Dümmen Orange, leading breeder and propagator, kicked off the start of the construction of its new Breeding Technology Centre (BTC) for flower research. With the centre, Dümmen Orange centralizes facilities (labs and offices) for all fields of technology that will speed up breeding and selection processes to enable customers worldwide to access superior products.
Dümmen Orange and the construction companies involved, gathered for a festive moment on 9 May 2018 at the office of Visser & Smit Bouw in Rotterdam to celebrate the official start of this unique project. It took Dümmen Orange several months to get to this point. After thorough research and evaluation, the construction companies were selected for their knowledge and experience with similar constructing high-tech buildings.
The new Breeding Technology Centre will be the world’s largest laboratory for flower research. The laboratory will consist of three floors with a total size of 4,000 m2, and harbors facilities for scientist and supportive staff in the fields of phytopathology, genetics, genomics and plant physiology.
The research program focusses on traits that bring added value to the product chain like resistances, improved shelf life and improved yield. It will make use of technologies that increase the efficiency of the breeding programs through molecular breeding, efficient trait evaluation and genetic diversity analyses. As well as of technologies that bring speed to market through optimal crossing and life cycle reduction.
High level
Kees Hertogh (Project Manager BTC Construction at Dümmen Orange) says: “We are happy to have found the right partners for this job, with high level of experience in the area. Because of the mutual trust we gained during the process, we are confident that they will realize the construction as designed”.
The construction partners are: Visser & Smit Bouw (building constructions), Steegman (electrical engineering), Verstappen van Amelsfoort BV (mechanical engineering) and Van den Berg Klimaattechniek (climate rooms).
According to Hans van den Heuvel (Managing Director R&D at Dümmen Orange), “The construction of the Breeding Technology Centre in De Lier is an important next step for Dümmen Orange to accelerate and expand our product innovation to meet the needs of our customers. I am very excited about this project.”
The building project immediately started after the kick off. The official opening will take place by the end of 2019.
