Practical guides — 11 min read
How to evaluate greenhouse suppliers and solution providers: qualification criteria, reference checks, scope comparison, warranty terms and the warning signs that predict project problems.
By Aegis Project Engineering
Published /Updated
Price is the last criterion, not the first. A supplier without reference projects in your climate zone and crop carries risk that no discount offsets, because the cost of a facility that underperforms for twenty years dwarfs any procurement saving. Establish who is capable of delivering, then find out what they charge.
Assess capability against the specific project, not against general reputation. A manufacturer excellent at Northern European glass facilities may have no relevant experience in desert cooling, and the reverse is equally true.
Reference checks are the highest-value diligence available and the most commonly skipped. Ask to speak with growers directly rather than accepting a project list, and ask about what went wrong rather than what went well. Every project has problems; what distinguishes a good supplier is how they were resolved.
Suppliers deviate from specifications in ways that are rational for them and invisible to buyers. Levelling — pricing every exclusion so all offers describe the same facility — is the only way to make a real comparison. Expect the ranking to change once levelling is complete.
Certain supplier behaviours during tender reliably predict problems during delivery. None of them are conclusive alone, but together they justify walking away regardless of price.
Turnkey concentrates accountability with one party, which suits investors without in-house technical capability but reduces flexibility. Separate packages can lower cost where the client can manage interfaces. The configuration that fails most often is separate packages with nobody coordinating them, because interface gaps surface during commissioning when they are most expensive.
Aegis does not manufacture greenhouses, which is why we can tender them. An independent party writes the specification, qualifies the shortlist, levels the bids and supervises delivery against the document. Where the advisor also sells the structure, the specification and the bid comparison stop being neutral.
Aegis Project Engineering
Structural and climate engineering desk
The engineering desk writes the technical specifications behind Aegis projects, covering structures, glazing, climate systems and irrigation. The team reviews supplier designs against local load codes and measured site climate data rather than reference-project assumptions.
FAQ
Buying direct removes a margin layer but leaves the buyer writing the specification, levelling the bids and supervising installation. That works when the client has genuine in-house horticultural engineering capability. Where it does not exist, the cost of independent engineering is smaller than the cost of an unlevelled procurement.
Three to five qualified bidders. Fewer removes competitive pressure; more dilutes the effort each supplier puts into the response and makes levelling disproportionately time-consuming without improving the outcome.
After proper levelling, often yes. Before levelling, almost never — because the lowest headline number typically reflects the narrowest scope rather than the best value.
Structure and glazing warranties of ten years or more are normal, with shorter terms on moving parts and control equipment. More important than duration is the service response commitment and spare parts pricing, since a warranty without regional service capability has limited practical value.
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