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ABOUT EFS
Engineered Farming Solutions (EFS) was formed in 2014 by Jannie Gutter and Peter Windsor joining previously separate companies.
Jannie is a Pr Eng (Civil), a graduate from the University of Pretoria and has a B. Com (Accounts) degree from the University of South Africa. Apart from Jannie’s mining and engineering portfolio, Jannie is an avid blueberry, Proteas, vineyard and cattle farmer.
Peter studied his National Diploma in Mechanical Engineering at CPUT and has been building agricultural structures and equipment since graduating. He also is a keen berries and vegetables farmer.
The company employs staff consisting of management, engineers, designers, technical services, operators and support personnel.
Adding value
EFS provides a range of products and services and is focussed mainly on the berry and vegetable industries.
Crop Protection
We specialise in the design, manufacturing and installation of passive ventilation greenhouse structures.
Creating solutions
Our flagship products are light structured, arched, multi-span poly-tunnels and shade-net structure.
Farm Requisites
We also provide a multitude of products and services related to the industry such as conventional shade-net structures, in-field equipment, implements, irrigation design and supply and many more.
What we do
Design & Design Evaluation
Our portfolio of greenhouse designs is based on the experience we attained in the past 17 years, both locally and abroad.
We have a team of qualified engineers and pride ourselves on giving the best solution matrix to address cost vs strength vs functionality.
We make use of sophisticated CAD tools such as SolidWorks, AutoCAD, CADKey and IrriMaker.
EFS provides both standard specifications of arched Multi-span structures and customised options.
All designs are simulation tested using Finite Element Analysis (FEA) tools.
This gives us predictable outcomes with regard to weather variables.
Filed Planning
As a service to our clients, EFS can provide crop, site and suitability analyses to ensure that the customer is well informed and the most efficient infrastructure options are chosen before a project gets underway.
We make use of accurate surveying equipment and provide detailed, superimposed drawings on satellite images, giving the client the ability to visualise the project.
Thanks to our CAD tools, we ensure that all Irrigation blocks match the greenhouse infrastructure.
Manufacturing
Most of our components are manufactured in-house at our fully equipped factory located in Bloemfontein, South Africa.
We make use of qualified artisans, ensuring the highest quality products.
Our greenhouse components are all corrosion protected to ensure the best durability of our structures.
We hold stock of the most common items to ensure that we can supply our customers on relatively short notice periods.
Depending on the cover materials requirements, a typical lead-time of 6 to 8 weeks can be expected for orders of 20 hectares or less. Components that are critical to installation time-frames are always prioritised to ensure that work can proceed on-site as early as possible.
Logistics
EFS is able to deliver anywhere. We make use of our own vehicles when the orders are fairly small and we have built strong relationships with reliable transporters for the larger projects. We have extensive experience in import and export and assist in ensuring regional customs requirements are achieved hassle free.
Installation
Our products are designed to be installation friendly and movable.
We adopt a cost sensitive approach to installation whereby, in most instances, we make use of and train either the client’s labour force or locally sourced labour.
We provide experienced supervisors for either the entire duration of the installation or for milestone points in the installation – whichever is preferable to the client.
In doing so, the client has future access to locally available, trained staff .
Specialised installation equipment is provided free of charge.
Products
Arched Multi-span
Lightweight, Movable.
Protects against rain, hail, frost, sun- scorch
Requires some venting and wind management
Relatively inexpensive
Industry norm for berries
Shade-net Structures
Lightweight, Movable.
Protects against hail, sun- scorch and somewhat against frost
Requires very little management
Relatively inexpensive
Arches remove hail effectively
Can be upgraded to accommodate polythene
Top-Vented
Lightweight, Movable.
Combines Shade-net and Polythene with an Apex Vent
Protects against rain, hail, frost, sun- scorch, heat and humidity build-up
Requires very little management
Nearly as effective as Pad-and-fan cooling at a fraction of the cost
Best structure for berries
Flat and Pitched
Due to the very high demand from our clients for a simpler-to-install Shade-net system, EFS has recently designed our own unique Flat and Pitched structures. We’ve applied our experience with Poly-tunnels to achieve the following:
Very easy installation
Strong and long lasting components
Pre-manufactured components for fast assembly
Very little in-field preparation compared to wood-pole systems
Substantially less transport volume compared to wood-poles – a large cost saving
Less labour required for handling compared to wood-poles
The Pitched structure is designed specifically for use in high-risk hail areas
Irrigation
In the spirit of EFS being a solutions company and many of our clients wanting a one-stop service, in 2015 we partnered with arguably South Africa’s largest wholesale irrigation supplier to give our customers an irrigation service on top of what we already do.
We’ve employed qualified staff and have invested in design software to ensure that we compete with leading, existing suppliers to our growers. This also allows us to compare and integrate our structure design more collaboratively with the irrigation suppliers that our customers have known for many years.
Bed Forming Machines
Robust design
Works in almost all soils
Makes firm, accurate bed shapes
Available for sale or rental
Our work
Research & Development
EFS is constantly working to improve and expand our product range. To achieve this, we establish trial sites on our own farms and do extensive evaluations. We have for example gathered leaf and ambient temperature data on blueberries over a period of 6 months, comparing open-field plants to 4 different cover variations.
Example 1
Testing the effects of different types of polythene covers.
High Diffusion Polythene vs. Anti-thermic Polythene
Example 2
How Poly-tunnels affect the airflow of mist-blower spray equipment in Blueberries.
Community Development
EFS has been involved in a number of community upliftment projects.
We remain committed to ensuring that our efforts benefit the industry at large and we take care to assist in the development of emerging farmers.
After-Sale Service
At EFS we take great pride in our company’s reputation. We often go far beyond our supply obligations to ensure that our customers are completely satisfied. We evaluate ourselves through the feedback we receive from our clients and strive to achieve a level of service that lends itself to repeat orders.
Get in touch
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- Address
- -29.077015, 26.206258
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- Phone Number
- +27 (0)51 407 6600
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- info@efsagri.zo.za
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- Mobile
- +27 (0)83 407-9988