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Coming Soon: Facilities That Also Happen to be Farm

William Attardi on April 22, 2026

What if your most important tenants were not people but, well, crops? The coming of a new “vertical farm” industry is turning that unusual vision into reality. Vertical farms offer new, unique option for building owners looking for ‘tenants’. The multiple concerns with our global industrialized food system range from the existence of “food deserts” in which many people lack access to fresh, nutritious food to the increasing desire and market for food that is healthy, safe, high quality and free of harmful pesticides. The idea of bringing food production closer to its consumers is manifesting itself in the development of a new sector experimenting with how to turn buildings into indoor farms.  Coming Soon: Facilities That Also Happen to be Farms – Facilities Management Insights

Sollum Technologies Launches SF-INFINITE the Most Advanced Dynamic LED Fixture for Commercial Greenhouses

William Attardi on February 28, 2026

Sollum Technologies announced the launch of the SF-INFINITE™️ fixture, strengthening its leadership in lighting technology for commercial greenhouses. The SF-INFINITE is the most advanced dynamic LED lighting fixture. It consolidates Sollum’s roadmap in Greenhouse lighting represents one of the most capital-intensive infrastructure decisions that growers must make. Traditional systems often restrict operations into fixed capabilities for years after installation. This forces producers to anticipate future crop strategies, energy constraints, and market demands well in advance —often as they have yet to emerge. The SF-INFINITE was designed to eliminate that risk.to a single, future-ready solution designed to support the evolving needs of greenhouse operators. EN + FR 2026 SF-INFINITE SPEC SHEET MARKETING

BriteSwitch: Rebates Bloom as Horticulture Lighting Market Heats Up

William Attardi on November 12, 2025

Once limited to research labs and specialized grow rooms, horticulture lighting has become one of the fastest-growing segments in the lighting industry. As technology costs drop and efficiency improves, these systems are now used in greenhouses, vertical farms, floriculture, and even in facilities producing plant-based vaccines. The global market is expanding at roughly 12% per year and is projected to reach $22 billion by 2033, making it one of the brightest opportunities for both lighting manufacturers and rebate-driven projects. Like they did with traditional lighting, LEDs have revolutionized grow lights. With 20 to 45% less energy usage than conventional HID grow lights, they provide a huge opportunity to cut operating costs for growers. The reduced wattage also means less waste heat, which is hugely beneficial to indoor growing operations. In October 2019, the DesignLights Consortium (DLC) created a new standard and Qualified Products List (QPL) specifically for horticulture lighting. Over the years, the DLC has become the de facto standard utilities use to ensure customers install high-quality lighting when applying for incentives.  In 2025, the DLC released version 4.0 of its technical requirements.  55% of the US is covered by an active horticulture lighting rebate; 53% are calculated on a per-fixture basis.  BriteSwitch Can Help You Find and Capture the Rebates:

Rebates Bloom as Horticulture Lighting Market Heats Up

The DLC’s Horticultural Lighting QPL- What You Need to Know by Kasey Holland

William Attardi on July 16, 2025

Valued at $7.8 billion last year, the global controlled environment agriculture (CEA) market is expanding at a compound annual growth rate of 12.2% and expected to reach $22 billion by 2033, according to a recent market research report. With lighting as the largest operational cost in CEA facilities, opportunities abound for indoor growers to save energy and reduce expenses with the right lights. The average efficacy of listed products has increased by nearly 25% since the DLC launched its horticultural lighting qualified products list (QPL) in 2019. There are now over 1,375 products from nearly 150 manufacturers on the Horticultural QPL – a more than 54% increase in listed products since 2020. The DLC’s Horticultural QPL offers CEA lighting specifiers and contractors increasing product variety, and CEA growers ample opportunities for savings. The DLC’s Horticultural Lighting Program aims to accelerate widespread adoption of high performance, energy-saving LED technology in the horticultural lighting sector. The Horticultural QPL is a key tool in advancing that goal. Accessing the QPL is simple – just create a free My DLC account to start searching. The DLC’s Horticultural Lighting QPL- What you need to know | EC&M

 

Sollum Technologies Partners with Optimal to Advance AI Greenhouse Control

William Attardi on June 12, 2025

Sollum Technologies is pleased to announce a strategic partnership with Optimal, a leader in AI greenhouse control. This collaboration integrates Sollum’s 100% dynamic LED lightingwith Optimal’s AI climate and irrigation control platform, enabling growers to precisely execute their desired growing strategy under rapidly changing weather conditions.  By integrating with Sollum’s proprietary SUN as a Service® platform, Optimal’s AI anticipates the impact of light and balances it with climate and irrigation in real time. Optimal’s AI seamlessly updates settings in the grower’s existing control computer. The result for growers is a fully automated system that precisely executes their growing strategy 24/7 across lighting, climate, and irrigation. https://www.ledinside.com/news/2025/6/2025_06_12_02

Gourma Chooses Sollum Technologies’ Fully Dynamic LED Lighting Solution

William Attardi on April 9, 2025

Sollum® announced its partnership with Gourma, a leading fine herb grower based in Saint-Norbert, Québec. Gourma offers 25 potted herb varieties, including nine that are certified organic. These aromatic herbs are distributed across Québec in the produce sections of grocery retailers, reflecting the quality and reach of their greenhouse production. In early 2023, Gourma undertook a major brand repositioning, doubled its production area, and adopted a forward-thinking vision focused on innovation. With the integration of Sollum’s dynamic LED lighting solution, the company is now making a significant shift towards a fully controlled and adaptable lighting environment. This collaboration will enable Gourma to precisely tailor lighting conditions to the specific needs of its herbs, influencing key factors such as morphology, colour, and flavour. https://www.ledinside.com/news/2025/4/2025_04_09_04

The Statue of Liberty was made with copper but due to oxidation, it turned green.

When the “Lady in the Harbor” first arrived in New York in 1886, she didn’t look like the mint-green icon we know today. In fact, for the first twenty years of her life, she stood as a towering, metallic beacon of reddish-gold. Designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and engineered by Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, the statue was a gift from France to America. To build her, Bartholdi chose copper for three practical reasons:

  • Malleability:It could be hammered into elaborate, thin sheets.
  • Weight:Copper is lighter than stone or bronze, making it easier to ship 350 individual pieces across the Atlantic.
  • Durability:It was strong enough to survive a 27-day ocean voyage and the harsh winds of the harbor.

When she was unveiled on October 28, 1886, her skin—made of 300 copper sheets roughly the thickness of two pennies—shone with a bright, metallic brown luster. The transformation from “penny-colored” to “patina-green” wasn’t planned. Bartholdi actually expected the statue to age into a deeper, darker red. However, the unique environment of New York Harbor—a mix of salt air, moisture, and industrial pollution—triggered a process called oxidation.

The Timeline of Change:

  1. 1886–1900:The bright copper dulled into a dark, muddy brown.
  2. 1903:The first hints of a light green crust, or “patina,” began to appear.
  3. 1906:The color change was so controversial that Congress nearly stepped in. They appropriated $62,000 to paint the statue back to its original color, but the public protested, calling the idea “sacrilege.”
  4. 1910–1920:The statue was a patchy mix of brown and green until 1920, when the oxidation was complete, leaving her entirely teal.

While we now view the green color as iconic, it actually serves a vital structural purpose. The layer of verdigris (the green patina) acts as a protective shield. It seals the copper underneath, preventing the metal from further corrosion and weathering.  By the time the color fully changed, a new generation of immigrants had arrived in America seeing a green statue.