screen, insect mesh, screened entries | Protects pack-out grade and supports residue compliance |
| Post-harvest | Shared packhouse with batch separation | Export traceability handled by physical layout |
Outcome
Phase two connected into existing infrastructure without redesign, which was the test the master plan was built to pass.
Because the reservoir, pump station and packhouse were positioned for the final area before phase one, phase two required no relocation of shared infrastructure and no rework of the main irrigation network.
Setting gutter direction from the site survey allowed drain water to be collected by gravity across all blocks, removing a pumping station that had been assumed in the original concept.
Insect exclusion measures specified at design stage reduced the pest pressure inherited from adjacent open field production and supported the residue compliance the export buyers required.
Gallery
Reference images of the greenhouse type, growing system and installation stage used on this project.
Phase one and two, planned within the full 8.5 ha master layout
Gutter-connected multi-span structure with screened roll-up sides
Master layout fixed before the first structure was ordered
FAQ
Technical and commercial questions raised on this turnkey greenhouse project.
Because shared infrastructure position is almost impossible to change later. Reservoirs, pump stations, packhouses and road networks placed to suit only the first block force expensive relocation or duplication at phase two. Planning the final layout first costs very little and protects every later phase.
Yes, in a mild climate where the structure does not need to solve a severe heating or snow load problem. Export grade depends far more on the growing system, screening, irrigation control and packhouse discipline than on whether the roof is film or glass.
Structures and growing systems are ordered per block, while shared infrastructure is designed for the final area and installed in capacity steps — for example the reservoir is built once but pumps and filtration are added as blocks come online.
Continue
Explore the connected technical and commercial topics for this project stage.
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